Opinion
SC: 154779 COA: 325730
07-07-2017
PEOPLE of the State of Michigan, Plaintiff–Appellee, v. Carl Rene BRUNER II, Defendant–Appellant.
Order
On order of the Court, the motion to amend the application is GRANTED. The application for leave to appeal the October 11, 2016 judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered. We direct the Clerk to schedule oral argument on whether to grant the application or take other action. MCR 7.305(H)(1). We further ORDER the Wayne Circuit Court, in accordance with Administrative Order 2003-03, to determine whether the defendant is indigent and, if so, to appoint attorney Michael J. McCarthy, if feasible, to represent the defendant in this Court. If this appointment is not feasible, the trial court shall, within the same time frame, appoint other counsel to represent the defendant in this Court. The parties shall file supplemental briefs within 42 days of the date of the order appointing counsel, addressing: (1) whether the admission of Westley Webb's preliminary-examination testimony at the defendant's joint trial with Michael Lawson violated the defendant's constitutional right to confrontation, despite the trial court's redaction of that testimony and limiting instruction to the jury, see Gray v. Maryland , 523 U.S. 185 (1998) ; Bruton v. United States , 391 U.S. 123 (1968) ; and (2) if so, whether the error in admitting the testimony was harmless, see People v. Carines , 460 Mich. 750, 774 (1999). The parties should not submit mere restatements of their application papers.