In re MARK COLLIN SODERSTEN
Filed
CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF
FIFTH APPELLATE DISTRICT
In re MARK COLLIN SODERSTEN On Habeas Corpus. | F047425
OPINION |
STORY CONTINUED FROM PART
Similar problems were evident on the second portion of that tape, where the interview was conducted by John Johnson. Daniels found no indication that Nicole was actually remembering, except possibly for the times that she was most inaudible or not talking or when she had her back to the adults. If memories started to intrude, she pulled completely away. The fact Nicole was reluctant and resistant could indicate she could not remember, it was too painful to remember, or it was too far away to remember. Additionally, many of Nicole's answers about the event had a rote quality to them. She was not reconstructing or reliving the events, and there was no indication of actual memory. The only way to get a rote quality to memory is to rehearse it and, in Daniels's opinion, the rote quality was more likely coming from the rehearsal. This happened every time Nicole was asked for details. An example was the Black man. The interviewers continued to refer to the Black man, no matter how many times Nicole said no. That kind of suggestion is very powerful. This kind of repetition and returning to the subject interferes with the ability to remember. It does not elicit memory, because at some point, the child is remembering what happened a few transcript lines above or several minutes earlier.
Daniels also found the transcript and recording of the April 7 interview relevant to the reliability of Nicole's trial testimony. The â€