David Rudorfer, Wyatt A. Vespermann, Sheri S. Manuwal and Robert I. Manuwal/Gray v. Pasadena USD
JUSTICE FOR A SPECIAL NEEDS CHILD WHO COULD NOT TESTIFY IN TRIAL
Latrina Gray was an 11-year-old special needs child who was emotionally disturbed and developmentally delayed. She had a terrible history of abuse since birth. By age 10, Latrina had been transferred from more than a dozen group homes and had multiple hospitalizations for suicidal thoughts and psychotic delusions. She was at a Pasadena Unified School District school for special needs children when she was sexually assaulted by three students who dragged her behind a building and penetrated her digitally and with a large paper clip. The assault took place after a teacher’s assistant left the students unsupervised. The assault caused Latrina to have a mental breakdown and ultimately placed in a mental institution, where she remained for years. She was the example of the most vulnerable and helpless in our society. The defense argued that her psychological harm was not caused by the assault but was pre-existing, and contended she was lying about the assault. To prove the assault, the attorneys focused on Latrina’s mental state before versus after the event. Her therapist testified that Latrina went from minor behavioral issues before the assault to major outbursts and overt sexual misconduct afterwards. As trial approached, it became clear that Latrina was psychologically unable to testify about the incident or her harm. As a result, Latrina was declared unavailable under the evidence code due to her psychological injuries. The court ordered that the jury was not allowed to be told why she was absent from trial, which was very challenging considering she had no family or friends to testify on her behalf. Despite these difficulties, after a three-week trial, the jury awarded Latrina significant compensation, all in noneconomic damages. This case shows that negligence victims with psychological traumas who cannot withstand the pressures of trial can still get full justice.