| Venue: | SCOTUS |
| Facts: | Ventris and Theel rob and murder Hicks. The state drops murder charges against Theel in exchange for her testimony that Ventris is the shooter. There's an informant in Ventris's cell, as well, to whom Ventris talks about the crime. |
| Posture: | At trial, Ventris fingers theel, The state introduces the informant, for impeachment purposes. The jury acquits on murder, but convicts on burglary and robber. KS SC reverses, state appeals. |
| Issue: | Can a defendant's incriminating statement to a jailhouse informant, elicited in violation of his 6A rights be admitted for impeachment? |
| Holding: | Yes. Reversed. |
| Rule: | You can't use 6A as a shield for perjury. |
| Reasoning: | You're entitled to assistance of counsel; that's clear, and we're not changing it. And statements obtained in violation of that right can't be admitted in the case in chief. But we're not going to keep them out if a defendant perjures himself-- it's not a question of whether rights were violated, it's a question of ths scope of the remedy for that violation, and we decline to say that the remedy includes prohibiting the state to counter contradictory testimony. |
| Dicta: | Stevens, dissenting: shabby tactics. |