CRAWFORD v WASHINGTON

The UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT has recently changed the criminal rules of evidence as they pertain to "hearsay". For the last forty years, criminal courts had been allowing juries to hear more and more "hearsay" . That is, judges have been allowing witnesses to testify as to what other people have told them, even though the witness has no personal knowledge of the facts. 

An example would be if Susan were allowed to testify that Joe said he saw you, the accused, steal a car. Susan doesn't know if Joe is telling the truth or not. Maybe the thief looked like you and/or maybe Joe wasn't wearing his glasses. Since Susan wasn't there, she doesn't know the circumstances as to why Joe said you stole the vehicle. If a judge allowed Susan to testify as to what Joe told her, that would be "hearsay" and it could improperly influence a jury.

The primary problem with "hearsay" is that an accused cannot meaningfully question the testimony. This is called "confrontation" and everyone accused of a crime has a right to confront or question the accuser. In my example above, Joe is the accuser. Susan didn't see anything. All she is doing is repeating what Joe, the accuser, said. 

In my example above, you (the accused) should be able to question Joe whether he had his glasses on; whether he was drinking or otherwise on drugs; whether he was one block away or 10 blocks away when the vehicle was stolen, etc. This is why "hearsay" is not admissible in court as a general rule.

Despite the rule, judges had been allowing juries to hear more and more "hearsay" to aide in deciding whether an accused should be found guilty. This has now changed under CRAWFORD.

If an out-of-court statement is "testimonial", that is if the statement places blame for the crime on a defendant, then it cannot be introduced through anyone else except the person who actually made the observations. This is true of children as well as adults. The CRAWFORD rule is designed to provide an objectively fair procedure to determine guilt. "Confrontation" is the mainframe of fairness. 

If you are accused of a crime and the case involves "hearsay", be sure to consult a criminal defense attorney who understands the CRAWFORD decision and how it might affect your case. Don't be afraid to ask him about CRAWFORD.