Vernell Wigglesworth v. State of Oregon

Vemell Wigglesworth, an Oregon state prisoner, appeals the district court’s denial of her petition for a writ of habeas corpus. She was convicted in state court of conspiracy to deliver a controlled substance (cocaine). The chain of evidence that tied Wigglesworth to the conspiracy was not strong. An essential link in that chain was a lab report which indicated the presence of cocaine in water Wigglesworth was flushing down a sink drain when she was arrested.

In this habeas proceeding, Wigglesworth argues that by admitting the lab report into evidence without some testimony to authenticate it, the state trial court violated her right to confrontation under the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution. She also contends that although the Oregon statute under which the lab report was admitted permitted her to call the lab technician and examine him as to the report’s authenticity, this procedure relieved the state of its burden of proving an essential element of the crime with which she was charged, in violation of her rights under the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments. We agree with this latter contention and order the writ issued.

FACTS

Police suspected cocaine was being…