RINGGOLD, Ga. — A psychology expert testified Friday that one of the girls alleging that a former kindergarten teacher molested her could have been led to that statement in an early interview.
Dr. Ann Hazzard, an associate professor in the department of pediatrics and psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Emory University, testified that she interviewed the third alleged victim in the Tonya Craft case after the girl’s interviews with local authorities.
Ms. Craft, a former Chickamauga Elementary School teacher, is charged with 22 counts of child molestation, aggravated sexual battery and aggravated child molestation. The charges involve three girls.
Called as an expert witness on the clinical psychology of children who have been sexually abused, Dr. Hazzard spent all day Friday on the stand.
She told the jury that Ms. Craft’s defense team asked her to interview the third child in the case and examine the interview that social worker Suzie Thorne of the GreenHouse Children’s Advocacy Center had conducted with the child in June 2008.
She testified that most of Ms. Thorne’s interview was properly conducted, but she had a problem with a key section of the interview when Ms. Thorne asked a question of the child.
She explained that Ms. Thorne had implied what “good” and “bad” touches were to the girl, which could make the girl assume that it would be “bad” any time she was touched on her privates — even during legitimate times such as applying medicine.
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Staff Photo by Matt Fields-Johnson/Chattanooga Times Free - Tonya Craft leaves the Catoosa County Courthouse Thursday evening with her husband David Craft.
“For young children, that’s potentially problematic,” she said.
She also addressed how important it is not to lead or suggest questions to a child during an interview.
“It’s hard for children to distinguish between what actually happened and what they heard and, in some cases, what they added out of their own imagination,” Dr. Hazzard said.
In her own report, Dr. Hazzard said she interviewed the girl by using a list of touches that someone could give a child, including hugging, kissing and touching in private parts, then asked the child to talk about each item on list.
When Dr. Hazzard got to the last question, she said the child became a little anxious but eventually pointed to the private area on the stick figure and indicated that Ms. Craft had touched her there.
Dr. Hazzard testified that, when she questioned the child about when the touching happened, all the girl could say was, “I don’t know.”
“Her emotional reaction was interesting,” Dr. Hazzard testified, explaining the child looked puzzled.
Dr. Hazzard was not allowed to give her final evaluation of the child based on three separate interviews.
Before testimony began, both legal teams spent an hour arguing about what evidence in Dr. Hazzard’s report should be brought into the case.
In the hearing, defense attorney Demosthenes Lorandos became flushed and raised his voice when confronting Assistant District Attorney Len Gregor, who implied that Mr. Lorandos lied about evidence that was supposed to be given to the state.
Dr. Lorandos explained he had provided the information in an attached e-mail that Mr. Gregor hadn’t printed out.
Superior Court Judge Brian House quickly chided Mr. Lorandos for raising his voice.
At the end of the hearing, the judge ruled that he wouldn’t allow Dr. Hazzard to include several parts of her report, including the conclusions she came to regarding the child, saying “that would be for the jury to decide.”
When Mr. Gregor began his cross-examination, he questioned Dr. Hazzard’s conclusion about Ms. Thorne’s interview and asked if she hadn’t done the same thing in her own interview with the child.
Dr. Hazzard responded that she had used a more neutral method to question the child.
In response, Mr. Gregor said he’d planned to go through her interview with the child and judge how she did.
“I would agree that, in practice, it’s difficult to do an absolute perfect interview,” Dr. Hazzard told Mr. Gregor. “But when you judge interviews, you need to look at them overall and look at the number of errors.”
Mr. Gregor spent Friday afternoon asking her about her interview and the study of psychology in general. He pointed out past theories that he said used to be considered reputable statements, including that the “world was flat.”
Joy Lukachick covers crime in North Georgia for the Chattanooga Times Free Press. She started working at the paper in July 2009 as an intern. Raised near the Bayou, Joy’s hometown is along the outskirts of Baton Rouge, La. She has a bachelor’s degree in mass communication from Louisiana State University. While at LSU, Joy was a staff writer for the Daily Reveille. When Joy isn't chasing down stories, she is a full-time supporter of ...
"...the judge ruled that he wouldn’t allow Dr. Hazzard to include several parts of her report, including the conclusions she came to regarding the child, saying “that would be for the jury to decide.”"
As the purest of WAGs, based upon Judge House's previous biased rulings, I would say Dr Hazzard's final conclusions in her report would damage the prosecution's case.
The jury should hear an expert witness's full report and THEN reach their own conclusion of her veracity. I dare say the Judge has certainly allowed testimony damaging to the defense's case...
I have been following this case by reading the newspaper, and it stands clear to me that Judge House has been very biased on several accounts. In my opinion, he is strongly giving favor to the prosecution side of this trial. He allows outside testimony from the prosecution, and then denies it from the defense. Why would a judge deny testimony from an outside witness to this area, that was called in as an EXPERT on children psychology, and allow outside witnesses, from non-expert people in anything, except personal preferences to Ms. Craft appearance. That is clearly bised!! But yet, it was allowed to be submitted as evidence???? He is taking away the rights from the jury to hear and review ALL the evidence, and from making their on decisions.. Why have a jury???
This judge also rules in favor of the prosecution on objections and against objections for the defense.
LOL!!! Come on people this is ridiculus!!! How much more obvious can it get. I don't have a dog in this fight, but it is clear to me what is going on!! Somebody is getting paid off or has a personal vindetta against Ms. Craft.
The children's and mother's testimonies have changed, the dates and places of the incidences has changed, the people involved has changed, and the details have changed... How can this be, if it is true????
I agree Dimples, this judge is so obviously biased this trial has become a circus. This man needs to be removed from the bench. The people of Catoosa County should be outraged by their justice system!
Makes you wonder. How many other cases this judge House and assistant prosecutors have teamed up with to convict a possibly innocent person? Hopefully, the judicial oversight that keeps judges and prosecutors in check will look into the practices of this judge and Catoosa's ADA's.
Note: The head D.A. himself seems to have chosen to keep a distance from this case?
This trial is just a circus, now.
It seriously looks like these people are just out to ruin this woman's life.
It's sad that they can use the courts to do this, now a days.
You know, this kind of show is endemic in our courts across the land and has been for ages. This case just spotlights the corruption and deviousness better than some. The OJ trial was another, the McMartin trial another.
The poor see no justice, while the rich go free. I think it was the prophet Isaiah who said thousands of years ago, "there is no justice for Adonai's people in the land...evil is everywhere and overtakes them.."
Anybody today who believes our government, its institutions and officials are "basically good" people, because at heart, "humans are basically good', needs a major overhaul of their head and heart.
Sad America, sad day indeed.
The Salem Witch trials started the same way this case did. Some little pre-pubescent girls got mad at someone and made false accusations. The result was that people were tortured, put into prison, and murderd by the state. The same thing is happening in this trial. The judge and the prosecutor are both the ones that should go to prison. I am not too sure that the jurors will see what an obviously crooked mickey mouse judicial system is doing to this defendent. The mothers of these children also should be charged with felonies for filling their little girl's heads with all the filthy false charges and then putting them on the stand to lie. I urge the jurors in this case to acquit. I also openly express my contempt for this bozo judge and corrupt prosecutor. Judges are not supposed to be an arm of the prosecution - they are supposed to be fair and conduct trials in an honest and open fashion and this is not the case here.
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