confrontation clause
Confrontation Clause. The Sixth Amendment provision generally guaranteeing a criminal defendant’s right to confront an accusing witness face-to-face and to cross-examine that witness. • This right may be overridden if the witness is esp. vulnerable, as with a child who is an alleged victim of sexual abuse. Even then, the defendant’s attorney must have an opportunity to examine the witness while the defendant observes by means of closed-circuit television or the like. See Maryland v. Craig, 497 U.S. 836, 110 S.Ct. 3157 (1990). [Cases: Criminal Law 662.1–662.80. C.J.S. Criminal Law §§ 1115–1133.]
