Opinion ID: 781039
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Eze's State Trial

Text: 5 Dominic Okongwu (Okongwu), Eze, and Joy Wosu (Wosu) were indicted by an Erie County Grand Jury on 68 counts related to the alleged sexual abuse of Chendo and Nnedi Okongwu. The three defendants were tried together in a seven day trial that commenced on November 12, 1993. Except as otherwise noted, the evidence adduced at trial established the following. 6 Okongwu and his wife are Nigerian citizens with twin daughters, Chendo and Nnedi, who were born on September 12, 1984. At some point after Okongwu's wife became ill and returned to Nigeria, Chendo and Nnedi were placed under the foster care of Ms. Ollie McNair (McNair). In December 1990, a Family Court judge appointed Eze to supervise Okongwu's weekend visitation of his daughters. 1 The court order required Eze to be in the girls' presence during the entirety of their visits with Okongwu and never to leave the girls unsupervised. The visits continued regularly every weekend until December 1991, at which time all contact between Okongwu and his daughters was terminated. 7 On December 12, 1991, McNair entered the girls' bedroom and found Nnedi lying on top of Chendo in a manner imitative of sexual contact. When McNair asked the girls what they were doing, Nnedi responded that she was doing it because that's the same thing their father does to her when she goes to his house. McNair notified Child Protective Services, which commenced an investigation, and McNair received explicit instructions to keep Okongwu away from the children. At this point, the girls made no mention to McNair of Eze's involvement in any sexual abuse. 8 At trial, the girls testified to three instances of sexual abuse, with each incident bearing striking similarities. 2 The first occasion occurred in June 1991, following a community celebration known as the Juneteenth Festival. The girls testified that Eze picked them up at their foster home, and brought them to the festival with Okongwu and Wosu. On direct examination, both girls recalled that after the festival they returned to Okongwu's house; Eze and Wosu then left, at which point Okongwu, now alone with the girls, sexually abused them in his basement. On cross examination, however, Chendo testified that Eze and Wosu remained in Okongwu's house during the sexual abuse and that they came downstairs at one point. According to Chendo, Okongwu instructed them to shower and go downstairs to the basement and wait for him. The girls testified that, upon joining them, Okongwu directed Chendo to lie down on two mattresses that he had placed together, while he bound Nnedi by tying her arms and waist to a chair and taping her mouth shut. Both girls stated that, with Nnedi restrained, Okongwu inserted his penis into Chendo's vagina and forced Chendo to perform fellatio on him. The girls testified that Okongwu then had the girls switch roles. They said that Okongwu untied Nnedi and untaped her mouth, and bound Chendo to the chair in the same manner he had restrained her sister. The girls stated that Okongwu at this point engaged in oral sex and then intercourse with Nnedi. Afterwards, Okongwu instructed them, you better not tell or I'll kill you, while brandishing a knife, belt, and scissors. 3 According to the trial testimony, Okongwu then told both girls, who were now bleeding, to take a shower. Eze later brought the girls back to McNair's home. Chendo said she did not tell McNair about the abuse because she was scared that her father would kill her if she did. 9 The second incident about which the girls testified occurred on or about September 12, 1991, the date of their seventh birthday. According to the girls, Eze picked them up from McNair's house and, after stopping off at Okongwu's house, they attended a birthday party with Okongwu and Wosu at Okongwu's friend's house. Similar to the June 1991 incident, Okongwu, Eze, Wosu, and the girls went to Okongwu's house following the party. Upon arrival, Okongwu told the girls to get undressed and go downstairs to the basement. Chendo testified that Eze remained upstairs talking on the telephone and saw her walking downstairs naked. Nnedi, however, testified that Eze and Wosu left the house, leaving them alone with their father. The girls stated that Okongwu soon came downstairs, naked, and what followed mirrored the June 1991 incident. Okongwu again arranged the mattresses next to each other and engaged in coerced sexual acts with his daughters. Chendo testified that he first told her to lie down, while he tied Nnedi to a chair and taped her mouth. Okongwu proceeded to have sexual intercourse and oral sex with Chendo, ignoring her pleas for him to stop. Chendo testified that she then switched roles with her sister, as Nnedi was forced to have sexual intercourse and oral sex with Okongwu, while Chendo was bound. Chendo recalled that her father again threatened them, stating, you better not tell or I'll kill you. Nnedi testified to similar events, but according to Nnedi, her father first had sexual intercourse and oral sex with her, while her sister was bound, and then the girls switched roles. Nnedi also testified that her father again told her that if she were to tell anyone what happened, he would kill her. The testimony indicated that the girls again showered, at Okongwu's instruction, and then had a birthday cake with Eze and Wosu. Eze returned the girls to McNair's home that evening. Nnedi explained that she did not tell McNair about what happened because she was scared of her father. 