People v. Hyland

In People v. Hyland, 212 Mich App 701; 538 NW2d 465 (1995), the defendant, who was convicted of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, was removed from the courtroom during the child victim's testimony after he twice interrupted her testimony. Id. at 708. The Court rejected the defendant's argument that his removal from the courtroom violated his Sixth Amendment right to confront the witnesses against him. The Court held that the defendant's confrontation rights were preserved where the child was competent to testify, the defendant retained the full opportunity for cross-examination, both the defendant and the jury were able to observe the child on a monitor, defense counsel was present in the room with the child and was able to object to inappropriate questions, and the defendant had the opportunity to confer with counsel during questioning.