{ "id": 4732149, "name": "STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA v. ERNEST JIMENEZ AGUALLO", "name_abbreviation": "State v. Aguallo", "decision_date": "1986-11-18", "docket_number": "No. 188A86", "first_page": "590", "last_page": "602", "citations": [ { "type": "official", "cite": "318 N.C. 590" } ], "court": { "name_abbreviation": "N.C.", "id": 9292, "name": "Supreme Court of North Carolina" }, "jurisdiction": { "id": 5, "name_long": "North Carolina", "name": "N.C." }, "cites_to": [ { "cite": "317 N.C. 568", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 4773847 ], "opinion_index": -1, "case_paths": [ "/nc/317/0568-01" ] }, { "cite": "341 S.E. 2d 565", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1986, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "316 N.C. 339", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "year": 1986, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "13 N. Ky. L. Rev. 51", "category": "journals:journal", "reporter": "N. Ky. L. Rev.", "year": 1986, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "779 F. 2d 430", "category": "reporters:federal", "reporter": "F.2d", "case_ids": [ 1539605 ], "weight": 3, "year": 1985, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "436" }, { "page": "437-38" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/f2d/779/0430-01" ] }, { "cite": "337 S.E. 2d 833", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1985, "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "315 N.C. 76", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 4715827 ], "year": 1985, "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc/315/0076-01" ] }, { "cite": "346 S.E. 2d 463", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "weight": 2, "year": 1986, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "467" } ], "opinion_index": 0 }, { "cite": "317 N.C. 568", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 4773847 ], "weight": 2, "pin_cites": [ { "page": "574" } ], "opinion_index": 0, "case_paths": [ "/nc/317/0568-01" ] }, { "cite": "350 S.E. 2d 76", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "pin_cites": [ { "page": "80" } ], "opinion_index": 1 }, { "cite": "337 S.E. 2d 833", "category": "reporters:state_regional", "reporter": "S.E.2d", "year": 1985, "opinion_index": 1 }, { "cite": "315 N.C. 76", "category": "reporters:state", "reporter": "N.C.", "case_ids": [ 4715827 ], "year": 1985, "opinion_index": 1, "case_paths": [ "/nc/315/0076-01" ] } ], "analysis": { "cardinality": 1030, "char_count": 27185, "ocr_confidence": 0.786, "pagerank": { "raw": 8.090003652479413e-07, "percentile": 0.97409540092878 }, "sha256": "f47b013afe4c66584381eb39c5f2506c41e9288c730369dc1bdfe1c54222d987", "simhash": "1:bc3fd13f73e88ad2", "word_count": 4489 }, "last_updated": "2023-07-14T18:03:08.889643+00:00", "provenance": { "date_added": "2019-08-29", "source": "Harvard", "batch": "2018" }, "casebody": { "judges": [], "parties": [ "STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA v. ERNEST JIMENEZ AGUALLO" ], "opinions": [ { "text": "MEYER, Justice.\nThis case presents two significant questions with respect to the testimony of a physician who examined a child rape victim. First, defendant argues that the trial court erred in allowing the examining physician to testify as to statements made to her by the victim. Second, defendant argues that the trial court erred in allowing the examining physician to testify as to whether the child victim was \u201cbelievable.\u201d\nWe find that the child\u2019s statements to the physician were for the purpose of medical diagnosis and treatment and were thus admissible under Rule 803(4) of the North Carolina Rules of Evidence (N.C.G.S. \u00a7 8C-1, Rule 803(4) (Cum. Supp. 1985)). Because we also find that the physician\u2019s opinion testimony as to the believability of the child should have been excluded under Rules 608 and 405(a) of the North Carolina Rules of Evidence (N.C.G.S. \u00a7 8C-1, Rules 608 and 405(a) (Cum. Supp. 1985)), we order a new trial.\nWe decline to address the defendant\u2019s additional assignments of error, which raise questions not likely to recur at a new trial.\nOn 9 September 1985, the defendant was indicted on the charge of first-degree rape. N.C.G.S. \u00a7 14-27.2 (Cum. Supp. 1985). The indictment alleged that sometime between 20 November 1984 and 17 December 1984, the defendant unlawfully, willfully, and feloniously engaged in vaginal intercourse with the victim, a nine-year-old child.