Date of Award

Spring 2019

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Major

Public Policy and Law

First Advisor

Glenn Falk

Abstract

Following the Supreme Court’s 2004 decision in Crawford v. Washington, tensions between the Sixth Amendment Confrontation Clause and evidence-based prosecution of intimate-partner violence increased. In consequence, the Court forged a path of Constitutional jurisprudence which has weakened the power of the Confrontation Clause, reverted to a disguised reliability test reminiscent of Ohio v. Roberts, and diminished the rights of the accused. Simultaneously, these rulings have created a hierarchy where the severity of private, domestic violence is regarded as a lower level of emergency than public violence. Consequently, the Supreme Court’s primary purpose test for testimonial statements should be replaced with a two-part test which analyzes both the purpose and function of out-of-court statements, and evidence-based prosecutions should be supported by policy solutions adopted at local and state levels.

Comments

Senior thesis completed at Trinity College, Hartford, CT for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy and Law.

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