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SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL 5214
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Passed Legislature - 1995 Regular Session
State of Washington 54th Legislature 1995
Regular Session
By
Read first time 02/02/95.
Making admissible childrens'
statements concerning acts of physical abuse.
AN ACT Relating to
admissibility of children's statements; and amending RCW 9A.44.120.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF
WASHINGTON:
Sec. 1. RCW 9A.44.120 and 1991 c
169 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
A statement made by a
child when under the age of ten describing any act of sexual contact performed
with or on the child by another ((or)), describing any attempted
act of sexual contact with or on the child by another, or describing any act
of physical abuse of the child by another that results in substantial bodily
harm as defined by RCW 9A.04.110, not otherwise admissible by statute or
court rule, is admissible in evidence in dependency proceedings under Title 13
RCW and criminal proceedings, including juvenile offense adjudications, in the
courts of the state of Washington if:
(1) The court finds, in
a hearing conducted outside the presence of the jury, that the time, content,
and circumstances of the statement provide sufficient indicia of reliability;
and
(2) The child either:
(a) Testifies at the
proceedings; or
(b) Is unavailable as a
witness: PROVIDED, That when the child is unavailable as a witness, such
statement may be admitted only if there is corroborative evidence of the act.
A
statement may not be admitted under this section unless the proponent of the
statement makes known to the adverse party his or her intention to offer
the statement and the particulars of the statement sufficiently in advance of
the proceedings to provide the adverse party with a fair opportunity to prepare
to meet the statement.
