Watson v. State

Chief Justice TOAL:

The post-conviction relief (“PCR”) court granted Bobby Watson (“Watson”) a new trial, finding that counsel was ineffective for eliciting and failing to object to improper hearsay testimony. This Court granted the State’s petition to review the PCR judge’s decision. We reverse.

Factual / Procedural Background

In 1999, a nine year old child accused Watson of sexual abuse. The victim made the allegation to her grandmother, who subsequently took the victim to a pediatrician. The pediatrician was unable to discover any evidence of abuse. However, a pediatric nurse practitioner,…