Forensic Interviews - Brancato Law Firm, P.A.

How Do You Fight Child Hearsay in a Florida Sex Case? (2026)

Brancato Law Firm, P.A. — Tue, 03 Nov 2026 18:38:14 GMT

Rewrite/update date: November 3, 2026. Originally published in June 2025.

You fight child hearsay in a Florida sex case at the pretrial reliability hearing required by section 90.803(23), Florida Statutes. A child’s out-of-court statement describing abuse can reach the jury only if the judge finds, in a hearing outside the jury’s presence and with specific findings on the record, that the time, content, and circumstances of the statement make it reliable, and, if the child does not testify, that other evidence corroborates the abuse. The defense attacks how the statement was obtained: who questioned the child first, whether the questions were leading, whether the story changed, and whether a custody fight or other motive shaped it.

A Florida judge may let a jury hear what a child told a parent, a teacher, or an interviewer only after finding, on the record, that the statement is reliable enough to stand in for live testimony. I have argued that question many times since my years as a Major Crimes Unit attorney handling sex crime and child abuse cases. I’m Rocky Brancato, founder of The Brancato Law Firm, P.A., a Tampa criminal defense firm, and I have tried more than 150 jury trials to verdict. Our attorneys treat the child hearsay hearing as the trial before the trial, because it often decides whether the State has a case at all.

What is child hearsay under Florida law?

Child hearsay is an out-of-court statement by a child, offered to prove that what the child said is true, that Florida allows into evidence under a special exception. Under section 90.803(23), Florida Statutes, the exception covers statements by a child victim “with a physical, mental, emotional, or developmental age of 17 or less” describing child abuse or neglect, sexual abuse, or any unlawful sexual act, contact, intrusion, or penetration. Ordinary hearsay is excluded because the person who made the statement cannot be cross-examined; this exception lets the State use the child’s earlier words anyway, if strict conditions are met.

In practice, child hearsay includes what a child told a parent at bedtime, a teacher at school, a deputy at the scene, and a Child Protection Team interviewer on video. Prosecutors often present several of these statements in a row, so the jury hears the same accusation repeated by three or four adults before the child ever takes the stand. At The Brancato Law Firm, our first step is to list every statement the State intends to use and trace each one back to the first conversation.

When can a child’s statement be used as evidence in Florida?

A child’s out-of-court statement can be used as evidence in Florida only when three requirements are met. The statute also says the statement is inadmissible if “the source of information or the method or circumstances by which the statement is reported indicates a lack of trustworthiness.”

Reliability. The judge must find, “in a hearing conducted outside the presence of the jury,” that “the time, content, and circumstances of the statement provide sufficient safeguards of reliability.”
Testimony or corroboration. The child must either testify, or be unavailable as a witness with “other corroborative evidence of the abuse or offense.” Unavailability can include a finding that testifying would cause the child “a substantial likelihood of severe emotional or mental harm.”
Notice and findings. The State must notify the defense “no later than 10 days before trial,” with a written statement of what the child said, when, and the circumstances, and the court “shall make specific findings of fact, on the record.”

In State v. Townsend, 635 So. 2d 949 (Fla. 1994), the Florida Supreme Court set the order a trial judge must follow. The judge first decides whether the statement itself is reliable “without regard to corroborating evidence,” and only then asks whether corroboration exists. Corroboration cannot be used to prop up an unreliable statement. Our attorneys hold judges to that order, because prosecutors often argue reliability by pointing to other evidence.

What factors decide whether child hearsay is reliable?

Reliability is decided on the totality of the circumstances, and Townsend lists factors beyond the statute that judges still apply today. Each factor is a line of attack for the defense.

Reliability factor	What our attorneys examine
Spontaneity and timing	Was the statement volunteered at the first opportunity, or drawn out days or weeks later?
Questioning by adults	Was the statement a response to leading or repeated questions from a parent, teacher, or officer?
Child-like description	Does the account sound like a child, or does it use adult terms the child would not know?
Motive to fabricate	Is there a custody dispute, divorce, or family conflict that could influence the child?
Reality and fantasy	Can the child tell the difference between something real and something imagined?
Vagueness and contradictions	Is the account specific, and did it change between tellings?
Improper influence	Did an adult in a domestic dispute talk to the child about the accused before the disclosure?