10 The final incident of abuse adduced at trial occurred in November 1991 during Thanksgiving. This time Okongwu joined Eze to pick up the girls, and they brought the girls for Thanksgiving dinner to Okongwu's house, where Wosu joined them. This occasion, however, bears a critical distinction from the previous incidents in that both girls testified that Eze and Wosu participated in the actual sexual abuse. The girls stated that Okongwu instructed them to undress and wait for him in the basement. Chendo said that Eze, Wosu, and Okongwu, who were naked, joined the girls in the basement. Chendo testified that, as Nnedi was tied up with her mouth taped, Eze had sexual intercourse with her as the others watched. 4 Wosu then tried to stick her private into our private very deep and put her hands into Chendo's vagina. Finally, Okongwu had sexual intercourse with Chendo, while Wosu cheered him on, encouraging him to go deeper. Once again, the girls switched roles. Chendo stated that she was bound with her mouth taped, and the three now abused Nnedi. Chendo recalled that Okongwu first had sexual intercourse with Nnedi and forced her to perform oral sex. Wosu then put [h]er vagina in [Nnedi's] private and then placed her hand in her vagina. Chendo testified that Eze followed by engaging in sexual intercourse and oral sex with Nnedi. Nnedi's recollection of the events varied slightly. Nnedi recalled that her father first forced her to have sexual intercourse and oral sex with him. Nnedi testified that Eze also had sexual intercourse with her and Wosu used her hand to touch Nnedi's vagina. Nnedi said that she was screaming as this transpired, and that Eze told her that if she revealed what happened, they would kill her. Nnedi testified that her sister was then abused by the three defendants. First, she said that Okongwu had sexual intercourse and oral sex with Chendo. Nnedi testified that Eze next had sexual intercourse and oral sex with Chendo, and then Wosu put her hand in Chendo's vagina. Both girls indicated that following this incident they were bleeding and went upstairs to wash up. 11 The prosecution also offered evidence that Okongwu threatened the girls after they came forward with allegations of abuse. Chendo testified that, in October 1992, well after they had informed McNair of the abuse and the investigation had commenced, Okongwu would come to their bus stop and threaten them, saying you better not tell or I'll kill you. According to Chendo, these threats occurred at least three or four times. After the girls informed McNair of these threats, McNair contacted the Board of Education and requested their bus stop be switched. 12 The prosecution's only physical evidence of sexual abuse came from Dr. Stephen Lazoritz. 5 Dr. Lazoritz examined both girls on January 6, 1992 and found evidence of sexual abuse. Dr. Lazoritz's conclusions relied heavily on the girls' abnormal and attenuated hymens. Dr. Lazoritz explained that, in children their age, the hymenal opening should be no more than seven millimeters. Both Chendo and Nnedi, however, had hymenal openings that measure nine millimeters by five millimeters. With regard to Chendo, Dr. Lazoritz found that she had less hymen tissue than would be expected, demonstrating that some hymen membrane had eroded away. Dr. Lazoritz also found scar tissue on Chendo's hymen at the six o'clock position, which suggests injury from penetration or attempted penetration, as well as a band of scar tissue at the seven o'clock position. Dr. Lazoritz concluded beyond a reasonable degree of medical certainty that [Chendo] was sexually abused. In fact, based on these findings, I can diagnose that sexual abuse had occurred [independent of an allegation of such abuse]. Dr. Lazoritz was less certain that Nnedi had been sexually abused and concluded that [i]f Nnedi made a statement that she was sexually abused, I would say, with a reasonable degree of medical certainty, that these findings were consistent with that abuse. 13 On cross examination, Dr. Lazoritz agreed that his findings could have been caused by trauma other than sexual abuse and that the girls' throat cultures revealed nothing abnormal. In addition, Dr. Lazoritz acknowledged that, when he examined the children in January 1992, Child Protective Services had informed him that there was an allegation of sexual abuse. The most critical point elicited during Dr. Lazoritz's cross examination was that he had examined Chendo in 1988, at which point he made findings regarding her attenuated hymen and scar tissue similar to those he made in January 1992. This line of questioning raised the serious possibility that Chendo's abnormally large hymenal opening in 1992 existed prior to the alleged abuse in 1991. Because of the similarities between his 1992 findings and his 1988 findings, Dr. Lazoritz could not state with any degree of certainty that Chendo had been sexually abused at any time after 1988. Although Eze's counsel also attempted to question Dr. Lazoritz on Nnedi's medical records from 1988, the trial judge refused to allow counsel to elicit this testimony, sustaining the prosecution's objection that Eze's counsel was doing this through the wrong witness. The defense never revisited the issue of Nnedi's 1988 medical records. 