Opinion ID: 1599055
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: the trial court erred by allowing the introduction of inadmissible hearsay evidence.

Text: ¶ 33. At trial, the court held a hearing outside of the presence of the jury on the issue of whether Dr. Carolyn Gerald would be allowed to testify that Korey told her Bailey hit him with a wooden spoon. The trial court ruled that Dr. Gerald could testify as to Korey's statement citing MISS. R. EVID. 803(4), an exception to the hearsay rule. ¶ 34. Bailey argues that Dr. Gerald's testimony concerning Korey's identification of Bailey as his perpetrator was inadmissible hearsay which was used to bolster Korey's testimony. ¶ 35. MISS. R. EVID. 801(c) defines hearsay as a statement, other than one made by the declarant while testifying at the trial or hearing, offered in evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted. MISS. R. EVID. 803(4) provides that: The following are not excluded by the hearsay rule, even though the declarant is available as a witness: (4) Statements for Purposes of Medical Diagnosis or Treatment. Statements made for purposes of medical diagnosis or treatment and describing medical history, or past or present symptoms, pain, or sensations, or the inception or general character of the cause or external source thereof insofar as reasonably pertinent to diagnosis or treatment, regardless of to whom the statements are made, or when the statements are made, if the court, in its discretion, affirmatively finds that the proffered statements were made under circumstances substantially indicating their trustworthiness. For purposes of this rule, the term medical refers to emotional and mental health as well as physical health. ¶ 36. This Court most recently examined this issue in Hennington v. State, 702 So.2d 403 (Miss.1997). In Hennington, which was a sexual battery case, the Court reaffirmed its holding in Eakes v. State, 665 So.2d 852 (Miss.1995) and said that: Today, the Court firmly states its position as a reaffirmation of the holding in Eakes. Therefore, we hold that hearsay testimony identifying the perpetrator is admissible under Miss. R. Evid. 803(4) regardless of whether he or she is a member of the child's immediate household. The overriding question making the inquiry necessary is, Will the perpetrator have access to the child in the future that would allow the sexual abuse to continue? Because the inquiry is necessary for treatment, the answer is admissible under the Rule. Hennington, 702 So.2d at 415. ¶ 37. Bailey argues first that the present case is not the type of case for which this Court has extended the 803(4) hearsay exception because it is not a sexual abuse case. The State responds that [i]f the doctor needs to know the identification of the child abuse perpetrator in order to protect the child from further injury, it makes no difference whether the injuries are of a sexual or physical nature. The State asserts that there is no logical reason why 803(4) should not be applicable to physical abuse cases. As the State correctly points out, the issue is not the nature of the injuries received but the reliability of the statement made. ¶ 38. Bailey argues alternatively that he was not in the category of people to whom the exception has been applied because he was only an infrequent babysitter. The State contends that this question was squarely answered in Eakes, supra, where the Court stated that: In Doe, this Court expanded Jones[ v. State, 606 So.2d 1051 (Miss.1992) ], supra, to allow a finding that the identity of the child's sexual abuser was pertinent to treatment, therefore reasonably relied upon by the treating physician, although the perpetrator was not a member of the child's household. Since the alleged perpetrator in Doe was the child's father, whose visitation rights were at issue, this Court reasoned that prevention of further abuse was an immediate concern. Doe, 644 So.2d at 1206. It follows that prevention of further abuse will always be an immediate concern, whether the perpetrator has daily, weekly, or only sporadic opportunity to abuse a child. There is no logical reason to find that a statement identifying the perpetrator is sufficiently pertinent to treatment and reliable if the perpetrator is someone who has regularly scheduled contact with the child but not if the perpetrator is, instead, a family friend, an acquaintance, or a stranger. Eakes, 665 So.2d at 867. ¶ 39. Although this Court has not previously applied MISS R. EVID. 803(4) to a physical abuse case, it seems a logical extension to do so now. Furthermore, under Eakes, it