Chapter 3 - §4. Exception—Statement of child-abuse victim

• Jurisdiction: United States

§4. Exception—Statement of child-abuse victim

Statements made by certain child-abuse victims for medical diagnosis or treatment are admissible as an exception to the hearsay rule. Evid. C. §1253.

§4.1. Overview. A child-declarant's statement about abuse or neglect by another person may be admitted, even though it is hearsay, if it meets certain criteria. The rationale for this exception is that the child's youthfulness offers a sufficient safeguard against fabrication.

Federal Comparison Evid. C. §1253 was modeled after FRE 803(4), although the scope of the California rule is much narrower because it applies only to statements by young children and only in cases of child abuse or neglect. See 1 Witkin, California Evidence (5th ed.), Hearsay §198.

§4.2. Requirements for exception. For a child's hearsay statement about abuse or neglect to be admissible as a hearsay exception, the following criteria must be met:

1. Declarant is under 12 at time of statement. The declarant must be under the age of 12 when she made the statement. Evid. C. §1253.

2. Declarant is a minor at time of proceeding. The declarant must still be a minor at the time of the proceeding where the evidence is introduced. Evid. C. §1253.

3. Statement concerns child abuse or neglect. The statement by the minor must (1) describe either (a) the minor's medical history, or past or present symptoms, pain, or sensations, or (b) the inception or general character of the cause or external source of the medical history or condition as reasonably pertinent to diagnosis or treatment, and (2) be made while the minor was describing any act or attempted act of child abuse or neglect as those terms are defined by Evid. C. §1360(c) and Pen. C. §281 et seq. See Evid. C. §1253; see also People v. Mitchell (4th Dist.2020) 46 Cal. App.5th 919, 931 (because Evid. C. §1253 specifically incorporates broad "child abuse" and "child neglect" definitions under Evid. C. §1360(c), its applicability is not limited to cases in which D is specifically charged with violating child-abuse statutes). Generally, the perpetrator's identity is not considered "reasonably pertinent to diagnosis or treatment," so the perpetrator's identification is generally outside the scope of this hearsay exception. See In re Daniel W. (4th Dist.2003) 106 Cal.App.4th 159, 164-65. However, when the child identifies her abuser as a member of her family or household, that circumstance becomes significant for proper treatment of the child and is thus...