14 Jan Henry, the Director of Program Services for Child and Adolescent Treatment Services, testified for the prosecution as an expert witness on the psychology of child sexual abuse. Henry's testimony provided a backdrop against which the jury could assess the children's testimony and account for changes in their stories over time. Prior to trial, the defense expressed concern regarding Henry's expert testimony because she had been involved in a 1988 Family Court proceeding with the Okongwu family and had interviewed the girls after the 1991 allegations of abuse. The prosecutor represented to the trial court that Henry's testimony would be limited to explaining child sexual abuse syndrome without in any way assessing the believability of Nnedi and Chendo Okongwu in this trial. The court agreed, limiting Henry's testimony to the behavioral characteristics of children that have been sexually abused. The jury therefore did not learn about Henry's interviews with the girls, including the girls' statement to Henry that they wanted to see Eze so they could ask Eze whether he knew what our father did to us. 15 Henry discussed child sexual abuse syndrome, a theory that describes a series of phases experienced by a sexually abused child, including a child's behavior during abuse and after the abuse has ended. Henry explained that as the abuse continues to progress, a child begins to realize that something is wrong, and therefore the abuser often takes measures to insure that the victim will not tell anyone, often through threats, bribes, or brute force. A victimized child, Henry stated, may seem happy on the outside as a defense mechanism, and often seems to allow abuse to continue because of his or her powerless position. Consequently, according to Henry, a child will keep the abuse private until, for some reason, the secret is broken. Henry testified that a child may disclose accidentally because, for example, the child may start doing things with other kids, repeating the behavior that they have experienced, and someone sees it and says how is it that you learned this, why are you doing this, and then they'll disclose what's happened to them. After this initial disclosure, however, the child may again suppress the abuse upon realizing that undesirable consequences arise following disclosure, such as being forced to retell the story many times or causing family disharmony. Henry also explained the reasons why a child may provide inconsistent, yet reliable, stories of the abuse. If a child's story is too consistent, it may have been memorized or programmed. In addition, a young child may initially only disclose part of the abuse as a test to gauge the reaction, and if the partial story receives a positive reaction, the child may then disclose more. Henry also discussed her assessment program for determining the veracity of a child's allegation of abuse. She testified, without objection from the defense, that out of approximately fifty-to-one hundred cases, she has encountered only one instance of a false allegation. 6 16 On cross examination, Henry acknowledged that a child's mental process could change the facts surrounding the abuse and add people who were not actually there. She recounted a case in which the child stated that his or her parents were present during the abuse; it was later determined, however, that the child's parents had not in fact been present, but instead the child wished that they had been. Henry agreed that it is possible that a child's story could be influenced by adults and that, although therapists have methods to control an adult's input, you can only surmise, you don't know for sure. Henry also acknowledged that her evaluation relies on medical examinations and that the accuracy of her evaluation would be compromised if the medical information proved to be flawed. She admitted as well that the child sexual abuse syndrome study on which she relied during direct examination has been the subject of criticism because it was based on a small sample size. Finally, Henry was cross-examined on her statement that only one out of the fifty-to-one hundred cases she has worked on involved a false allegation. In the other cases, there were no judicial rulings establishing that the children told the truth. 