United States v. Williams

I agree with the majority that the district court violated the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment at trial in accepting the stipulation that the package seized at the Louisville airport contained 98.61 grams of heroin. I respectfully dissent, however, from the majority’s conclusion that the error requires a new trial. Notably, the stipulation did not connect Williams to the seized package or inculpate Williams in the charged conspiracy in any *135way. Having reviewed the record in light of Neder v. United States, 527 U.S. 1, 119 S.Ct. 1827, 144 L.Ed.2d 35 (1999), Delaware v. Van Arsdall,…