Sandra Day O'Connor

“ In light of Taylor and Nobles, the Michigan Court of Appeals erred in adopting a per se rule that Michigan's notice-and-hearing requirement violates the Sixth Amendment in all cases where it is used to preclude evidence of past sexual conduct between a rape victim and a defendant. The Sixth Amendment is not so rigid. The notice-and-hearing requirement serves legitimate state interests in protecting against surprise, harassment, and undue delay. Failure to comply with this requirement may in some cases justify even the severe sanction of preclusion. ”

“ In a subsequent decision, the Court described notice requirements as "a salutary development which, by increasing the evidence available to both parties, enhances the fairness of the adversary system." ”

“ We did not hold in Taylor that preclusion is permissible every time a discovery rule is violated. Rather, we acknowledged that alternative sanctions would be "adequate and appropriate in most cases." Id., at 413, 108 S.Ct., at 655. We stated explicitly, however that there could be circumstances in which preclusion was justified because a less severe penalty "would perpetuate rather than limit the prejudice to the State and the harm to the adversary process." ”