State v. Wade

Citations

• 351 Conn. 745

Syllabus

In accordance with the Appellate Court's decision in State v. Crespo (190 Conn. App. 639), the due process right to confront adverse witnesses at a probation revocation hearing is not absolute but, rather, is determined by application of a balancing test, pursuant to which a court weighs the defen- dant's interest in confronting the witness against the state's reasons for not producing the witness and the reliability of the proffered evidence. The defendant appealed, on the granting of certification, from the judgment of the Appellate Court, which had affirmed the trial court's judgment revok- ing his probation. The revocation of probation was based on allegations that the defendant had violated the conditions of his probation by participating in a home invasion, leaving the state without permission, and failing to submit to substance abuse evaluations and counseling. The defendant claimed that the Appellate Court incorrectly concluded that he or defense counsel had abandoned, at his probation revocation hearing, the defendant's request that the trial court apply a Crespo balancing before admitting an out-of-court identification by an unavailable witness, R, of the defendant as one of the individuals involved in the home invasion. Held: The Appellate Court incorrectly concluded that the defendant or defense counsel effectively had abandoned the defendant's claim that the trial court should apply the balancing required by Crespo to vindicate his right to confront R, and, accordingly, the defendant was entitled to a new probation revocation hearing. The defendant properly raised his Crespo claim in the first instance in a prehearing motion, and neither the defendant nor his counsel expressly or impliedly abandoned that claim at the probation revocation hearing. 746 APRIL, 2025 351 Conn. 745 State v. Wade Defense counsel never indicated to the trial court that it did not need to balance the interests of the defendant and the state in determining whether to admit R's id