{"id":625,"date":"2018-01-18T16:30:52","date_gmt":"2018-01-18T21:30:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clearwatercriminallawyer.net\/?p=625"},"modified":"2026-01-31T09:09:41","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T14:09:41","slug":"hearsay-questions-sink-conviction-florida-sex-crime-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.criminalattorneyclearwater.net\/blog\/hearsay-questions-sink-conviction-florida-sex-crime-case\/","title":{"rendered":"Hearsay Questions Sink Conviction in Florida Sex Crime Case"},"content":{"rendered":"

The rule against hearsay generally bans one person from testifying in court about what another person said outside court, if it\u2019s being used to prove a fact. In other words, an alleged rape victim\u2019s friend generally can\u2019t testify in court that the victim told the friend that the person charged with the crime raped the victim. There are a number of exceptions to this rule, however, including one for statements made out of court by a minor describing a sex crime. As Florida\u2019s Second District Court of Appeal recently explained<\/a>, however, a judge has to perform a specific factual analysis before allowing hearsay evidence into the record.A defendant was charged with unlawful sexual activity, stemming from an incident in which he allegedly had sexual contact with a girl under the age of 18. At trial, the victim\u2019s mother testified that her family was visiting Florida on vacation when the crime occurred. They were visiting with extended family at the time, and at least nine people were in the house. After the victim asked her mother three separate times to leave the home, she eventually told her mother that the defendant had touched the victim on her breasts and vagina while she was sleeping in her grandmother\u2019s bed upstairs. When the mother asked the victim what she meant, the victim said \u201cI don\u2019t think I\u2019m a virgin anymore,\u201d according to the mother.<\/p>\n

The victim told a police officer in a recorded interview that the defendant entered the bedroom, lay down next to her, and started fondling her breasts. She said he eventually had sex with her.<\/p>\n

Continue reading \u2192<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The rule against hearsay generally bans one person from testifying in court about what another person said outside court, if it\u2019s being used to prove a fact. In other words, an alleged rape victim\u2019s friend generally can\u2019t testify in court that the victim told the friend that the person charged with the crime raped the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sex-crimes"],"yoast_head":"\nHearsay Evidence Problems and How to Fight Back<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Your case can turn on one detail. A sex crime charge case can hinge on hearsay questions sink conviction. See how this ruling defense. 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