Opinion
SC: 160563 COA: 350327
02-07-2020
PEOPLE of the State of Michigan, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Richard Duane BROWN, Defendant-Appellant.
Order
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the September 25, 2019 order of the Court of Appeals is considered and, pursuant to MCR 7.305(H)(1), in lieu of granting leave to appeal, we REVERSE the June 25, 2019 order of the Lapeer Circuit Court denying the defendant’s motion to quash the bindover. MCL 766.12 provides that, at a preliminary examination, "[a]fter the testimony in support of the prosecution has been given, the witnesses for the prisoner, if he have any, shall be sworn, examined and cross-examined...." (Emphasis added.) In this case, the district court did not permit the defendant to call witnesses. The district court’s decision in this regard fell outside the range of principled outcomes and constituted an abuse of discretion. See People v. Shami , 501 Mich. 243, 250-251, 912 N.W.2d 526 (2018).
We REMAND this case to the 71-A District Court for further proceedings to allow the defendant to call witnesses. The motion to stay trial is GRANTED pending completion of the proceedings ordered on remand.