Research supports these concerns. In a review published in Psychological Bulletin in 1993, researchers Stephen Ceci and Maggie Bruck found reliable age differences in children’s suggestibility, while also finding that even very young children can recall much that is forensically relevant (National Criminal Justice Reference Service abstract). That is why the questions asked before a formal interview matter as much as the interview itself. The Brancato Law Firm often works with forensic psychologists who can explain to the judge how suggestive questioning affects a young child’s account.

How many Florida child abuse cases involve sexual abuse?

Sexual abuse is a significant share of Florida’s child maltreatment cases. In 2023, Florida had 22,842 child victims of abuse or neglect, and 13.6 percent of victims experienced sexual abuse, according to the Child Welfare League of America’s 2025 Florida fact sheet. Many of those cases begin with a child’s statement to an adult, which is why section 90.803(23) comes up in so many sex crime and child abuse prosecutions.

Can child hearsay be used if the child does not testify?

Child hearsay can be used when the child does not testify only if the child is legally unavailable and there is corroborating evidence, and even then, a statement given to police or a Child Protection Team may be barred by the Sixth Amendment right to confront witnesses. In State v. Contreras, 979 So. 2d 896 (Fla. 2008), a Child Protection Team coordinator videotaped a child’s interview while a detective in another room fed her questions. The Florida Supreme Court held that the interview was “indistinguishable from an ordinary police interrogation,” so the statement was testimonial. Because the defendant never had a real chance to cross-examine the child, and discovery depositions taken without him present did not count, admitting the video violated his confrontation rights. The Court reversed the capital sexual battery conviction, where the video was the only evidence of penetration.

The lesson is that statements to a Child Protection Team are treated differently from a child’s words to a parent. When the child is not going to testify, our attorneys at The Brancato Law Firm challenge every interview conducted with law enforcement involvement on confrontation grounds, separate from the reliability hearing.

What happens when a child’s interview is not recorded?

When a child’s interview is not recorded, the defense loses the best evidence of how the questions were asked, but the State still must prove reliability through the interviewers’ testimony. In Oliver v. State, 397 So. 3d 104 (Fla. 2d DCA 2024), a Pasco County case, the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office had a standard policy that prohibited recording interviews of child sexual abuse victims. The Second District held there is no statutory or common law duty to record these interviews, and it affirmed because the trial judge made specific findings that the interviewers used open-ended, nonleading questions and that there was no evidence of coaching.

The court also noted that the facts “in another case may not present with safeguards sufficient to mitigate the need for audio or video recording.” That is a local fact that matters to anyone charged in Pasco County. When there is no recording, our attorneys depose every interviewer, request their notes, and press for details the interviewer cannot remember, because a judge cannot make specific reliability findings from a memory that has gaps. In Hillsborough County cases, we compare the interview against the Child Protection Team’s own protocols and the questioning that came before it.

How does our firm challenge child hearsay?

Our firm challenges child hearsay by reconstructing the path of the accusation from the first conversation to the courtroom and showing the judge where it was shaped by adults. Each step below is aimed at the statutory requirement it attacks.

Defense step	What we look for	Requirement it attacks
Trace the first disclosure	Who asked first, what words they used, and how many times	Reliability; trustworthiness of the source
Review the interview recording or notes	Leading questions, repeated questions, praise or pressure	Reliability; method of reporting
Compare every version	Details added, dropped, or changed between tellings	Contradictions; reliability of the assertion
Investigate family dynamics	Custody filings, divorce timing, threats, prior allegations	Motive to fabricate; improper influence
Test the corroboration	Whether “corroboration” is just the same accusation repeated	Corroboration when the child is unavailable
Check confrontation rights	Law enforcement involvement and any prior chance to cross-examine	Sixth Amendment, under Contreras

Losing the reliability hearing does not end these arguments. The same inconsistencies, suggestive questions, and motives can be presented to the jury through cross-examination and defense experts, and a judge who admits a statement without the specific findings the statute requires creates an issue for appeal.

Our child hearsay defense results

In one case, a child said that “a rhino came out of Grandpa’s skin,” and the prosecution presented the statement as coded language for sexual abuse. Rocky Brancato’s cross-examination showed the child was describing a literal zoo animal, and evidence of coaching came out at the hearing. The judge excluded the hearsay as unreliable, and the State dismissed all charges.

