 In her review of the history behind the Sixth Amendment , Kime argued that James Madison could have drafted a more comprehensive right to " call for evidence " ( as existed in the Virginia Declaration of Rights ) but failed to do so . With this context in mind , she said , the Compulsory Process Clause likely enshrined the right to subpoena witnesses and have a fair trial , rather than a broader " right to have a defense " . Kime 's analysis concluded by stating that the decision in Washington had put " unnecessary tension between two analytically distinct constitutional rights " . 
