Ray Hacker v. Commonwealth,
KSC 2012-SC-000269-MR, 3/20/14, Not to be Published. Reversed and remanded
On trial for murdering his girlfriend, Hacker
testified he was on probation for being a felon in possession of a handgun. On
cross the Commonwealth asked about details of his arrest and read the report
which described Hacker as belligerent and screaming profanities and provided
evidence he owned guns and had threatened his girlfriend’s life.
The
Court rejected the argument that Hacker "opened the door" to
impeachment, noting it was the Commonwealth, not the defense, who "opened
the door" by asking Hacker to relay his version of events on
cross-examination and then using the report to impeach him. The report conveyed
impermissible hearsay and violated the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth
Amendment.
Brian Barker preserved the issue at trial. Erin Yang won the appeal.
Contributed by Susan Balliet
