People v. Andrus CA4/2

BACKGROUND

I. Trial Evidence

One day in August 2017, seven-year-old Jane Doe arrived at school with a scratch

on her forehead, a bruise on her face, and red marks on her neck. She told the

investigating social worker that her father, Andrus, was angry and threw a stool at her,

and the stool hit her in the face. He also strangled her, threw her against the wall and to

the floor, and said that he hated her. The social worker checked Doe’s body for other

injuries and found a red mark on her back. Doe said that all of her injuries came from

Andrus. A sheriff’s deputy, a child abuse pediatrician, and a forensic interviewer also

interviewed Doe, and Doe described some or all of the same acts of abuse to them. She

also told the forensic interviewer that Andrus had kicked her in the back. Doe testified at

trial that Andrus threw her, strangled her, and kicked her in the back. The pediatrician

opined that Doe’s injuries were consistent with Doe’s account of the abuse by Andrus.

Andrus testified in his own defense. He denied that he strangled Doe, thew her, or

said that he hated her. He said that he tripped over the stool and moved it out of the way,

but he denied throwing…