Jefferson v. Commonwealth

At the trial of defendant Frank A. Jefferson for a felony, his counsel moved the court to exclude the witnesses. Over defense counsel’s objection, the court permitted a detective, who was the chief investigating officer in the case, to remain in the courtroom and to testify after hearing the testimony of other witnesses for the Commonwealth. Jefferson appeals his conviction, assigning error to the court’s refusal to exclude the detective and relying on the following statute enacted in 1966:

“§ 8-211.1. Exclusion of witnesses in civil and criminal cases — In the trial of every case, civil or…