M.C., A CHILD, APPELLANT,
v.
STATE OF FLORIDA, APPELLEE
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Florida appellate court reversed a juvenile delinquency adjudication for sexual battery because the trial court's competency examination of the child victim was inadequate under established standards requiring demonstration of moral obligation to tell truth, ability to recall events, and capacity to distinguish fact from fantasy.
A trial court abuses its discretion when it finds a child witness competent to testify without an adequate competency examination demonstrating the child's moral sense of obligation to tell truth, ability to recall past events, and capacity to distinguish fact from fantasy.
[1] A trial court's competency determination for a child witness in a sexual battery case must affirmatively demonstrate the child's moral sense of obligation to tell truth,…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“response to questions concerning understanding of importance of telling truth must reflect moral sense of obligation to tell truth, rather than be merely conclusory”
Fuller v. State standard for child witness competency examination
A juvenile was tried and found guilty by jury of sexual battery upon a victim less than twelve years of age. The trial court withheld adjudication of …
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PER CURIAM.
Following a jury trial which resulted in a verdict finding him guilty of sexual battery upon a victim less than twelve years of age, the trial court entered an order concluding that appellant had committed a delinquent act. Adjudication of delinquency was withheld, and appellant was placed in the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice. Appellant argues that the trial court abused its discretion when it found that the alleged child victim was competent to testify, because the competency examination was inadequate. We agree. See, e.g., Fuller v. State, 669 So. 2d 273 (Fla. 2d DCA), review denied, 675 So. 2d 929 (Fla.1996) (response to questions concerning understanding of importance of telling truth must reflect moral sense of obligation to tell truth, rather than be merely conclusory); Wade v. State, 586 So. 2d 1200 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991) (competency examination must demonstrate child witness is capable of recollecting past events as well as those recently observed); Griffin v. State, 526 So. 2d 752 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988) (when ease is totally dependent on child’s ability to recall and recount events accurately, determination that witness is capable of separating fact from fantasy is especially important). On the record before us, we are unable to conclude that this error was harmless. Ac-eordingly, we reverse and remand for a new trial. In light of this disposition, we find it unnecessary to address appellant’s remaining issue.
REVERSED and REMANDED, with directions.
WEBSTER, MICKLE and LAWRENCE, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Authorities Cited
- Griffin v. State, 526 So. 2d 752 (Fla. 1st DCA 1988)
- Wade v. State, 586 So. 2d 1200 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991)
- Fuller v. State, 669 So. 2d 273 (Fla. 2d DCA 1996)