Chapter 9- Sexual Offenses Flashcards
A sexual assault conviction may be based on ———alone
Victim testimony
When a victim tells police they are fine then tells an EMT they were raped this is good under
Excited utterance
Text message to a friend that you were just raped is this good under excited utterance
Yes
What is the first complaint
Allows one witness to testify about what the victim said concerning any sexual assault
What is the purpose of the first complaint
To give the jury a complete account of how the sexual assault arose
What is the time period a first complaint must be made
No required promptness - 9 years later was good
What can the first complaint person testify regarding
All details of assault and context of the disclosure
Girl messages his her father in Guatemala about a sexual assault, we’re the screen shots the first complaint
Yes
Can a disclosure be made in stages, ex calling on the phone then meeting up to tak about it, if so what’s the requirement
Yes, no meaningful gap in time
Are successive complaints allowed? If so why
Yes, if involving different times and escalating abuse
Can there be two different complaint witnesses
Yes if two separate incidents
What happens when a victim forgets she told someone
Still admissible if person remembers
What violates the first complaint rule
Asking them who else they told
What are the two reasons a judge could refuse a testimony
Bias against victim or unavailable/incompetent
The first complaint rule doesn’t limit
- eye witness reports
- rape kits
- rebuttal of defense
