Prosecutors won't call Haleigh Poutre to testify

September 30, 2008 04:36 PM Email| Comments (0)| Text size – +

By Patricia Wen, Globe Staff

Prosecutors have decided not to call 14-year-old Haleigh Poutre to testify against her stepfather in his trial next month on charges for allegedly contributing to the violent head injuries that left her brain damaged.

The Hampden District Attorney's office filed a motion today stating that the "Commonwealth has concluded that it would not be in the best interests of the child to testify in a public forum and has decided to forego the information she would have supplied rather than further traumatize the child."

Despite prosecutors' decision, a pretrial competency hearing for Haleigh is still scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday in Hampden Superior Court. Attorneys for her stepfather, Jason Strickland, have not indicted whether they plan to call the girl as a witness.

Haleigh was never expected to appear at Wednesday's hearing. Hamden County Superior Court Judge Judd Carhart indicated that he could have traveled to the Brighton rehabilitation facility where she lives to converse with her or watched videotaped testimony from her.

Haleigh emerged from a coma three years ago, just before her life support was nearly removed. The Globe described in a story published on Sunday that she has reached more medical milestones than doctors ever imagined possible: She can breathe on her own, communicate sentences, and concentrate long enough to attend a special day school.

Aside from evaluating her competency through records and statements from medical specialists, the judge is also weighing motions from the Department of Children and Families (formerly the Department of Social Services), which has custody of Haleigh, and Joseph Franco, a court-appointed guardian who will represent Haleigh's interests. Their motions argued that Haleigh should not have to endure the emotional anguish of appearing in a public courtroom facing her stepfather. Strickland's trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 29.

Franco said in a court filing that medical records will "cast doubt" on Haleigh's competency, and that "testimony by the child would be detrimental to her psychological well-being." A Children and Families official said in court documents that Haleigh could suffer "flashbacks and nightmares" if required to testify.

Judges have the discretion to protect young victims from being forced to give testimony. Judges can also make special accommodations, such as allowing the testimony to take place in a different room through closed-circuit television or with a familiar person sitting next to the child.

The state's child protection agency is also seeking to bar the media from covering any potential testimony from Haleigh, a motion that is being opposed by Strickland's lawyers. The Springfield Republican newspaper has filed a motion to oppose the media exclusion, and the Globe is joining in that motion.