Commonwealth v. Almeida

On appeal from his convictions of two counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under the age of fourteen years, the defendant raises the question whether out-of-court statements made by a child complainant while sleeping were properly admissible at trial. We transferred the case to this court on our own motion. Because the statements lack the necessary indicia of reliability, we find that their admission constituted reversible error. Accordingly, a new trial is required.

1. Background.

On September 16, 1996, a criminal complaint was filed charging the defendant with six counts of…