Does a defendant have a right to be personally present at a proceeding?

Under the Sixth Amendment's confrontation clause, a criminal defendant does not have a right to be personally present at a particular proceeding unless his appearance is necessary to prevent "interference with [his] opportunity for effective cross-examination." (Kentucky v. Stincer (1987) 482 U.S. 730, 744-745, fn. 17, 107 S.Ct. 2658, 96 L.Ed.2d 631; accord, id. at p. 740, 107 S.Ct. 2658.)

Similarly, under the Fourteenth Amendment's due process clause, a criminal defendant does not have a right to be personally present at a particular proceeding unless he finds himself at a "stage ... that is critical to [the] outcome" and "his presence would contribute to the fairness of the procedure." (Kentucky v. Stincer, supra, 482 U.S. at p. 745, 107 S.Ct. 2658.)

Under section 15 of article I of the California Constitution, a criminal defendant does not have a right to be personally present "either in chambers or at bench discussions that occur outside of the jury's presence on questions of law or other matters as to which [his] presence does not bear a `"`reasonably substantial relation to the fullness of his opportunity to defend against the charge.'"'" (People v. Bradford, supra, 15 Cal.4th at p. 1357, 65 Cal. Rptr.2d 145, 939 P.2d 259; accord, e.g., People v. Jackson (1980) 28 Cal.3d 264, 308-309, 168 Cal.Rptr. 603, 618 P.2d 149 (plur. opn. of Richardson, J.).)