Outcome	Charge	How we won
Dismissed	Sexual molestation	Exposed coaching; judge excluded the “rhino” statement
Not guilty	Capital sexual battery	Proved a parent coached the child during divorce proceedings
Dismissed	Lewd molestation	Showed the statement evolved across interviews
Excluded	Child abuse	Identified Child Protection Team protocol violations; judge found the statement unreliable

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Each case is unique.

Related evidence issues in child sex cases

Child hearsay rarely stands alone. Prosecutors often pair it with other-acts evidence, medical findings, and limits on what the defense can say about the child. Our guide to whether prior accusations can be used against you in a Florida sex crime case covers when other accusations can come in; our post on how to challenge SANE exam evidence covers the medical side; and our guide to the exceptions to Florida’s rape shield law explains when a child’s prior experiences can come in. Lewd and lascivious charges are defined in section 800.04, Florida Statutes.

What should you do if a child has made an accusation against you?

If a child has made an accusation against you, do not talk to the child, the family, or investigators about it, and contact a defense attorney before any interview. Do not try to get the child to “take it back,” which can lead to a witness tampering charge and will be used as evidence of guilt. If a Child Protection Team or detective has contacted you but no charge has been filed, our representation before charges are filed can put the defense in place while the investigation is still open.

Frequently asked questions about child hearsay in Florida

Can a child’s statement to a parent be used in court in Florida?

Yes, if the judge finds it reliable at a hearing and, when the child does not testify, there is corroborating evidence. The Brancato Law Firm asks the parent at deposition exactly what was said, in what order, and what questions came first, because a parent’s paraphrase is often where the account changed.

How much notice does the State have to give before using child hearsay?

At least 10 days before trial, with a written statement of the child’s statement, when it was made, and the circumstances that the State says show reliability. Our attorneys at The Brancato Law Firm use that notice to identify every statement and demand the hearing well before jury selection.

Is a Child Protection Team interview automatically admissible?

No. It must pass the same reliability hearing, and if the child does not testify, Contreras may bar it as testimonial. The Brancato Law Firm reviews every CPT recording frame by frame for leading questions and law enforcement involvement; our Tampa child abuse defense attorneys handle these hearings regularly.

What if the child is now an adult at trial?

The child’s age when the statement was made is what matters, not the age at trial. The Brancato Law Firm still challenges reliability in older cases, where the passage of time often makes it harder for the State to show how the original statement was obtained.

Can child hearsay be used in a custody dispute case?

Yes, the statute applies in civil and criminal cases, and courts treat a custody fight as a reason to look closely at possible influence on the child. Our attorneys at The Brancato Law Firm gather the family court record to show the judge when and why the accusation surfaced.

Can child sex abuse charges be dropped in Florida?

Yes. When a judge excludes unreliable child hearsay, the State may be left without enough evidence to proceed, and prosecutors can drop the charges. The Brancato Law Firm has obtained dismissals in exactly that situation, as described in our Tampa sex crimes lawyer case results.

Talk to a Tampa defense attorney about child hearsay

The reliability hearing is usually scheduled well before trial, and the work that wins it starts with the first discovery. Our attorneys will identify every statement the State plans to use and build the record to challenge it. Call The Brancato Law Firm, P.A., founded by Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Rocky Brancato, at (813) 727-7159 at any hour; we defend clients in Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties from an office two blocks from the courthouse. Our firm has Spanish-speaking staff, and attorney Jean-Luc Adrien speaks Spanish, Haitian Creole, and French. Read our guide for Spanish-speaking and Haitian Creole-speaking clients.

For more about our defense strategies, visit our Sex Crimes page.

The Brancato Law Firm, P.A.
620 E. Twiggs Street, Suite 205, Tampa, FL 33602
(813) 727-7159
Serving Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties

The Brancato Law Firm, P.A. is a Tampa-based criminal defense practice. We are not affiliated with any other Brancato-named law firms.

Forensic Interviews in Tampa Child Abuse Cases

Brancato Law Firm, P.A. — Sun, 16 Feb 2025 23:33:44 GMT

Understanding What Happens at Mary Lee’s House — And How to Challenge Contaminated Testimony

Updated January 18, 2026

Key Takeaway In Tampa child abuse and sex offense cases, the child’s statement often serves as the most damaging evidence against the accused. However, a forensic interview at a Children’s Advocacy Center like Mary Lee’s House does not guarantee reliable testimony. Memory contamination from parents, teachers, or investigators before the interview can create false narratives that even perfectly conducted interviews cannot undo. Challenging the reliability of these statements requires an attorney who understands both the science of memory and the investigative protocols.

