§ 31-34-14-4 — Children may testify outside court proceeding; informing parties of intention to testify

Indiana § 31-34-14-4

• Jurisdiction: Indiana
• Art. 34: JUVENILE LAW: CHILDREN IN NEED OF
• Ch. 14: Child Testimony by Closed Circuit Television in Child

Text

The court may not make an order under
section 2 or 3 of this chapter unless:
(1) the testimony to be taken is the testimony of a child who at the
time of the trial is:
(A) less than fourteen (14) years of age; or
(B) at least fourteen (14) years of age but less than eighteen
(18) years of age and has a disability attributable to an
impairment of general intellectual functioning or adaptive
behavior that:
(i) is likely to continue indefinitely;
(ii) constitutes a substantial impairment of the child's ability
to function normally in society; and
(iii) reflects the child's need for a combination and sequence
of special, interdisciplinary, or generic care, treatment, or
other services that are of lifelong or extended duration and
are individually planned and coordinated; and
(C) found by the court to be a child who should be permitted to
testify outside the courtroom because:
(i) a psychiatrist, physician, or psychologist has certified that
the child's testifying in the courtroom creates a substantial
likelihood of emotional or mental harm to the child;
(ii) a physician has certified that the child cannot be present
in the courtroom for medical reasons; or
(iii) evidence has been introduced concerning the effect of
the child's testifying in the courtroom and the court finds that
it is more likely than not that the child's testifying in the
courtroom creates a substantial likelihood of emotional or
mental harm to the child;
(2) the attorney for the department has informed the parties and
their attorneys by written notice of the intention to have the child
testify outside the courtroom; and
(3) the attorney for the department informed the parties and their
attorneys under subdivision (2) at least seven (7) days before the
proceedings to give the parties and their attorneys a fair
opportunity to prepare a response before the proceedings to the
motion of the attorney for the department to permit the child to
testify outside the courtroom.
[Pre-1997 Recodification Citation: 31-6-16-4 part.]

Legislative History

As added by P.L.1-1997, SEC.17. Amended by P.L.145-2006, SEC.299; P.L.146-2008, SEC.592.