Omar Montes was accused of shooting and killing Robinson Lopez.
The key witnes in the case was Loraine Ceballo, who testified that she saw Montes and his friend, Carlos Gonzalez, confront the victim with unidentified objects in their hands, that she later heard gunshots, and that she saw Gonzalez and Montes run into her building.
Following Ceballo's testimony, her friend Tamika Taylor was questioned and, after being confronted with Ceballo's testimony, Taylor admitted to being at the scene of the crime and corroborated Ceballo's version of events.
The following day, Taylor testified that, after the shooting, she saw Gonzalez put "something" in Ceballo's purse and, while riding in the building's elevator, Ceballo supposedly said, "What am I going to do with the guns .... I don't want this in my house." (Taylor claimed to have seen one gun, and was uncertain if there had been others.)
Since Taylor brought to light a material omission in Ceballo's testimony, Montes argued that that gave his attorney the right to ask Ceballo more questions, but since she had suffered a nervous breakdown, and couldn't be recalled because of her condition, Montes sought a mistrial or to strike Ceballo's entire testimony.
The New York County Supreme Court, the Appellate Division, First Department, and our state's highest court, disagreed with Montes's position.
While a defendant has the right confront adverse witnesses, that entitlement didn't extend to recalling a witness after she had already testified and been extensively cross-examined. Although Taylor revealed out-of-court statements made by Ceballo, since that testimony only bolstered Montes' case (by putting Ceballo's credibility into question) the New York State Court of Appeals was of the view that Montes had no right to cross examine Ceballo a second time, and that all of her testimony was admissible.
That certainly was trying.
To view a copy of the Court of Appeals's decision, please use this link: People v. Montes