North Dakota Supreme Court

State of North Dakota, Plaintiff and Appellee v. Jami Erin Woinarowicz, Defendant and Appellant

August 16, 20062006 N.D. LEXIS 181

Summary

The court affirmed Woinarowicz's conviction, holding that the Confrontation Clause does not apply to pretrial suppression hearings and that the district court could admit the officer's testimony about Novak's consent without applying the ordinary hearsay rules. The court also upheld the findings that Novak consented to entry and search, that the officers had probable cause to arrest Woinarowicz, and that the search of her purse was incident to that arrest. Justice Sandstrom, concurring specially, agreed that the Confrontation Clause did not apply but would additionally characterize consent as a verbal act that is not hearsay.