Martin v. State

1987 OK CR 265, 747 P.2d 316, 1987 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 550, 1987 WL 2361
Court of Criminal Appeals of Oklahoma·Decided December 4, 1987·No. F-87-200·Published·Cited by 41 cases

Opinion

OPINION

BUSSEY, Judge:

Bruce Wayne Martin, the appellant, was convicted in the District Court of Garvin County Case Nos. CRF-86-98 and CRF-86-99 of the crime of Oral Sodomy and in Case No. CRF-86-130 of the crime of Lewd Molestation of a Child Under Sixteen. He received a ten (10) year sentence on each Sodomy count; and a twenty (20) year sentence on the Lewd Molestation count, the sentences to run consecutively, and he appeals.

According to the testimony presented at trial, seven-year-old E.M. had been enticed away from the playground at school and forced by the appellant to engage in acts of oral sodomy. Young E.M. testified that the appellant would come to the fence of the grade school and tell the boy to accom *318 pany him to his nearby house where the appellant would make the boy commit oral sodomy. Occasionally, the appellant would sodomize the boy. On at least one occasion, according to the boy’s testimony, the appellant’s brothers and mother were party to the acts. The appellant would then give E.M. some money and threaten to hurt him if he did not keep these encounters secret.

On May 20, 1986, E.M.’s second grade teacher noticed that E.M. had an unusually large amount of money with him. She notified E.M.’s aunt (E.M.’s legal guardian), who, in turn, came to the school to question him about the money. At first, E.M. made up a story that he had saved the money. After additional questioning, however, he eventually told his guardian how the appellant had been in the practice of coercing him away from school during recess, sodomizing him, and then giving E.M. money to keep silent.

E.M.’s uncle reported these acts to the local police. While driving to the police station that day, they passed the appellant’s house near the school. E.M. saw the appellant outside mowing his lawn and identified him as the man who had forced him to do these things. The appellant was later arrested and separately charged with two (2) counts of oral sodomy and one (1) count of Lewd Molestation of a Minor.

As his first assignment of error, the appellant states that there was insufficient evidence presented to support his convictions. The appellant bases this argument on his perception that the testimony of E.M. was impeached and uncorroborated, requiring the conclusion that there was insufficient evidence to convict.

The test for sufficiency of the evidence is well known, and will not be repeated, verbatim, here. See Jackson v. Virginia, 443 U.S. 307, 99 S.Ct. 2781, 61 L.Ed.2d 560 (1979); Spuehler v. State, 709 P.2d 202, 203-4 (Okl.Cr.1985). While accomplice testimony generally requires corroboration, the testimony of a non-consenting participant in sex crimes does not require corroboration. See generally Yates v. State, 620 P.2d 413 (Okl.Cr.1980); Eide v. State, 551 P.2d 275 (Okl.Cr.1976); Sier v. State, 517 P.2d 803 (Okl.Cr.1973). Further, we reaffirm, and so hold here, that a child of tender years cannot, as a matter of law, consent to sexual acts performed with an adult. See e.g. Fannin v. State, 65 Okl. Crim. 444, 88 P.2d 671 (1939). Accordingly, a child of tender years cannot be considered as an accomplice whose testimony requires corroboration under such a set of circumstances. However, we do not depart from the well established rule that corroboration is required when the victim’s testimony is so incredible or has been so thoroughly impeached that the reviewing court must say that the testimony is clearly unworthy of belief. See e.g. Gamble v. State, 576 P.2d 1184 (Okl.Cr.1978); O.U.J. I.-CR 841. The question of improbability must arise from something other than the believability of the victim’s testimony. Gamble, supra, at 1185.

Here, corroboration was not required, yet was present to some degree in the striking consistency of E.M.’s testimony with the accounts he gave to the police, his parents, and to the social worker assigned to his case. Further, his description of the acts, as given to these persons, is in such graphic detail and exhibits such a familiarity with sexual function that it would be incredible to believe that a seven-year-old boy would have knowledge of these details from any source other than personal experience. The testimony and evidence presented easily meets the Spueh-ler standard of review. Accordingly, we must conclude that this assignment lacks merit.

As his second assignment of error, the appellant argues that inadmissible hearsay testimony was presented and that the trial court further erred in allowing E.M. to testify through videotape, rather than in person before the jury. We disagree on both points.

The hearsay testimony in question relates to testimony given by E.M.’s guardian and the social worker. These two witnesses repeated the story that E.M. had told them. Prior to allowing the jury to hear this testimony, an in camera hearing *319 was held. The trial judge made his determination whether the purported testimony was sufficiently reliable. This is precisely the procedure outlined by the applicable statute. See 12 O.S.Supp.1986, § 2803.1. Further, E.M. testified, and was subject to thorough cross-examination, first in a closed room on camera and later, in person in front of the jury. E.M. was cross-examined on both occasions and was, in fact, called by the State purely as an accomodation to the defendant’s attorney, who had expressed a desire for more in-depth cross-examination. Video tape testimony is specifically permitted by statute. 22 O.S. Supp.1984, § 753. The appellant’s suggestion that he was denied effective confrontation of the complaining witness is conclusively rebutted by the record. This assignment of error is meritless. See also Beshears v. State, 738 P.2d 1375 (Okl.Cr.1987); Matter of W.D., 709 P.2d 1037 (Okl.Cr.1985).

Next, the appellant argues that the trial court erred in allowing Dr. Burnard Pearce, a psychologist, to testify as an expert and express an opinion on an ultimate issue of fact. In concluding that there is no merit to this assignment, we need only recognize that such testimony is admissible as provided in our evidence code. See 12 O.S.1981, § 2701 et seq. Nor do we see an abuse of discretion by the trial judge. See Johnson v. Wade, 642 P.2d 255 (Okl.1982).

As his fourth assignment of error the appellant raises a much more troublesome issue. When the jury retired to deliberate, a video player was set up in the jury room and the video tape of E.M.’s testimony was sent back with the jury for additional viewing. The appellant argues that this was reversible error, requiring a new trial.

This precise issue has not been addressed in Oklahoma. The State argues that we need not address the issue now because no objection appears in the record, implying that the appellant has waived this question for appellate review. When no objection is voiced at trial, this Court will consider the question waived unless the appellant’s fundamental rights have been jeopardized. See e.g. Tucker v. State,

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Martin v. State, 1987 OK CR 265, 747 P.2d 316, 1987 Okla. Crim. App. LEXIS 550, 1987 WL 2361 (Okla. Ct. App. 1987).

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