Whether the prosecution's use of 'were they lying' questions and argument to secure a criminal conviction constitutes prosecutorial misconduct and violates a defendant's rights under the Fifth, Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution

QUESTION PRESENTED Inachild molestation case, the defendant took the stand and denied that any abuse had occurred. The prosecutor then cross-examined him at length regarding whether the prosecution’s witnesses had lied under oath, and why they would do so. The defendant’s failure to explain why the prosecution witnesses would lie was the central theme of the prosecutor’s closing and rebuttal arguments. This case presents the following question: Whether the prosecution’s use of “were they lying” questions and argument to secure a criminal conviction constitutes prosecutorial misconduct and violates a defendant’s rights under the Fifth, Sixth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. -i