State v. Feazell

486 So. 2d 327
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedApril 9, 1986
DocketCR 85-730
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 486 So. 2d 327 (State v. Feazell) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Feazell, 486 So. 2d 327 (La. Ct. App. 1986).

Opinion

486 So.2d 327 (1986)

STATE of Louisiana, Plaintiff-Appellee,
v.
Donald G. FEAZELL, Defendant-Appellant.

No. CR 85-730.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

April 9, 1986.
Writ Denied July 1, 1986.

*329 Ricky Sooter, Provosty & Sadler, Alexandria, for defendant-appellant.

T. Gerald Henderson, Asst. Dist. Atty., Alexandria, for plaintiff-appellee.

Before KNOLL, KING and BRUNSON,[*] JJ.

KNOLL, Judge.

Defendant was indicted by the grand jury for the aggravated rape of a seven year old girl, a violation of LSA-R.S. 14:42. After trial by judge, defendant was convicted of sexual battery, a violation of LSA-R.S. 14:43.1. Defendant received a suspended sentence of three years active supervised probation with special conditions, to include a sentence of one year in the parish jail subject to work release. Defendant appeals, urging six assignments of error. We affirm.

FACTS

Defendant, 25 years of age, allegedly sexually abused the seven year old victim on four occasions. The victim testified that defendant touched her genitalia with his hands and with a vibrator, that he forced her to engage in reciprocal oral sex, and that he had sexual intercourse with her on the night of November 6, 1983.

The victim's mother attended LSU-Alexandria with defendant and his wife; they were all friends. On November 6, 1983, the victim spent the night at defendant's home with defendant's son and daughter who, at that time, were ages four and three respectively. Defendant's wife was at work and defendant was babysitting the three children when the incident allegedly occurred. Afterward the victim told one of her second grade classmates about the incident; the classmate told her mother, who in turn told the victim's mother. The victim's grandmother reported the incident to the Child Protection Agency.

The victim was examined by Dr. Alphonso Pacheco, a pediatrician, on November 19, 1983, and by Dr. Brenda Seiler, a gynecologist, on November 22, 1983. Dr. Pacheco found the victim's hymen was not intact and that it had been dilated or torn at some point in the past, but concluded that an adult penis could not have penetrated the victim's organs during the several months preceding the examination. Dr. Seiler found that there was penetration, possibly by a penis, finger, or some other object, and that the victim's hymen was definitely torn. Upon request by the Department of Health and Human Resources, Dr. Milton Rhea, a psychologist, conducted a video tape interview with the victim in December 1983.

ASSIGNMENTS OF ERROR ONE AND TWO

Through these assignments defendant contends the trial court erred in admitting into evidence the videotape statement of the victim because it was not competent evidence since it failed to comply with LSA-R.S. 15:440.4(A)(3) and (5), and further, that it violates his right of confrontation under the United States and Louisiana constitutions. We disagree.

LSA-R.S. 15:440.4 provides in pertinent part:

"A. A videotape of a child fourteen years of age or under may be offered in evidence, either for or against a defendant charged with the rape or physical or sexual abuse of a child. To render such a videotape competent evidence, it must be satisfactorily proved:
(1) That such electronic recording was voluntarily made by the victim of the physical or sexual abuse.
(2) That no relative of the victim of the physical or sexual abuse was present in the room where the recording was made.
(3) That such recording was not made of answers to interrogatories calculated to lead the child to make any particular statement.
*330 (4) That the recording is accurate, has not been altered, and reflects what the witness or victim said.
(5) That the taking of the child's statement was supervised by a physician, a board-certified social worker, a law enforcement officer, or an authorized representative of the Department of Health and Human Resources."

Defendant complains that the videotape was not competent evidence since it contained leading questions in violation of Subsection (3). Leading questions are ordinarily prohibited when propounded to one's own witness unless such witness is unwilling or hostile. LSA-R.S. 15:277. However, it is well settled that an exception is usually made when questioning a young child. State v. Kelly, 456 So.2d 642 (La. App. 2nd Cir.1984), writ denied, 461 So.2d 312 (La.1984); State v. Kahey, 436 So.2d 475 (La.1983); State v. Bolton, 408 So.2d 250 (La.1981); State v. Francis, 337 So.2d 487 (La.1976). Furthermore, notwithstanding the general rule against leading questions, the matter is largely within the discretion of the trial court and in the absence of palpable abuse of that discretion resulting in prejudice to the accused, a finding of reversible error is not warranted. State v. Kelly, supra; State v. Francis, supra.

In the present case, the trial court acknowledged that some of Dr. Rhea's questions were leading, but commented: that they were dealing with a seven year old child; that Dr. Rhea is not an attorney; and that even an attorney would be permitted under some circumstances to lead an infant witness. In response to objections by defense counsel, the trial court stated:

"... I noticed that too in viewing the tape, I think there was [sic] some possibly leading questions, and we wouldn't expect a layman to be able to phrase questions ... that would be admissible in the face of all the rules of evidence, however ... there were a few leading questions, which I ... consider ... not to be too important, or to be rather harmless, but there was that one incident that counsel mentioned where the questioner actually did lead the child into answering the question that he wanted answered, and I am going to sustain that objection, the one that counsel mentioned, that is about the motioning with his hand. That will be sustained. The others, if there are any others, are overruled on the objection of leading questions."

We have carefully reviewed the child's testimony from the videotape interview and agree with the trial court that the leading questions would constitute harmless error, especially since the defense viewed the videotape prior to trial and cross-examined the child during trial.

Defendant further contends that R.S. 15:440.4(A)(5) was violated because Dr. Rhea is not a physician, a board-certified social worker, a law enforcement officer, or an authorized representative of the Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR). The record clearly reflects that Dr. Rhea has a contractual relationship with DHHR whereby he conducts psychological video examinations of children who are victims of physical or sexual abuse. Thus, we find Dr. Rhea constitutes a person who is an authorized representative of DHHR.

Defendant further contends that introduction of the videotape violated his constitutional right of confrontation. LSA-R.S. 15:440.5, which governs admissibility of videotapes of children, provides in pertinent part:

"B. The admission into evidence of the videotape of a child as authorized herein shall not preclude the prosecution from calling the child as a witness or taking the child's testimony outside of the courtroom as authorized in R.S. 15:283. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to prohibit the defendant's right of confrontation." (

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Bluebook (online)
486 So. 2d 327, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-feazell-lactapp-1986.