Opinion ID: 1318712
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Hearsay Evidence Testimony of the School Counselor

Text: One of the four issues raised in this appeal involves the admissibility of testimony of Vicky Anderson, a counselor at Freddie's elementary school who had been working with Freddie on his learning disability and behavior problems for a year. This witness testified that during the year the child had made academic progress and improvements in his social and behavior problems, except that about two weeks before his death Freddie had displayed some extremely deviant behavior. On February 27, 1985, Ms. Anderson began his annual evaluation, consisting of a series of assessment tests, one of which involved Ms. Anderson beginning a sentence which the child was to complete. When Ms. Anderson said, If I could do anything I wanted to do, Freddie completed the sentence by saying, I'd run away from home. When Ms. Anderson said, I like my father, but, Freddie said, I wish he would quit kicking me. As the test continued, Freddie told Ms. Anderson that if he could change anything he would not have Crozier babysit for him any more because the man was mean to him. When questioned further, Freddie would not elaborate. He was so nervous and distractable that the evaluation was concluded. Ms. Anderson also testified that over the year she had worked with Freddie she found him to be a reliable, truthful child. Before evidence introduction commenced, the trial court and counsel met in chambers to discuss the admissibility of this testimony pursuant to Rule 804(b)(6), W.R.E. Ms. Anderson was then questioned by defense counsel in chambers to verify whether there was sufficient background information concerning the circumstances under which the hearsay statement was made, to provide the jury with an adequate basis to evaluate its veracity. The prosecutor argued the existence of the introduction criteria required by Hopkinson v. State, Wyo., 632 P.2d 79 (1981), cert. denied 455 U.S. 922, 102 S.Ct. 1280, 71 L.Ed.2d 463 (1982), and more recently by Schmunk v. State, Wyo., 714 P.2d 724 (1986). `[I]n order for hearsay to be admissible under the catchall exception [Rule 804(b)(6), W.R.E.], certain requirements must be satisfied. First, the declarant must be unavailable. Second, the adverse party must either have been given pretrial notice or a sufficient opportunity to prepare for and contest the admission of the hearsay. Third, the truth of the matter asserted must be evidence of a material fact. Fourth, the hearsay statement must be more probative than any other evidence which could be procured through reasonable efforts. Fifth, and finally, the statement must be supported by circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness   .' 714 P.2d at 738, quoting from Hopkinson v. State, supra, 632 P.2d at 131. In addition to the requirements of Rule 804(b)(6), W.R.E., this court has imposed additional limits upon the admissibility of hearsay pursuant to the confrontation clause of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and Art. 1, § 10 of the Wyoming Constitution by requiring sufficient background information concerning the circumstances under which the hearsay statement was made to provide the jury with an adequate basis to evaluate its veracity. Schmunk v. State, supra; California v. Green, 399 U.S. 149, 155-156, 90 S.Ct. 1930, 1933-1934, 26 L.Ed.2d 489 (1970). See also United States v. Balano, 618 F.2d 624, 628 (10th Cir.1979), cert. denied 449 U.S. 840, 101 S.Ct. 118, 66 L.Ed.2d 47 (1980); Ohio v. Roberts, 448 U.S. 56, 63-66, 100 S.Ct. 2531, 2538-2539, 65 L.Ed.2d 597, 607-608 (1980); 4 Louisell & Mueller, Federal Evidence § 418, pp. 146-150. See Williams v. Collins Communications, Inc., Wyo., 720 P.2d 880 (1986). In discussion in chambers, the prosecutor asserted that each requirement would be met: (1) The declarant was unavailable. Freddie was dead. (2) Notice of the prosecutor's intent to use the hearsay statements of the deceased victim as related by Vicky Anderson was made on October 11, more than two weeks before the trial began on October 28, 1985. A summary of Ms. Anderson's statement was also made available to defense counsel. (3) The truth of the matter asserted was evidence of a material fact in this case. The prosecution was attempting to prove the element of premeditation necessary for a first-degree murder conviction, and Freddie's statement that Dennis was mean to him was material on that point. (4) The statement was more probative than any other evidence which could be procured through reasonable efforts. Because Freddie's statement was made to Ms. Anderson on February 27, several days before Freddie was murdered, it was probative on the issue of premeditation, and was Freddie's only means of addressing the element of premeditation. (5) The statement was supported by special guarantees of trustworthiness. Ms. Anderson was a school counselor, not a criminal investigator, and the setting under which Freddie was being evaluated was the casual completion of unfinished sentences. Finally, the