When the State accuses someone of child abuse or sex offenses in Tampa, the most damaging evidence frequently comes from a single source: the child’s statement. However, obtaining this statement involves far more complexity than a police officer asking questions in a living room. In Hillsborough County, these high-stakes interrogations typically occur at a Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC), such as Mary Lee’s House in Tampa.

Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Rocky Brancato brings over 25 years of experience defending clients against these serious allegations. As former Chief Operations Officer of the Hillsborough County Public Defender’s Office, he led and mentored a staff of over 100 attorneys. Additionally, he spent years in an elite legal unit handling exclusively child abuse, sex crimes, and homicide cases. Consequently, he knows exactly what happens behind the mirror at Mary Lee’s House — and he knows how to challenge the reliability of what occurs inside.

What is a Forensic Interview?

Definition: Forensic Interview A forensic interview is a structured conversation with a child conducted by a specially trained civilian interviewer — not a police officer. The purpose is to obtain a legally defensible statement from the child in a neutral environment. In Hillsborough County, most forensic interviews occur at Mary Lee’s House, Tampa’s Children’s Advocacy Center.

Forensic interviewers follow rigorous protocols designed to create a neutral environment and minimize suggestion. Ideally, the process involves open-ended questioning, video recording for court use, and observation by a multidisciplinary team. Nevertheless, the presence of protocols does not guarantee accurate testimony.

How the Forensic Interview Process Works

Stage	What Happens	Defense Considerations
Neutral Questioning	Interviewer uses open-ended questions like “Tell me about that” rather than leading questions	Did interviewer deviate from protocol? Were questions actually leading?
The “Earpiece” Dynamic	Detectives, CPIs, and prosecutors watch from behind one-way mirror, feeding questions via earpiece	Did the team push for specific answers? Was there bias in suggested questions?
Video Recording	Every word and gesture is recorded for court use	Does recording show interviewer frustration, pressure, or protocol violations?
Multidisciplinary Team	Law enforcement, DCF, prosecutors, and medical staff collaborate	Did team members have predetermined conclusions before interview began?

The Real Danger: Contaminated Testimony

Critical Warning: Memory Contamination A major problem in Tampa child abuse cases arises when a child’s memory becomes contaminated before they ever reach the forensic interviewer. Well-meaning but untrained individuals — parents, teachers, or foster care providers — often speak with the child first. Unfortunately, these early discussions can introduce confirmation bias and create false memories that no subsequent interview can undo.

Understanding how contamination occurs is essential for mounting an effective defense. Research on child memory and suggestibility demonstrates that children are particularly vulnerable to adult influence, especially from authority figures they want to please.

How Memory Contamination Occurs

Contamination Type	How It Happens	Example
Leading Questions	Repeated questioning with embedded assumptions	Parent repeatedly asks “Did he touch you?” until child says yes
Authority Influence	Children alter stories to match what they believe adults want to hear	Child changes answer after seeing adult’s disappointed reaction
The “Scripted” Narrative	Repeated telling cements inaccurate story as false memory	Child recites rehearsed narrative at forensic interview
Confirmation Bias	Adults interpret ambiguous statements as confirmations	Teacher assumes “He hurt me” refers to abuse rather than scolding
Source Confusion	Child cannot distinguish between actual memory and suggested scenario	Child describes scene from conversation as if personally experienced

The Science of False Memories in Children Once a child repeats an inaccurate story enough times, it cements in their mind as a false memory. Consequently, even a perfectly conducted forensic interview at Mary Lee’s House cannot undo this damage. The child is simply reciting a script they learned at home — and they genuinely believe it happened. This makes identifying pre-interview contamination crucial to the defense.

How We Challenge Forensic Interviews

At The Brancato Law Firm, we never take forensic interviews at face value. Instead, we meticulously dissect every aspect of the investigation to identify weaknesses the prosecution hopes you will not notice. Our approach combines legal expertise with understanding of child psychology and memory science.