17 The defense case consisted of the testimony of Wosu, Eze, Okongwu, Andrew Greenlee (Wosu's fiancé), and character witnesses. Wosu, an acquaintance of Eze's, testified that she met Okongwu, Chendo, and Nnedi in 1991 at Nigerian Association meetings. Wosu denied being with the children during the alleged incidents that occurred in June 1991 and November 1991. She explained that she attended the Juneteenth Festival in 1991, but did not go with Okongwu, Eze, Chendo, and Nnedi. Wosu also stated that she did not go to Okongwu's house for Thanksgiving, but instead had dinner with her fiancé that evening. Wosu testified that she was with the children on their seventh birthday in September 1991, but they only went to a restaurant to celebrate. Wosu also stated that she had only been to Okongwu's house on one occasion, October 26, 1991. 18 Eze testified to his supervision of the children during Okongwu's visitation. Eze said that, pursuant to the Family Court order, he never left Okongwu alone with the children during his supervision. Eze recalled that he and Okongwu took the girls to the Juneteenth Festival in June 1991. Although Wosu did not come with them to the festival, Eze testified that she also may have been there. Regarding the September 1991 incident, Eze testified that there was not a party for the girls' birthday; instead he, Okongwu, and Wosu took the girls to a restaurant. After eating, he returned the girls to McNair's. For Thanksgiving in 1991, Eze brought the girls to Okongwu's house for dinner, but Wosu was not present. Eze testified that the girls remained under his surveillance throughout the day, and did not think that Okongwu ever went down to the basement. 19 On cross examination, the prosecution brought out inconsistencies in Eze's statements following his arrest regarding Wosu's presence with the children. After being arrested, Eze supposedly stated that Wosu was with the girls several times, but on direct Eze testified that Wosu was with them only once. The prosecution also stressed the long and late hours that Eze worked in 1991, implying that he needed to sleep during the day on the weekends when he was charged with supervising Okongwu's visitation. Eze, however, maintained that he could adequately supervise the children on three hours of sleep. Finally, the prosecution impeached Eze's credibility by suggesting that Eze had lied on his application to become a naturalized citizen in 1990 when he stated that he had lived in the same residence with his wife for three years. The prosecution referred to an affidavit from his wife, filed with the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), swearing that Eze moved out in December 1987 and that they had not lived together since. Eze responded that his wife's statement was not true, and that although he had moved out of the house after they had a fight, he moved back for a while. 20 Okongwu substantiated Wosu and Eze's testimony. Okongwu explained that in 1991, he would see his daughters by having Eze pick them up from McNair's home. Okongwu testified that he and Eze brought the girls to the Juneteenth Festival in 1991. Wosu did not come with them, although Okongwu recalled seeing her at the festival. Okongwu explained that they took the girls back to the foster home immediately after the festival. As to the September 1991 incident, Okongwu testified that Eze picked up his daughters from the foster home and brought the girls to his house. Afterwards, Okongwu and Eze picked up Wosu, and they all went to a restaurant. Like Eze, Okongwu denied attending the party the girls mentioned and ever being in his basement alone with the girls. Okongwu also explained that he did not know the location of the girls' bus stop and that he worked the day shift, suggesting that it would have been impossible for him to threaten the girls while they were waiting for their bus. On cross examination, Okongwu said that he had no idea why his daughters would hold a grudge against him and fabricate their allegations. In addition, the prosecution brought out that his apartment was not searched until two months after he learned of the allegations, suggesting that he had the opportunity to remove the box containing the knife, belt, rope, and tape. 21 The remaining witnesses sought to enhance the credibility of the defendants. Greenlee, Wosu's fiancé, testified the he was visiting Wosu on Thanksgiving 2001 and produced an airplane ticket for his trip. Greenlee offered an alibi for Wosu, claiming they were eating dinner that evening when the alleged abuse occurred. On cross examination, the prosecution stressed Greenlee's bias in testifying on behalf of his fiancé and questioned his lack of a dinner receipt. Moreover, although Greenlee found out about the charges against Wosu in December 1992, he did not contact the police regarding her alibi and first came forward at trial. In addition, two character witnesses testified to Okongwu and Eze's good reputation in the Nigerian community. 22 On November 26, 1993, the jury found the defendants guilty on all remaining charges. 7 Eze was convicted of eight counts of rape in the first degree, N.Y. Penal L. §§ 20.00, 130.35[1], [3], eight counts of sodomy in the first degree, id. §§ 20.00, 130.50[1], [3], four counts of incest, id. §§ 20.00, 255.25, six counts of sexual abuse in the first degree, id. §§ 20.00, 130.65[1], [3], and four counts of endangering the welfare of a child, id. §§ 20.00, 260.10[1]. Eze was sentenced to an aggregate prison term with a minimum of 35 2/3 years and a maximum of 107 years.