Opinion ID: 1690547
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: trustworthiness of statement

Text: While in cases involving adults a cognitive connection between speaking the truth to physicians and receiving proper medical care may seem obvious, further analysis of the circumstances surrounding the examination of a child is necessary to determine whether the child understood the need to be truthful to the physician. The United States Supreme Court recently found error in the contention that a child's hearsay statements are presumptively unreliable when the child is found incompetent to testify at trial. Idaho v Wright, 497 US 805, ___; 110 S Ct 3139, 3151; 111 L Ed 2d 638 (1990). All three children in the instant cases were found competent to testify. Although Wright involved a Confrontation Clause challenge against admission of hearsay statements under the residual hearsay exception, it is analogous to the present case because the Court in Wright was also required to address the inherent reliability of a child's statements regarding sexual abuse. In Wright, the Court held that no mechanized test should be formulated to determine whether a child's out-of-court statement is reliable. Id., 110 S Ct 3150. Instead, it favored a totality of the circumstances test, citing several state and federal court decisions which highlight certain factors, including the spontaneity and consistent repetition of the statement, the mental state of the declarant, the use of terminology unexpected of a child of similar age, and the lack of motive to fabricate. Id. The Court warned against bootstrapping the admission of a hearsay statement on extrinsic or corroborating evidence, holding that the evidence must possess [an] indicia of reliability by virtue of its inherent trustworthiness, not by reference to other evidence at trial. Id. [17] Through analysis under the Confrontation Clause, some evidence may be excluded that would otherwise be admissible under an exception to the hearsay rule. Id., 110 S Ct 3146. We conclude that there is no risk in the present cases of violating the Confrontation Clause guarantees, because the admissibility of the hearsay statements is analyzed under MRE 803(4), an established hearsay exception. Moreover, we believe that it is sufficient to establish the trustworthiness of a child's statement through an analysis which is not more demanding than required under the Confrontation Clause. Hearsay statements can be admitted where they sufficiently satisfy the underlying rationale of the applicable exception. A child can have the same selfish treatment-related motive to speak the truth as any adult. See State v Larson, 472 NW2d 120 (Minn, 1991). The inquiry into trustworthiness should therefore consider the totality of circumstances surrounding the declaration of the out-of-court statement. While the inquiry into the trustworthiness of the declarant's statement is just one prong of the analysis under MRE 803(4), it is very important that the understanding to tell the truth to the physician be established. Factors related to trustworthiness guarantees surrounding the actual making of the statement include: (1) the age and maturity of the declarant, [18] (2) the manner in which the statements are elicited (leading questions may undermine the trustworthiness of a statement), [19] (3) the manner in which the statements are phrased (childlike terminology may be evidence of genuineness), [20] (4) use of terminology unexpected of a child of similar age, [21] (5) who initiated the examination (prosecutorial initiation may indicate that the examination was not intended for purposes of medical diagnosis and treatment), (6) the timing of the examination in relation to the assault (the child is still suffering pain and distress), [22] (7) the timing of the examination in relation to the trial (involving the purpose of the examination), (8) the type of examination (statements made in the course of treatment for psychological disorders may not be as reliable), [23] (9) the relation of the declarant to the person identified (evidence that the child did not mistake the identity), [24] and (10) the existence of or lack of motive to fabricate. [25] Although some courts hold that corroborative evidence relating to the truth of the out-of-court statement should not be considered in determining whether to admit the statement, [26] we believe the better reasoned view is that the reliability of the hearsay is strengthened when it is supported by other evidence. [27] Corroborating physical evidence of the assault, [28] evidence that the person identified as the assailant had the opportunity to commit the assault, [29] and resulting diagnosis and treatment can support the trustworthiness of the child's statements regarding a sexual assault and aid in the determination whether the statement was made for the purpose of receiving medical care. While these factors are neither inclusive nor exclusive, an analysis of the available evidence can support an application of MRE 803(4) even where it is not apparent that the child understood that statements must be truthful in order to receive proper care. The contention by the dissent that analysis of these factors incorporates a substitute component for the self-interest motivation factor for the application of MRE 803(4), post, p 345, misconstrues a major premise of our analysis: that due to the tender years of the hearsay declarants, the understanding to tell the truth may not be as apparent as it is with adults; that investigation into the circumstances surrounding the making of the hearsay statements is required in order to establish whether the child understood the need to be truthful to the physician. The gravamen of our analysis is that hearsay statements must simply be analyzed with more precision because of the young age of the declarants. Moreover, courts have not asserted a lack of conscious connection as a basis for excluding statements by children that are otherwise admissible under the medical treatment exception. In LaLone, supra at 112, we cited with approval the decision in United States v Iron Shell, 633 F2d 77 (CA 8, 1980), [30] where the court held that statements made by a sexually abused child to the doctor were admissible. The nine-year-old victim's statements related the details of the assault, but not the identity of the assailant. The court found that the victim's motive was consistent with the purpose of FRE 803(4) because there were no facts indicating a motive other than a patient seeking treatment. Iron Shell, supra at 84. Moreover, the court found that the young age of the victim mitigated against a finding that the statements were not within the traditional rationale of the rule. Id. [31] We further believe that admission of these statements is consistent with our holding in LaLone. Although in LaLone we did not analyze the facts according to a totality of circumstances test, upon such analysis it is clear that the declarant's hearsay statement of identification was properly excluded. While under MRE 803(4) a statement does not necessarily have to be made to a medical doctor, the fact that the statement was made to a psychologist suggests that the statement by the victim in this case may be less reliable than a statement made to a physician. Id. at 113. [32] The meeting during which the accusatory statements were made occurred after the complainant told the police of the abuse by the defendant, and after an investigation into those allegations had begun. The complainant was fourteen years old and knew that a case was being prepared against defendant. Furthermore, the complainant had already been removed from her home, and in fact it was the Department of Social Services who initiated the examination by the psychologist of the complainant. We held in LaLone that it has not been shown that the reliability of the complainant's statement reaches the level necessary to fall within MRE 803(4). Id. at 114. We did not, however, create a prophylactic exclusion of all hearsay statements of identification made to physicians. LaLone should be interpreted in light of its factual background, and does not preclude admission of statements where an analysis of the totality of the circumstances surrounding the declaration of the hearsay statement supports the underlying requirements of MRE 803(4).