Darryl Lamont McKeldin v. Jim Rose, Warden, Tennessee State Penitentiary and William M. Leech, Jr., Attorney General, State of Tennessee

The State of Tennessee appeals from a judgment of the district court granting ha-beas corpus relief to the petitioner McKel-din. The question in the case is whether the absence of counsel at a preliminary hearing on a felony charge requires automatic reversal, or whether this admitted denial of a constitutional right may be held harmless error. We conclude that the constitutional infringement disclosed in this case is subject to a harmless error analysis and, accordingly, reverse the judgment of the district court.

The petitioner was • represented at the preliminary hearing by a…