\nThe State\u2019s evidence tended to show that between August and November 1984, the defendant lived with Mary, the victim\u2019s mother, and her two daughters, one of whom was the victim. In November, the defendant and Mary were married. Mary\u2019s two daughters continued to live in the same house as the defendant and Mary Aguallo.\nOne night in December 1984, Mary Aguallo awoke from her sleep and went into the living room of the apartment she shared with defendant and her two daughters. She saw the victim lying in front of the stool in front of the couch, and the defendant was on his knees in front of the victim, with his pants down but his underwear on. Mary told the victim to go into her room and later that evening arranged to have her mother, Betty Blackwell, take the children to her home. Mary stayed with the defendant at the apartment that evening, and the next day the defendant left by airplane for California.\nOn or about 20 December 1984, Mary took the victim to Dr. John Thomas\u2019 office and requested that the doctor give the child a physical examination. However, Mary did not tell the doctor about the incident with her husband or request that Dr. Thomas examine the victim\u2019s vaginal area.\nIn January 1985, leaving the victim with Betty Blackwell, Mary went to California to see the defendant. She stayed with the defendant in California for six months, until July 1985, when the defendant was arrested. She testified that she wanted to return to North Carolina prior to July 1985, but that she had no money and that the defendant managed to keep the checks that she earned while working for the defendant\u2019s family.\nThe nine-year-old victim testified that at some time, she could not remember the date, the defendant had laid her on the stool in front of the couch and \u201cput his hot dog into my private place.\u201d She further testified that she told some of her school classmates about the incident with the defendant. According to the victim, one of her classmates then related the incident in a letter that was found in the school playground.\nBetty Blackwell, the victim\u2019s grandmother, testified that on the evening that Mary sent the children to her house in July 1984, she examined the victim with a flashlight and noticed that her \u201cprivacy was very inflamed, red, inflamed.\u201d\nMs. Amy Collins of the Davie County Department of Social Services testified that sometime in June 1985 the principal of Pinebrook Elementary School informed her of a report of possible child sexual abuse. Ms. Collins interviewed the victim. In July of 1985 she took the victim to the office of Dr. Sarah Sinai, a pediatrician at the Bowman-Gray School of Medicine in Winston-Salem. Ms. Collins also arranged therapy treatment for the victim at the Davie County Mental Health Clinic.\nDr. Sarah Sinai testified that she first saw the victim on 10 July 1985 and that the child was brought in on the Child Medical Examiner Program as an alleged sexual abuse case. Over objection, she testified as to what the victim told her prior to the physical examination. This testimony was consistent with the victim\u2019s testimony and implicated the defendant as the perpetrator of the offense. Over objection, Dr. Sinai also testified that the victim was a believable child.\nThe defendant testified that on the night in question, he was watching television with the children. He sat down on the couch and unbuttoned his pants and put his zipper halfway down. When he got up to change the channel, his pants came down as he was getting off the couch. The defendant had told the victim to go to her bedroom at the time her mother entered the room.\nDr. John Thomas testified for the defendant. He had seen the victim at his office on 20 December 1984. At the time, the victim was not anxious nor were any statements made to him to raise any suspicions that the child had been abused.\nThe jury found the defendant guilty of first-degree rape.\nI.\nWe first address the defendant\u2019s contention that the trial court erred in allowing Dr. Sinai to testify as to statements made to her by the victim. Because the record discloses no instruction limiting the admissibility of this evidence for corroborative purposes, we must determine whether Dr. Sinai\u2019s testimony was admissible as substantive evidence. The defendant argues that the statements are hearsay and not otherwise admissible under the North Carolina Rules of Evidence, Rule 803(4), exception applicable to statements made for the purpose of medical diagnosis or treatment. We disagree.