Michael S. Sites v. West Virginia
DueProcess
Did the West Virginia Supreme Court violate the Petitioner's Constitutional Rights to be Present at ALL Critical proceedings, including the answering of jury questions during deliberations, when the Petitioner and his Counsel were not present for most of the seven (7) questions answered, and by using the harmless-error analysis in such a critical stage?
QUESTION(S) PRESENTED 1. Did the West Virginia Supreme Court violate the Petitioner's Constitutional Rights to be Present at ALL Critical proceedings, including the answering of jury questions during deliberations, when the Petitioner and his Counsel were not present for most of the seven (7) questions answered, and by using the harmless-error analysis in such a critical stage? 2. Did the Circuit Court Judge violate the Petitioner's Constitutional Right to be Present at ALL Critical proceedings when he answered the jury’s seven : questions without the Petitioner or his Counsel being present at all times? 3. Is it a Constitutional critical stage for the Petitioner and Petitioner's Counsel to be present when the Court answers jury questions during deliberations?