is irrelevant that Bailey was only an occasional babysitter. Korey's statement to Dr. Gerald was admissible as an exception to the hearsay rule. IV. THE TRIAL COURT ERRED BY FAILING TO GRANT DEFENDANT'S MOTION TO DISMISS, MOTIONS FOR DIRECTED VERDICT AND MOTION FOR JUDGMENT NOTWITHSTANDING THE VERDICT. V. THE VERDICT IS AGAINST THE OVERWHELMING WEIGHT OF THE EVIDENCE. ¶ 40. Bailey argues that the trial court erred in not granting his motion to dismiss, motion for directed verdict or his motion for J.N.O.V. A motion for directed verdict challenges the legal sufficiency of the evidence offered to that point of the trial to sustain a guilty verdict. Following the denial of his motion for a directed verdict, Bailey offered evidence in his own defense. As a result, Bailey has waived his challenge to the sufficiency of the State's evidence up to that point in time. Stringer v. State, 557 So.2d 796, 797 (Miss.1990) (citations omitted). ¶ 41. However, as this Court stated in Stringer, Bailey ... has [not] waived his right to challenge the weight or sufficiency of the evidence to sustain the judgment against him.' Stringer v. State, 557 So.2d at 797 (quoting Clements v. Young, 481 So.2d 263, 268 (Miss.1985)). Therefore, this Court considers all of the evidence offered in determining its sufficiency. When on appeal one convicted of a criminal offense challenges the legal sufficiency of the evidence, our authority to interfere with the jury's verdict is quite limited. We proceed by considering all of the evidence not just that supporting the case for the prosecutionin the light most consistent with the verdict. We give [the] prosecution the benefit of all favorable inferences that may reasonably be drawn from the evidence. If the facts and inferences so considered point in favor of the accused with sufficient force that reasonable men could not have found beyond a reasonable doubt that he was guilty, reversal and discharge are required. On the other hand, if there is in the record substantial evidence of such quality and weight that, having in mind the beyond a reasonable doubt burden of proof standard, reasonable and fair-minded jurors in the exercise of impartial judgment might have reached different conclusions, the verdict of guilty is thus placed beyond our authority to disturb. McFee v. State, 511 So.2d 130, 133-34 (Miss.1987)(citing Gavin v. State, 473 So.2d 952, 956 (Miss.1985); May v. State, 460 So.2d 778, 781 (Miss.1984)). ¶ 42. Bailey's contention is that the State's evidence was insufficient to convict him of felony child abuse and because the trial court did not grant his motion for directed verdict, he was placed in the position of having to request a lesser-included offense instruction. As was stated before, Bailey waived his right to contest the trial court's ruling on his motion for directed verdict and can now only contest the jury's verdict against him. The jury concluded that Bailey was guilty of the lesser included offense of misdemeanor child abuse. Bailey does not, in his brief, argue that the evidence was legally insufficient to convict him of misdemeanor child abuse. ¶ 43. He does, however, argue that the verdict was against the overwhelming weight of the evidence, which is essentially an argument that the trial court should have granted his motion for a new trial. ¶ 44. A motion for a new trial is discretionary with the trial judge and this Court will not order a new trial unless it is convinced that the verdict is so contrary to the overwhelming weight of the evidence that to allow it to stand would sanction an unconscionable injustice. McNeal v. State, 617 So.2d 999, 1009 (Miss.1993); Burrell v. State, 613 So.2d 1186, 1191 (Miss.1993); Pierre v. State, 607 So.2d 43, 54 (Miss.1992). In determining whether a jury verdict is against the overwhelming weight of the evidence, this Court must accept as true the evidence which supports the verdict and will reverse only when convinced that the trial court abused its discretion in failing to grant a new trial. Nicolaou v. State, 612 So.2d 1080, 1083 (Miss.1992). Any factual disputes are properly resolved by the jury and do not mandate a new trial. McNeal, 617 So.2d at 1009. ¶ 45. Bailey primarily argues that Korey's testimony was insufficient for a conviction. The jury is the judge of the weight and credibility of each witness's testimony and is free to accept or reject it. Accepting all evidence as true that supports the verdict in this case, we hold that the verdict of the jury was not against the overwhelming weight of the evidence, and the trial court did not err in refusing to grant a new trial.