\n\u201cHearsay\u201d is 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. N.C. R. Evid. 801(c). Hearsay is not admissible except as provided by statute or the Rules of Evidence. N.C. R. Evid. 802.\nOn direct examination, Dr. Sarah Sinai testified that the victim came to her office on 10 July 1985. She was brought in by her grandmother and Amy Collins, a protective services worker. Dr. Sinai determined that the victim was brought in on the Child Medical Examiner Program.\nBefore conducting a physical examination, Dr. Sinai spoke with the victim. Dr. Sinai testified that as part of a set routine, she spoke with the children prior to an examination.\nOver objection, Dr. Sinai was allowed to testify as to the conversation she had with the victim. She offered the following testimony as to what the victim told her:\n[B]efore Christmastime her stepfather, whose name she said was Ernie Aguallo, said to her one evening, \u201cDo you want to see what boys and girls do when they get older?\u201d And she told me that she said, \u201cNo,\u201d and that he said, \u201cWell, I\u2019m going to show you anyway.\u201d And she said at that point he unzipped his fly and took out his hot dog and I have an anatomical diagram and I asked her to identify the hot dog on the anatomical diagram and she pointed to the penis. And she said that he put his hot dog up inside of her and I asked her where and on the anatomical diagram she identified or pointed to the vagina. And I asked her whether he actually just touched her with his hot dog or whether it actually went up inside of her and she said that it went up inside of me [sic]. I asked her if it was painful and she said, \u201cYes, that it hurt a lot,\u201d and she started to yell but was afraid to.\nDr. Sinai\u2019s testimony was hearsay because it was offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted \u2014 that Ernest Aguallo indeed had vaginal intercourse with the victim. We must determine whether the statement is admissible under the authority of hearsay exceptions codified in Rules 803 and 804.\nRule 803 provides in pertinent part:\nThe following are not excluded by the hearsay rule, even though the declarant is available as a witness:\n(4) Statements for Purposes of Medical Diagnosis or Treatment. \u2014 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.\nN.C. R. Evid. 803(4).\nThe Commentary to Rule 803(4) suggests that statements made for the purpose of medical diagnosis or treatment have circumstantial guarantees of trustworthiness because of the patient\u2019s strong motivation to be truthful.\nThe defendant argues that the statements do not fall within the exception of Rule 803(4) because the victim\u2019s statements to the doctor were not for purpose of treatment or diagnosis, but rather for the purpose of gathering evidence for the State. The defendant\u2019s argument is belied by the facts.\nThe child was allegedly raped sometime between 20 November and 17 December 1984. In June 1985, Amy Collins, a social worker, was first made aware that the child was a possible rape victim. In July 1985, she brought the child to Dr. Sinai as part of the Child Medical Examiner Program. There is no evidence that law enforcement authorities initiated the visit to Dr. Sinai, which was primarily for the purpose of diagnosis and treatment.\nThe defendant argues that this case is controlled by State v. Stafford, 317 N.C. 568, 346 S.E. 2d 463 (1986), in which we held that certain statements made by the prosecutrix to her physician did not fall within the Rule 803(4) exception. In Stafford, the alleged rape of a nine-year-old occurred in December 1983. The victim was examined by her physician in January 1984 and later on 13 July 1984, three days prior to trial. There was no testimony that the prosecutrix visited the physician on 13 July for the purpose of diagnosis or treatment, and the physician admittedly did not make a diagnosis or treat the patient on that date.\nIn Stafford, this Court noted that the statements in question were not made for the purpose of diagnosis or treatment and that the statements were made to the physician three days before trial. We held that the statements were made by the victim to the physician for the \u201cpurpose of preparing and presenting the state\u2019s \u2018rape trauma syndrome\u2019 theory at trial.