People v. John, 27 N.Y.3d 294 (2016)

The Sixth Amendment’s Confrontation Clause is violated when a DNA report is admitted into evidence for its truth without the testimony of an analyst who performed, witnessed, or supervised the generation of the DNA profile.

Summary

The New York Court of Appeals held that the admission of DNA reports violated the defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to confrontation. The prosecution introduced DNA reports linking the defendant to a gun, but did not call as a witness the analyst who conducted or supervised the DNA testing. The Court reasoned that the DNA reports were testimonial because their primary purpose was to establish a fact in a criminal proceeding. The Court distinguished this from prior cases, emphasizing that a testifying witness must have performed, witnessed, or supervised the generation of the DNA profile to satisfy the Confrontation Clause. The Court reversed the Appellate Division’s decision and ordered a new trial.

Facts

The defendant was arrested after being seen pointing a gun. Police found a gun in a basement near the defendant’s apartment, and DNA swabs were taken from the gun. The DNA swabs were sent to the New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner (OCME). OCME generated a DNA profile from the swabs and from the defendant’s buccal swabs. At trial, the prosecution called an OCME analyst to testify as an expert, but this analyst did not perform, witness, or supervise the DNA testing of the gun swabs. The analyst presented the DNA reports from other analysts that identified the defendant’s DNA on the gun. The defendant objected, arguing that the DNA reports were testimonial hearsay and that the analysts who performed the tests were required to testify. The trial court overruled the objection and admitted the reports into evidence.

Procedural History

The trial court denied the defendant’s motion to suppress the gun. The trial court also denied the defendant’s motion to preclude the DNA reports or require the analysts to testify. The defendant was convicted of criminal possession of a weapon and menacing. The Appellate Division affirmed the conviction. The New York Court of Appeals granted the defendant leave to appeal.

Issue(s)

1. Whether the admission of the DNA reports violated the defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to confrontation.

Holding

1. Yes, because the DNA reports were testimonial and admitted for their truth, and the analysts who performed the tests did not testify.

Court’s Reasoning

The Court relied on the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment, which guarantees a defendant’s right to confront the witnesses against him. The Court cited *Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts* and *Bullcoming v. New Mexico*, holding that forensic reports are testimonial if their primary purpose is to establish facts in a criminal proceeding. The Court distinguished the case from *Williams v. Illinois*, where the forensic reports were not admitted for their truth and the analyst was not offering the report’s statements for their truth. The Court found that, in this case, the DNA reports were offered to prove the defendant’s guilt and were testimonial because they were generated in a criminal case against a specifically charged defendant. The Court emphasized that the analyst who testified at trial had not performed or supervised the DNA testing and was acting as a surrogate witness. The Court held that to satisfy the Confrontation Clause, at least one analyst with personal knowledge of the DNA profile testing must testify and that analyst must have performed, witnessed, or supervised the generation of the DNA profile.

Practical Implications

This case clarifies the requirements for introducing DNA evidence in New York criminal trials. Prosecutors must ensure that the analyst who generated the DNA profile, or at least someone who witnessed or supervised that generation, testifies and is subject to cross-examination. Testifying witnesses must not be mere conduits for the findings of others, but rather testify to their own independent analysis of raw data. This ruling impacts how forensic evidence, especially DNA evidence, is presented and analyzed in court. This decision will likely change how prosecutors present DNA evidence in court to ensure that they comply with the Confrontation Clause. Law enforcement agencies and crime labs may need to adjust their procedures to ensure that the necessary analysts are available for testimony and that those analysts are appropriately trained.