State v. Hale

¶ 91. (concurring). This case, which follows in the wake of Crawford v. Washington, 541 U.S. 36, 124 S. Ct. 1354 (2004), affirms the principle that out-of-court "testimonial" statements by witnesses are barred from criminal trials by the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment unless the witnesses are "unavailable" and the defendants against whom the statements are to be used have had a prior opportunity to cross-examine the witnesses. This exclusion of evidence applies irrespective of whether the statements are "reliable."

¶ 92. I join the majority opinion articulating this principle but…