\u201d Stafford, 317 N.C. at 574, 346 S.E. 2d at 467.\nStafford is distinguishable from the present case, in which the victim visited Dr. Sinai several months prior to trial. Dr. Sinai diagnosed the patient\u2019s condition, whereas in Stafford no diagnosis was made when the victim visited the physician three days prior to trial. Also, the present case differs from Stafford inasmuch as the statements were made during the initial examination by the physician for the purpose of treating the alleged sexual abuse, whereas in Stafford the statements were made during a subsequent visit in preparation for trial.\nHaving concluded that the statements made to Dr. Sinai were for the purpose of medical diagnosis and treatment, we must determine whether the victim\u2019s statements identifying the perpetrator of the crime were \u201creasonably\u201d pertinent to diagnosis or treatment.\nIn State v. Smith, 315 N.C. 76, 337 S.E. 2d 833 (1985), we held that identity of the perpetrator is pertinent to the treatment or diagnosis of a child rape victim. In Smith, we noted that courts that have addressed the issue have admitted statements identifying the perpetrator of child sexual abuse where the motivation for the statement is to disclose information to aid in medical treatment or diagnosis.\nIt is important to note that the exception embodied in Rule 803(4) was not intended to make admissible a patient\u2019s statement to her doctor concerning fault. The Commentary notes:\nStatements as to fault would not ordinarily qualify under this latter language. Thus a patient\u2019s statement that he was struck by an automobile would qualify but not his statement that the car was driven through a red light.\nCommentary, N.C. R. Evid. 803(4).\nRecently, in United States v. Renville, 779 F. 2d 430 (8th Cir. 1985), the Eighth Circuit analyzed the application of the Rule 803(4) exception within the context of child sexual abuse cases.\nGenerally, under Rule 803(4), in the overall run of cases, statements as to an assailant\u2019s identity are seldom pertinent to diagnosis and do not ordinarily promote effective treatment. The patient has no sincere desire to account for fault because it is irrelevant to an anticipated course of treatment. Therefore, ordinarily such statements are not properly covered by the Rule 803(4) exception to the hearsay rule. Renville, 779 F. 2d at 436. However, in the context of a child sexual abuse or child rape, a victim\u2019s statements to a physician as to an assailant\u2019s identity are pertinent to diagnosis and treatment.\nThe Renville court noted two reasons why the identity of a perpetrator is pertinent to diagnosis in a child sexual abuse case. First, a proper diagnosis of a child\u2019s psychological problems resulting from sexual abuse or rape will often depend on the identity of the abuser. Second, information that a child sexual abuser is a member of the patient\u2019s household is reasonably pertinent to a course of treatment that includes removing the child from the home. Id. at 437-38. See generally Moore, The Medical Diagnosis and Treatment Exception of the Hearsay Rule \u2014 The Use of the Child Protective Team in Child Sexual Abuse Prosecutions, 13 N. Ky. L. Rev. 51 (1986); S. Saltzburg & K. Reddin, Federal Rules of Evidence Manual \u00a7 803(4) (4th ed. 1986 & Supp. 1986); McCormick on Evidence \u00a7 292, n. 14 (3d ed. 1984).\nIn the present case the victim\u2019s statements were pertinent to diagnosis and treatment. First, the statements suggested to Dr. Sinai the nature of the problem, which, in turn, dictated the type of examination she performed for diagnostic purposes. Additionally, the victim\u2019s identification of the defendant as perpetrator was pertinent to continued treatment of the possible psychological and emotional problems resulting from the rape.\nBecause the victim\u2019s statements were made for the purpose of and were pertinent to \u201cmedical diagnosis or treatment,\u201d Dr. Sinai\u2019s hearsay testimony was properly admitted under the Rule 803(4) exception to the hearsay rule. See generally 4 Weinstein\u2019s Evidence \u00a7 803(4)[01] (1986); 1 Brandis on North Carolina Evidence \u00a7 161 (2d rev. ed. 1982 & Supp. 1986); McCormick on Evidence \u00a7 292 (3d ed. 1984).\nII.