Opinion ID: 1785298
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Historical Roots of the Confrontation Clause

Text: The right to confrontation can only be understood in light of its historical roots. See Crawford, 541 U.S. at 42-43, 124 S.Ct. 1354 (The Constitution's text does not alone resolve this case.    We must therefore turn to the historical background of the Clause to understand its meaning.). Similarly, exceptions to the confrontation right can be understood only in light of historical practice. See id. at 54, 124 S.Ct. 1354 (The text of the Sixth Amendment does not suggest any open-ended exceptions from the confrontation requirement to be developed by the courts. Rather, the [amendment] is most naturally read as a reference to the right of confrontation at common law, admitting only those exceptions established at the time of the founding.  (emphasis added)). Thus, both the historical purpose of the confrontation right, as well as the origins of the forfeiture-by-wrongdoing exception to that right, must be examined if we are to understand that exception's application today. The right to confrontation precedes English law, dating back to at least Roman times. Crawford, 541 U.S. at 43, 124 S.Ct. 1354. Following the English conviction and execution of Sir Walter Raleigh for treason on the basis of hearsay evidence, however, that right gained particular prominence in English law. Id. at 44, 124 S.Ct. 1354. The absolute necessity of a confrontation right was understood by the founders of this country as well. While the Constitution was being ratified, the Antifederalists harshly criticized the lack of a federal right to confrontation, observing that written evidence offered without a chance for cross-examination was useless in the search for truth. Id. at 49, 124 S.Ct. 1354 (citation omitted). The historical importance of the right to confrontation was made even clearer by the right's recognition as a bedrock principle applicable to the states through the 14th Amendment, Pointer v. Texas, 380 U.S. 400, 403, 85 S.Ct. 1065, 13 L.Ed.2d 923 (1965), and the reaffirmation of the right's precedence over considerations of reliability, as well as the established hearsay exceptions, Crawford, 541 U.S. at 68-69, 124 S.Ct. 1354.