Legal Question in Criminal Law in Washington

violation of 6th amendment

my uncles were found guilty by a jury that never saw a witness. the only thing they had was statements made by the accuser. one officer asked a question the other officer answered the questions with just the statment accuser did. how can a jury find them guilty without a doubt. my uncles have a 12 year sentence. the 6th amendment say the accused will the the right to confront there accuser, is that right?


Asked on 6/09/03, 6:16 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
David Ruzumna Law Office of David Ruzumna, PLLC

Uncle's conviction

It depends on the type of case. IF this was a case involving allegations of sex offenses against children, for example, then a special statute called the child hearsay rule would apply. A more general rule is that if the alleged victim made statements to the officer which form the basis for the charge, the rules of evidence and the exceptions to the hearsay rule would apply. If you uncle was convicted, he would have only 30 days within which to file an appeal, so depending on the date of his conviction, it may be a moot issue (although with constitutional violations, he could generally do certain petitions even after the 30 days, but he shoudl definitely speak to his attorney/public defender about the deadlines etc. Feel free to give me a call if you have any questions, or want to discuss the possibility of an appeal.

David Ruzumna

206-985-8000

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Answered on 6/10/03, 10:27 am


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