\nThe defendant argues that the trial court erred in allowing Dr. Sinai, a pediatrician, to express her opinion that the victim was \u201cbelievable.\u201d The defendant asserts that Dr. Sinai was not qualified as an expert in determining believability and that her opinion as to the believability of the victim did not assist the jury.\nWe find that this \u201copinion\u201d testimony is inadmissible under Rules 608(a) and 405.\nRule 608 provides in pertinent part:\n(a) Opinion and reputation evidence of character.\u2014 The credibility of a witness may be attacked or supported by evidence in the form of reputation or opinion as provided in Rule 405(a), but subject to these limitations: (1) the evidence may refer only to character for truthfulness or untruthfulness, and (2) evidence of truthful character is admissible only after the character of the witness for truthfulness has been attacked by opinion or reputation evidence or otherwise.\nN.C.R. Evid. 608(a) (emphasis added). As noted in the official Commentary to Rule 608(a), the phrase \u201cas provided in Rule 405(a)\u201d was inserted to make clear that expert testimony on the credibility of a witness is not admissible.\nLikewise, under Rule 405, which deals with methods of proving character, \u201c[ejxpert testimony on character or a trait of character is not admissible as circumstantial evidence of behavior.\u201d N.C.R. Evid. 405(a).\nIn State v. Heath, 316 N.C. 339, 341 S.E. 2d 565 (1986), we held that it was prejudicial error to allow the victim\u2019s clinical psychologist to express her opinion as to whether the victim might have fabricated the facts of a sexual assault.\nIn the present case, the following exchange occurred on direct examination of Dr. Sinai:\nQ. Based on that conversation and the conversations you have with the children, do you normally form opinions as to whether they are believable or not?\nA. Yes.\nMr. Stroud: Objection, your Honor.\nCourt: Overruled.\nException No. 18\nQ. After talking to . . . [the victim], did you form an opinion about whether she was believable or not?\nA. Yes, sir.\nMr. Stroud: Objection, your Honor.\nCourt: Overruled.\nException No. 19\nQ. What was that, please?\nA. I think she\u2019s believable.\nThis testimony amounted to an expert\u2019s opinion as to the credibility of the victim. As in Heath, we find that the testimony is inadmissible under the mandate of Rule 608(a).\nHaving found that the court erred in allowing Dr. Sinai to testify that the victim was believable, we must determine whether the error was so prejudicial as to warrant a new trial.\nA defendant is prejudiced by adverse evidentiary rulings where there is a \u201creasonable possibility that, had the error in question not been committed, a different result would have been reached at the trial out of which the appeal arises.\u201d N.C.G.S. \u00a7 15A-1443 (1983).\nThe evidence of the defendant\u2019s guilt was strong but not overwhelming. Based on the victim\u2019s testimony, a jury could reasonably conclude that the defendant was guilty of rape. In addition to the testimony of the victim, the State offered evidence that the victim consistently told the same story to others. Finally, there was medical evidence of penetration. However, because the physical examination of the victim took place more than six months after the alleged rape, it was impossible to determine whether the penetration resulted from the sexual abuse alleged in the indictment or some other cause. Therefore, the State\u2019s case hinged on the victim\u2019s testimony and thus upon her credibility. Cross-examination of the victim raised some doubts about the victim\u2019s credibility. Because it is likely that any doubts the jurors may have had about the victim\u2019s credibility were allayed by the pediatrician\u2019s testimony that she found the victim to be \u201cbelievable,\u201d we conclude that absent this testimony, there is a reasonable possibility that a different result would have been reached by the jury. Accordingly, for the prejudicial effect of the error in the admission of this testimony, we order a new trial.\nNew trial.\n. The initial indictment alleged that the acts for which the defendant was charged occurred between 20 November 1984 and 17 December 1985. On the defendant\u2019s motion to dismiss the indictment, the court ruled that the indictment contained a typographical error and thus restricted evidence of alleged wrongful acts to the period between 20 November 1984 and 17 December 198U.", "type": "majority", "author": "MEYER, Justice." }, { "text": "Chief Justice BILLINGS\ndissenting in part.