People v. Johnson

The rule against hearsay evidence has been a fixed principle of Anglo-American jurisprudence since the late 1600s, when Lord Coke, in his Third Institute, denounced “the strange conceit that one may be an accuser by hearsay.” See 2 J. Strong, McCormick On Evidence § 244, at 425 (4th ed. 1992).

The sixth amendment to the United States Constitution, various state and federal evidence codes, and common law court decisions reflect a strong preference that the accuser in a criminal case be present in open court, under oath, subject to cross-examination.

There are exceptions to the rule against…