People v. Williams

Opinion

YEGAN, J.

Lawyers appreciate a trial court which candidly explains the reasons for its rulings. This may help lawyers and their clients in assessing the strengths and weaknesses of their cases. This is in contrast to the trial court which utters words like “granted,” “overruled,” “denied,” “sustained” without any explanation as to how it reached its pretrial or trial rulings. A trial court which elects to explain its rulings should consider how its explanations will appear. Here, the trial court was deeply troubled by its perception of perjury. Its outpouring of candor resulted in…