Gray v. Maryland

Facts

Stacy Williams (Victim) was severely beaten, and eventually died as a result of her injuries. Codefendant confessed to the police that he, Petitioner, and another man had all taken part in the beating. At trial, codefendant’s confession was read into evidence but, pursuant to the judge’s instructions, each time Petitioner’s name appeared in the confession, the detective that read the confession said the word “deleted” and/or “deletion” and/or “delete.” Following the reading of the confession into evidence, the prosecution asked the detective if, after obtaining the confession of codefendant, the police were able to arrest Petitioner for murder; the detective affirmed that after taking codefendant’s confession, Petitioner was arrested. A written copy of the confession was also introduced at trial, with Petitioner’s name replaced with blank spaces. The trail judge instructed the jury that the confession was not to be considered in determining Petitioner’s guilt. The jury ultimately convicted both Petitioner and codefendant.