Safe Testimony Tv Screens for Child Witnesses

The six-year-old girl marched into the chambers of Los Angeles Judge Aviva Bobb two weeks ago and said she was afraid to tell the truth in court. Clutching a large teddy bear for support, she had already testified that Raymond Buckey, a preschool teacher, had sexually molested her, then killed a turtle in her presence and warned that her parents would also be killed if she told what had happened. Though she did finally complete her testimony, the girl's father pointed out that Buckey's presence caused her fear, "a good argument for closed-circuit TV."

With more and more young witnesses now being called in abuse and molestation trials, that argument made sense to California Governor George Deukmejian. Two weekends ago he signed the first legislation in the U.S. allowing simultaneous, two-way closed-circuit television for some children under eleven in molestation cases. The system is designed to separate the accused from the accuser, while allowing each to see and hear the other on TV screens during testimony. Defense attorneys are expected to challenge the new law, citing the Sixth Amendment right of defendants to confront their accusers, whatever their age. The question will be whether confronting the witness through a TV screen satisfies the Constitution.