On Tuesday, June 8, the Eleventh Circuit ruled that a defendant's Sixth Amendment right to confront the state's cooperating witness was violated when the state trial court limited the scope of defense counsel's cross-examination. In Childers v. Floyd, 08-15590, the cooperating witness, whose sentence was being reduced from 125 years in prison to 18 months, began to alter his testimony on matters defense counsel deemed crucial to his defense. Although the trial court allowed defense counsel to cross-examine the witness on several inconsistent statements, he was prohibited from fully exploring his motive for amending his previous testimony. The panel emphasized "...the particular importance of searching cross-examination of witnesses who have substantial incentive to cooperate with the prosecution...and [the] heightened need for full cross-examination to unearth possible bias."
-RCS
