State v. Houser, 239 N.C. App. 410 (2015)
Held:
No Error
- Defendant was convicted of felony child abuse on his 3-year old stepdaughter where he inflicted serious bodily injury and the jury found two aggravating factors: EHAC & victim was very young.
- Officer Testimony: The officer’s testimony that: 1) a photograph taken of the home on the day that the 3-year-old was injured showed a hole in the sheetrock wall with a blonde hair in the hole, 2) the girl had blonde hair, 3) the hair in the sheetrock was not consistent with the defendant’s version of how the hole was created; and 4) the picture led to the officers asking for consent from the girl’s mother to go back to the home was not expert opinion testimony or a comment on the defendant’s truthfulness. Instead, it was an explanation of the investigative process that caused the officers to return to the home and collect the hair sample.
- Instruction as to EHAC: Although the court did not use the pattern jury instruction on EHAC, Defendant did not prove that absent that error, the jury probably would have reached a different result or that the error was so fundamental it cause a miscarriage of justice. The state proving all four factors set forth in Blackwelder, 309 N.C. at 413-14: excessive brutality, or physical pain, psychological suffering, or dehumanizing aspects not normally present in the offense.
Category:
Criminal Cases with Application to Child WelfareStage:
Felony Child AbuseTopic:
Especially Heinous, Atrocious, or Cruel Offense