declarant was a six-year-old child who had no reason to fabricate his story about his babysitter. After the judge had questioned Ms. Anderson and evaluated the circumstances under which the hearsay statement was made, he ruled:    The court will permit the statement to come in. I find that he is unavailable. I find that there has been notice. I find that the statement for what it purports to be is trustworthy. I find that it certainly is probative of the relationship that existed at that time between Freddie and the babysitter, Dennis, which is a matter that's material to this proceedings. In fact, I would be willing to instruct    when this evidence comes in that that would be the purpose for them hearing the evidence. And that that relationship certainly is a material fact in terms of this entire proceedings   . As this court has said in the past, hearsay evidence, ordinarily inadmissible, may be admitted under an exception to the hearsay rule if the rule requirements are met. Schmunk v. State, supra. We concur with the trial judge's decision permitting introduction. Freddie was dead, and not from natural causes. The victim's relationship and feelings toward the defendant, his unsolicited remark to a school counselor just days before he was murdered by his babysitter that his babysitter was mean to him, was material to that issue. The victim's statement was also material to the element of malice. The jury was instructed that the term malice conveys the meaning of hatred, ill will, or hostility toward another and implies a wicked condition of mind. In Schmunk v. State, supra, 714 P.2d at 739, we said that if the proposed hearsay statement is relevant, the material-fact requirement of Rule 804(b)(6) is satisfied. 4 Louisell & Mueller, Federal Evidence § 491, p. 1202. We further said that relevant evidence is: `   evidence having any tendency to make the existence of any fact that is of consequence to the determination of the action more probable or less probable than it would be without the evidence.' Rule 401, W.R.E. 714 P.2d at 739-740. Support is found in Alcala v. State, Wyo., 487 P.2d 448 (1971), cert. denied 405 U.S. 997, 92 S.Ct. 1259, 31 L.Ed.2d 466, reh. denied 406 U.S. 911, 92 S.Ct. 1613, 31 L.Ed.2d 823 (1972), wherein evidence was introduced that the victim's husband had made prior threats:    [T]he statement attributed to Mrs. Alcala denotes ill feeling and hostility. We fail to see in it anything damaging to the defendant except that it would tend to prove motive and malice, which would be essential for a conviction of second degree murder. 487 P.2d at 455. Freddie's hearsay statement as related by Vicky Anderson was relevant evidence of malice, premeditation, identity of the perpetrator, and the relationship of the perpetrator to the victim. The appellant also contends that Freddie's hearsay statements were not supported by circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness because there is no way to know what Freddie meant when he made the statements, and because there is not enough information as to what the statements related. These contentions go to the weight to be placed on the statements rather than the circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness of the statements. See Furtado v. Bishop, 604 F.2d 80 (1st Cir.1979), cert. denied 444 U.S. 1035, 100 S.Ct. 710, 62 L.Ed.2d 672 (1980). To determine trustworthiness of a hearsay statement involves an evaluation of the corroborating facts which further indicate veracity of the statement, the circumstances and conditions under which the statement was made, the incentive which the declarant may have had to be truthful or untruthful, and any factors contributing to the reliability of the report as related by the witness. United States v. Bailey, 581 F.2d 341 (3d Cir.1978). Whether a hearsay statement is sufficiently trustworthy is a matter within the sound discretion of the trial court. State v. Whyde, 30 Wash. App. 162, 632 P.2d 913 (1981). The trial judge in this case carefully questioned the witness before ruling on the admissibility of her testimony. He asked her about the methods she used to establish rapport with young people, the manner in which she conducted the annual assessment to assure its accuracy, and whether or not the information received from Freddie was cross-checked with past records and also verified with Freddie's teachers. The satisfactory responses received from Ms. Anderson to each of his questions supplemented the examination by defense counsel and assure this court that the trial judge admitted Ms. Anderson's testimony only after a careful evaluation, consistent with the factors required for compliance with both the Wyoming and United States constitutions. See United States v. Bailey, supra. Exercised discretion is decisional resolution of conflicting facts and factors including the duty to consider and the right to reject alternative choices. Discretio est scire per legem quid sit justum. Discretion consists in knowing through the law what is just. Burton's Legal Thesaurus (1980) at 172.