Imprisoning Innocence: Material Witness Warrants

Lisa Steele uses a Connecticut Supreme Court case as the springboard for her discussion of material witness warrants, which allow prosecutors to arrest and imprison material witnesses to ensure that they testify at trial. If a material witness will be part of a case, it will happen suddenly, Steele writes, on the eve of trial or during trial. Lawyers need to be aware of the competing interests at stake and ready to protect the client’s rights – whether the client is the defendant or the material witness.