\nAlthough N.C.G.S. \u00a7 8C-1, Rule 803(4) was clearly intended to liberalize the hearsay exception allowing introduction for substantive use of statements made for purposes of medical diagnosis or treatment, the rule must not be applied mechanically, without regard for its intent and justification.\nThe benchmark for use of hearsay testimony is an identifiable reason for recognizing that the statement made by a declarant out of court and not under oath is inherently reliable. That inherent reliability may be found in the self-interest of a person seeking medical treatment. The patient, seeking help for his or her medical condition, realizes that in order for the physician to make an accurate diagnosis and to provide effective treatment, the information regarding the onset of symptoms, the location and kind of pain, etc. must be accurately related. State v. Smith, 315 N.C. 76, 337 S.E. 2d 833 (1985). The information is inherently reliable only if the speaker realizes the necessity for the information to be correct.\nIn the majority opinion, the focus seems to be placed, not upon the realization by the child that accurate identification of her abuser was necessary to her treatment, but upon the doctor\u2019s knowledge of why information, usually \u201cirrelevant to an anticipated course of treatment,\u201d (318 N.C. 590, 597, 350 S.E. 2d 76, 80) and \u201cordinarily . . . not properly covered by the Rule 803(4) exception to the hearsay rule,\u201d (id.) is useful for the treatment of the sexually abused child.\nIn the case sub judice, nothing in the majority opinion indicates that the child sought medical treatment or was aware that her truthful identification of her abuser was necessary in aid of treatment. The visit to the physician\u2019s office was prompted not by the child\u2019s seeking either physical or psychological help necessitated by an act that occurred seven months earlier, but by adults\u2019 reaction to information that a criminal act had taken place. Instead of adopting a mechanical rule that so long as the recipient of an out of court declaration has a medical degree, the statement of a patient is admissible at trial if the physician is aware of some diagnosis or treatment use which he or she can make of the information, I would require at least some basis upon which to infer that the declarant was aware of the heightened need for truthfulness. If, as I suspect, the basis for the majority\u2019s faith in the reliability of the statement has more to do with the age of the victim than it does with her realization of the need for truthfulness in order to get appropriate treatment, this Court should encourage the legislature to consider the appropriateness of special rules for obtaining evidence in child sexual abuse cases rather than to try to fit this testimony into a mold which cannot contain it. As at least one commentator has observed, \u201cConcern over the recent revelations of child sex abuse have [sic] caused several state courts to expand, if not distort, the concept of diagnosis or treatment.\u201d M. Graham, Handbook of Federal Evidence \u00a7 803.4 at 828 n. 4 (2d ed. 1986).\nIn the case sub judice the hearsay declarant also testified at trial and was subject to confrontation and cross-examination by the defendant; therefore substantive use of the hearsay evidence does not raise questions about violation of the defendant\u2019s rights under the Confrontation Clause of the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The majority opinion appropriately does not deal with the Confrontation Clause problem since it was not raised. However, I fear that this case may encourage prosecutors to rely exclusively upon the testimony of physicians, relating hearsay statements of child victims in sex abuse cases, to identify the abusers. I therefore dissent from the holding that the statement of the child to the witness was admissible as substantive evidence, and I also write to suggest that prosecutors exercise caution in relying exclusively on hearsay statements to prove the offense in cases of child sexual abuse.