COMMONWEALTH v. RIVERA, FEBRUARY 23, 2010, APPEALS COURT
Confrontation of witness, Authentication, Ballistician’s certificate
The defendant was convicted of carrying a firearm without a license and carrying a loaded firearm. He appealed and argued the admission of the ballistic certificate during trial violated his Confrontation Right under the Sixth Amendment. The Appeals Court agreed. Under Melendez-Diaz, the government may not prove its case "via ex-parte out-of-court affidavits." Here the Court reasoned that without the certificate there was no other evidence presented that would have enabled the jury to have found the firearm was capable of firing a bullet. Since there was no objection at trial the standard of review was whether the admission of the certificate created a substantial risk of a miscarriage of justice. The Court found it did and reversed the conviction.
