Crawford v. Washington

Crawford v. Washington is a landmark U.S. Supreme Court case from 2004 that significantly impacted the use of hearsay evidence in criminal trials. The ruling established that a defendant's Sixth Amendment right to confront witnesses means they cannot be convicted based on testimonial statements made outside of court unless the witness is present to be cross-examined. In this case, the Court found that statements made by a spouse to the police were inadmissible because the defendant had no opportunity to challenge them, reinforcing the importance of face-to-face confrontation in the legal process.