Smith, Designated Counsel, on the briefs. Perretti, Jr. In this appeal, as in State v. Hill, N. This case involves the application of that rule to cases involving young children. Three issues are presented: 1 whether statements elicited from children who after being questioned complain of having been sexually abused retain the degree of self-motivation necessary to qualify under the fresh-complaint rule; 2 how much detail is permissible as part of a fresh complaint; and 3 what should the trial court charge to guide the jury in its weighing of fresh-complaint evidence.
A physical examination revealed she had been sexually assaulted and infected with gonorrhea. Joseph Bethune, who lived in the household with the children and was the mother's romantic companion, was suspected of having perpetrated the sexual abuse. Bossack began an investigation by taking R. At the hospital, Maria Feliciano, a social worker, asked the child whether she had been molested.
She found redness around the vaginal entrance, two tears in the hymen, and no unusual marks in the anal area.
The physical exam did not provide conclusive evidence of sexual abuse, and the child denied once more any improper treatment at the hands of Joseph Bethune. Baskerville did notice, however, that the child responded atypically to the gynocological exam. She was not reluctant to be examined and showed no concern when Dr. Baskerville inserted her finger into her vagina. Baskerville found this lack of response abnormal in a young child and possibly indicative of the child having been subject to sexual abuse.
She admitted R. On April 22, , Ms. Foster interviewed the child in the hospital's playroom and used anatomically correct dolls to engage the child in conversation. Foster asked R. Foster then pulled up the doll's dress and asked the child whether anyone had touched her vagina. The child responded that "Joey had put his dicky in her privates many times," and demonstrated this by placing the male doll on top of the female doll.
