People v. DeCoe

DORAN, J.

Defendant, who was found guilty by a jury of two counts each of the crimes of incest and rape, committed against his seventeen-year-old daughter, appeals from the judgment, and from the order denying his motion for a new trial.

Briefly, it appears from the record that on May 21, and May 28, 1937, after defendant's daughter Delorise, prosecutrix herein, returned home from school in the afternoon, defendant had sexual intercourse with her in the garage in the rear of their home. On June 18, 1937, the prosecutrix went to the police department and reported the matter concerning her father’s conduct toward her. The visit to the police followed with the arrest of defendant.

The examining physician at Juvenile Hall made a complete examination of Delorise on June 19, 1937, and “ . . . found the hymen was ruptured and relaxed. It was not a recent rupture”, and that “this condition would indicate that there had been numerous acts of sexual intercourse”.

Delorise testified that she had had previous sexual relations with her father for a period of two years. She further testified that upon the occasions when she had refused to accede to her father’s request he would say something like “do this for me and I will do that for you”, meaning that he would permit her to “go out”. It appears that Delorise had discussed her resentment with her father and had stated that

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she would tell her mother, but that defendant replied that it would be just her word against his.

On July 3, 1937, before the commencement of trial in the superior court, Delorise, who at that time was living away from home with her grandmother, signed an affidavit which was prepared by her father to the effect that her original story was untrue. On July 17, 1937, Delorise signed another affidavit to the same effect. She testified that her reason for signing the affidavits, which her mother brought to her, was “ . . . I felt sorry for my mother and grandmother. . . . And I thought maybe they would be without support, or something, if he (defendant) had to go away”. In answer to the question, on redirect examination: “It says in here (the affidavit) that you have never at any time had sexual intercourse with your father. Is that true or untrue?” the prosecutrix replied “Untrue”.