Question

What additional persons should you now interview as a result of what you just learned from the interviews completed Who do you want to interview and what would you like to ask (two or three questions for each new interviewee)? What physical evidence do you want to collect now as a result of the interviews already completed? Why do you want this evidence – what do you hope it will do for your case? Do you need a search warrant for any of it? Explain your justification for this answer.

Interviews were conducted on this case by you as the investigator. A synopsis of what was said by each interviewee is as follows:

Hospital SW Mary Adams: Mom told the Social Worker that the child fell down the stairs while at home. She initially said it was just her and the child home, but later admitted that dad was home. Dad initially came to the hospital with them and every time mom was asked a question, dad would interrupt and answer for her. When the doctor told dad she had questions about some of the injuries, dad stormed out of the hospital. SW met briefly with the child who told her that she fell down the stairs and that she made her dad mad.

Dr. Meredith Grey: Dr. Grey said that the child has a break to the collar bone that could be consistent with a fall if the child’s arm was outstretched when falling. The linear marks on the lower back and upper arms appear to be more consistent with a strike from a belt or similar object. Those marks/injuries are inconsistent with a fall and likely happened before the break in the collar bone. When she asked the child about the fall, the child would only say it was an accident. When asked about the other marks on her body, she would only say “I don’t know” and “Please don’t tell my step-daddy I said anything”.  

Jane Smith (mom): Mom is very reluctant to talk to law enforcement or CPS. She initially indicates to you that her daughter is clumsy and falls when she runs – which she was doing in the house when she fell down the stairs to the basement. When pressed, mom will admit there have been some problems with dad (Jim Smith). She said he is not Susie’s biological father but has been in her life for the last year and a half. Susie’s biological father (Mark Johnson) lives in the area and sees Susie every other weekend.Susie likes to talk about her “real dad” and this upsets Jim. Jim does drink daily but mom doesn’t think he is an alcoholic.  

Mom said that dad and Susie were arguing about cleaning her room – Susie didn’t do a very good job of cleaning. Dad was mad and they argued when Susie fell. Mom didn’t see this happen – she was in the living room and heard the yelling and then sounds of Susie falling and crying. Dad told her that Susie tried to run and tripped and fell when he told her to go to her room.  

When pressed, mom admits that dad does most of the discipline in the home and is frequently angry with Susie for not listening and has hit her in the past with a belt and a wooden kitchen spoon. Mom maintains that dad is a good man and is only frustrated with Susie’s attitude in the home. When pressed to talk more about the use of the belt, she said that the last time Susie was spanked with a belt was two days ago. She said that Susie was arguing with her dad about cleaning her room and then told him that she didn’t like him and wanted to be with her “real daddy”.  Jim got mad over this and hit her with his belt. Mom said she told him to stop and he did and then told Susie he was sorry.  

Asked about domestic violence between her and Jim, mom will admit that he has hit her but not “in a long time” and only because he is under a lot of stress from his work (he’s in financial management). She wasn’t able to (or wouldn’t) give an estimation of what a “long time ago” meant.

Mom said Susie attends Tacoma Elementary School as a 1st grader and mom thinks her daughter’s best friend is named Lisa who is in the same class.

Susie Smith: Susie was interviewed by a forensic interviewer. You were present and helped provide the questions asked and took notes of the interview. She was reluctant to talk but eventually said that she wants to live with her mom and her “real dad”. She said she likes being around him (her biological father) because he is fun and easy to talk to about things. Asked about her step-dad (Jim), she said that he gets mad at her a lot when she doesn’t do exactly what he tells her to do.  

Susie said that he yelled at her yesterday about how dirty her room was and she started to cry and left her room to find her mom. Her dad was angry and grabbed her by the arm. He took off his belt and hit her on her back and butt with it. She said she told him to “stop” and leave her alone and he grabbed her by her arms and pulled them behind her back. He pushed her and she fell down the stairs outside of her room. The stairs lead to the basement. She said he was wearing his blue “Seahawks” belt – it has a Seahawk logo and football on it by the buckle. She also said he has hit her before with this belt.

Susie said her arm hurt “real bad” after she fell and her mom came running down to help her. Her mom started yelling at her dad who told her to “Shut up”. Her mom wanted to call the doctor about her arm and dad got made and grabbed mom’s cell phone and threw it against the basement wall. Her mom screamed at him to “get away from us”. The man and lady who live next door in the blue house came over and knocked on the door and asked if everything was okay because they heard some screaming and crying. Dad went to the door and told them that she fell down the stairs and they were going to take her to the hospital.   

Susie was asked if she ever told anyone else about what happens with her step-dad. She said she has told her best friend at school – Lisa Simpson but she begged Lisa not to tell anyone.

Answer 1

Keeping the case in mind the next person that needs to be interviewed is the school teacher because Susie spends a considerable amount of time in school.

• The teacher would be able to tell the behavioural changes in Susie after her stepdad came into her life.
• If anything strange has been drawn by Susie in her drawing book in the past one and a half year.
• If her academic performance has dropped or her participation in the class has dropped. If she stays aloof most of the times.

Her friend Lisa should also be interviewed even though Susie promised her not to tell anything.

• Susie would have revealed what really goes on with her stepdad to Lisa.
• Can ask if she noticed any bruises on Susie's arms or legs recently.
• Ask if Susie has told Lisa if her stepdad touches her inappropriately in places he should not be touching.

The neighbours should be interviewed with respect to what they have observed and heard inside the house.

• If Susie cries a lot and off late if she is petrified around her stepdad.
• The perceived relationship between the mother and the father. Any signs of repeated domestic violence?
• If they doubt that the stepdad is an alcoholic.

The physical evidence that must be collected for a case of child abuse are:

• The medical records of Susie and the mother to see any evidence of domestic violence.
• The psychological evaluation of Susie. This will give a clear picture of her mental state.
• Progress notes of Susie from the school.
• Drawing books from Susie to notice anything strange. It will help in determining if she was physically assaulted.
• The belt of the stepdad
• Any other object of the stepdad like a wooden stick or shoes etc to place the fingerprints and to observe the reaction of Susie when the objects are presented in front of her.

The above evidence will help the law in prosecuting the stepdad as a child abuser without harming the child and the mother. A search warrant is required to take the stepdad's belongings from the house. The police need to be involved and the legal team should take the required steps after that.