\n. See Unif. R. Evid. Rule 807 (1986). The American Bar Association approved Guidelines for the Fair Treatment of Child Witnesses in Cases Where Child Abuse Is Alleged at its 10 July 1985 meeting. The guidelines recommend allowance of videotaped depositions as follows:\n3. In criminal cases and juvenile delinquency and child protection proceedings where child abuse is alleged, court procedures and protocol should be modified as necessary to accommodate the needs of child witnesses including:\nj) When necessary the court should permit the child\u2019s testimony at a pretrial or noncriminal hearing to be given by means of a videotaped deposition.\nAmerican Bar Association, Guidelines for the Fair Treatment of Child Witnesses in Cases Where Child Abuse Is Alleged 1-2 (1985). In North Carolina the Governor\u2019s Crime Commission recommended \u201cthat the General Assembly enact legislation to allow for the electronic transmission or recording of child victim testimony which protects the defendant\u2019s right to confront the witnesses against him or her\u201d and drafted a proposed act. Governor\u2019s Crime Commission, Department of Crime Control and Public Safety, Missing Children: A Report to the Governor 6-9 (1985).\nFor discussions of the problem and references to legislation adopted by various states see R. Eatman & J. Bulkley, Protecting Child Victim/Witnesses: Sample Laws and Materials 17-34 (National Legal Resource Center for Child Advocacy & Protection 1986); National Legal Resource Center for Child Advocacy and Protection-Child Sexual Abuse Law Reform Project, Evidentiary and Procedural Trends in State Legislation and Other Emerging Legal Issues in Child Sexual Abuse Cases 11-12, 26-27 (American Bar Association, Young Lawyers Division 1985); Selected State Legislation: A Guide for Effective State Laws to Protect Children 20-21 (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children 1985); D. Whitcomb, E. Shapiro & L. Stellwagen, When the Victim Is a Child 59-68 (U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice 1985).", "type": "dissent", "author": "Chief Justice BILLINGS" } ], "attorneys": [ "Lacy H. Thornburg, Attorney General, by Elisha H. Bunting, Jr., Assistant Attorney General, for the State.", "Keith Stroud for defendant-appellant." ], "corrections": "", "head_matter": "STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA v. ERNEST JIMENEZ AGUALLO\nNo. 188A86\n(Filed 18 November 1986)\n1. Criminal Law \u00a7 73.2\u2014 child rape victim \u2014 statements to pediatrician \u2014 within medical treatment exception to hearsay rule\nStatements of a child rape victim to a physician were admissible under the medical diagnosis or treatment exception to the hearsay rule where the child was taken to a doctor by a social services worker as part of the Child Medical Examiner Program; there was no evidence that law enforcement authorities initiated the visit; State v. Stafford, 317 N.C. 568, could be distinguished because the victim there visited the physician three days prior to trial for the purpose of trial preparation, while the statements here were made during the initial examination by the physician for the purpose of treating the alleged sexual abuse; and the victim\u2019s statements identifying defendant were pertinent to diagnosis and treatment because the statements suggested the nature of the problem, which dictated the type of diagnostic examination, and were pertinent to the continued treatment of possible psychological and emotional problems. N.C.G.S. \u00a7 8C-1, Rule 803(4).\n2. Criminal Law \u00a7 86.8\u2014 child rape victim \u2014opinion of physician as to credibility \u2014 not admissible\nThe trial court erred in a prosecution for the rape of a child by admitting the testimony of a physician that the child was believable, and the error was prejudicial because the State\u2019s case hinged upon the victim\u2019s testimony and cross-examination raised some doubts about her credibility. N.C.G.S. \u00a7 8C-1, Rule 608(a).\nChief Justice Billings dissenting in part.\nBEFORE Washington, J., at the 29 October 1985 Criminal Session of Superior Court, Forsyth County, defendant was convicted of first-degree rape and received the mandatory life sentence. The defendant appeals as of right pursuant to N.C.G.S. \u00a7 7A-27(a). Heard in the Supreme Court on 8 September 1986.\nLacy H. Thornburg, Attorney General, by Elisha H. Bunting, Jr., Assistant Attorney General, for the State.\nKeith Stroud for defendant-appellant." }, "file_name": "0590-01", "first_page_order": 614, "last_page_order": 626 }