State v. Bernard

COVINGTON, Judge.

The appellant, Larry Bernard, was tried and convicted by a jury of sexual abuse in the first degree and attempted forcible sodomy. §§ 566.100 and .060, RSMo 1986. The trial court sentenced appellant to two years on the first degree sexual abuse conviction and five years for the attempted forcible sodomy conviction, the sentences to be served consecutively. The Missouri Court of Appeals, Western District, affirmed. This Court granted transfer. The judgment is reversed and the cause remanded for a new trial.

The evidence shows that in 1988 the victim, a fourteen year old male,…