Tonya Craft Found Not Guilty

 According to the National Post, Tonya Craft, a Georgia kindergarten teacher, has been found not guilty of molesting three young children by a twelve panel jury in the Catoosa County Superior Court. Craft was originally arrested in 2008 when accusations arose claiming that she had abused three children in her home between years 2005 and 2007. Craft's indictment listed twenty-two charges relating to child molestation. As a result of the extensive amount of allegations against her, she faced approximately four hundred years in prison. Reportedly, one of the children that testified against her at trial was her own daughter. Although Craft was found not guilty, she has lost her job and the custody of her two children in the process. Since the verdict, she has stated that she plans on seeking custody of her children immediately.

During the initial part of trial, Craft's defense attorney, Demosthenes Lorandos, filed a motion requesting the recusal of Judge Brian House. Judge House had represented Craft's ex-husband in their divorce proceedings in the 1990s, which Craft's defense attorney believed would affect the fairness of trial. However, Judge House refused to step down and many spectators did not agree with his decision and found it to be a conflict of interest on his part. This situation has, in turn, caused Lorandos to contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney's Office about the behavior of both Judge House and the Catoosa County D.A.'s Office.

In any instance, this case calls into question the validity of testimony provided by children. Most states have what is known as the child hearsay exception wherein judges determine the reliability with due consideration to factors, such as consistent statements, spontaneity, state of mind, etc. Accordingly, the judge must conclude whether these factors, among a list of others, indicate that the child is reliable and his or her testimony can be deemed trustworthy and accurate. However, many psychologists have confirmed that children can often experience false memory. In this type of situation, the child can be pressured or certain behaviors can be suggested by authority figures. This causes the child to want a particular instance to happen to such an extent that they end of believing it, leading to false memory. This is most commonly known as the power of suggestion.

When someone is indicted for a crime, it is important to seek out the assistance of a knowledgeable defense attorney. In this particular case, Craft's attorney was able to show that the testimony provided by the children was unreliable. An attorney must not only be experienced in criminal defense, but also in case studies related to that particular crime in order to prepare a proper defense.