Michigan v. Bryant
Encyclopedia
Michigan v. Bryant, 131 S. Ct. 1143 (2011), is a case
decided by the United States Supreme Court on February 28, 2011. The case concerns a criminal defendant's Confrontation Clause
right regarding statements made by a deceased declarant.
statement made by the victim identifying Bryant as the perpetrator. That statement was introduced at his trial and used against him. Bryant challenged the use of the statement because he had had no prior opportunity to cross-examine the declarant, which he argued was a violation of his right to confrontation
under the Sixth Amendment
, as interpreted in Crawford v. Washington
and Davis v. Washington
.
Legal case
A legal case is a dispute between opposing parties resolved by a court, or by some equivalent legal process. A legal case may be either civil or criminal...
decided by the United States Supreme Court on February 28, 2011. The case concerns a criminal defendant's Confrontation Clause
Confrontation Clause
The Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that "in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right…to be confronted with the witnesses against him." Generally, the right is to have a face-to-face confrontation with witnesses who are...
right regarding statements made by a deceased declarant.
Factual background
Richard Perry Bryant was convicted of second-degree murder in part on the basis of a hearsayHearsay in United States law
Hearsay is the legal term for testimony in a court proceeding where the witness does not have direct knowledge of the fact asserted, but knows it only from being told by someone. In general the witness will make a statement such as, "Sally told me Tom was in town," as opposed to "I saw Tom in...
statement made by the victim identifying Bryant as the perpetrator. That statement was introduced at his trial and used against him. Bryant challenged the use of the statement because he had had no prior opportunity to cross-examine the declarant, which he argued was a violation of his right to confrontation
Confrontation Clause
The Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides that "in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right…to be confronted with the witnesses against him." Generally, the right is to have a face-to-face confrontation with witnesses who are...
under the Sixth Amendment
Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution is the part of the United States Bill of Rights which sets forth rights related to criminal prosecutions...
, as interpreted in Crawford v. Washington
Crawford v. Washington
Crawford v. Washington, 541 U.S. 36 , is a United States Supreme Court decision that reformulated the standard for determining when the admission of hearsay statements in criminal cases is permitted under the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment...
and Davis v. Washington
Davis v. Washington
Davis v. Washington, 547 U.S. 813 , was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States holding that hearsay statements made in a 9-1-1 call asking for aid were not "testimonial" in nature and thus their introduction at trial did not violate the Confrontation Clause as defined in Crawford v...
.
Decision
The Supreme Court held that the victim's statements were not testimonial and that they were properly admitted at trial.External links
- Michigan v. Bryant Resource Page Containing background materials and links to key materials on the case.
- Slip opinion from the Supreme Court
- Opinion by the Michigan Supreme Court
- Michigan v. Bryant coverage on SCOTUSblogSCOTUSblogSCOTUSblog is a law blog written by lawyers and law students about the Supreme Court of the United States . The blog is sponsored by Bloomberg Law. The blog's first post occurred October 1, 2002. The blog moved to its current address on February 7, 2005. In the same year, it was featured by...