Critical Points We Investigate

Investigation Area	What We Examine	Why It Matters
Pre-Interview Timeline	Who talked to the child first? When did allegations first surface?	Identifies potential contamination sources before official interview
Improper Techniques	Did interviewer break protocol? Did they become suggestive when child denied abuse?	Protocol violations undermine reliability of statement
Investigator Bias	Did detective behind mirror push for “confession” rather than truth?	Reveals predetermined conclusions driving the investigation
Adult Witness Depositions	Aggressively question parents, teachers, and caregivers	Exposes coaching or influence before tape started rolling
Video Analysis	Review every moment of recorded interview	Identifies subtle pressure, leading questions, or interviewer frustration

Defense Strategy: Attacking Reliability The State’s case often rises or falls on the forensic interview. If we can demonstrate that interview technique was fundamentally flawed, that the child received coaching before the interview, or that investigators pursued confirmation rather than truth, we can undermine the prosecution’s entire case. This is why experienced defense representation is essential from the earliest stages.

Understanding Mary Lee’s House

What is Mary Lee’s House? Mary Lee’s House is a Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) located in Tampa, Florida. It serves as the primary facility where law enforcement, child protection professionals, and medical staff collaborate to investigate child abuse allegations in Hillsborough County. Most forensic interviews in serious child abuse cases occur at this location.

The facility includes interview rooms designed to appear child-friendly, observation areas with one-way mirrors, and medical examination rooms. While the CAC model aims to reduce trauma to children by consolidating services, the collaborative nature of investigations creates opportunities for bias and confirmation-seeking behavior among team members.

The Multidisciplinary Team Approach

At Mary Lee’s House, multiple agencies work together during the investigation. This multidisciplinary team typically includes Tampa Police or Hillsborough County Sheriff’s detectives, Child Protective Investigators from DCF, forensic interviewers trained in child questioning protocols, medical professionals who conduct examinations, and often prosecutors from the State Attorney’s Office. While this collaboration supposedly serves the child’s interests, it can also create an environment where team members reinforce each other’s assumptions.

Frequently Asked Questions About Forensic Interviews

What is Mary Lee’s House and why do forensic interviews happen there?

Mary Lee’s House is a Children’s Advocacy Center (CAC) in Tampa where law enforcement, child protection professionals, and medical staff collaborate to investigate child abuse allegations. Most forensic interviews in Hillsborough County occur at this facility because it provides a centralized location for the multidisciplinary team approach. The environment is designed to appear child-friendly, though the presence of multiple investigators observing via one-way mirror creates significant concerns about bias.

Can I watch my child’s forensic interview as a parent?

No, parents are strictly prohibited from watching the interview or being in the room while it occurs. This rule exists to prevent parents from signaling answers to the child, whether intentionally or unintentionally. However, law enforcement and other team members observe from behind a one-way mirror and can suggest questions to the interviewer via earpiece. This dynamic raises important questions about who actually controls the interview process.

Can a child’s forensic interview testimony be thrown out of court?

Yes, under certain circumstances. If we can prove that the interview technique was fundamentally flawed, coercive, or that the child was deemed incompetent to distinguish truth from lies, the judge may suppress the statement or limit its use in court. Additionally, evidence of pre-interview contamination or coaching can significantly undermine the statement’s reliability, even if the court admits it into evidence.

Is the forensic interview the only evidence in child abuse cases?

Usually not, though it frequently serves as the primary evidence. The State also looks for medical evidence and corroborating witnesses to support their case. Nevertheless, in many cases, the child’s statement constitutes the only direct evidence the State possesses. This reality makes attacking the interview’s reliability the most critical component of an effective defense strategy.

What is memory contamination and why does it matter?

Memory contamination occurs when a child’s recollection becomes altered through suggestion, leading questions, or repeated questioning by adults before the formal forensic interview. Once contamination occurs, children may develop false memories that feel completely real to them. Consequently, even a perfectly conducted forensic interview cannot undo this damage — the child simply recites what they have come to believe happened, regardless of whether it actually occurred.

How can parents or teachers accidentally contaminate a child’s memory?

Well-meaning adults often contaminate memories without realizing it. Repeated leading questions like “Did he touch you?” can cause a child to eventually say yes simply to end the questioning or please the adult. Similarly, visible emotional reactions from adults can signal to children what answer is expected. Children are naturally suggestible and often alter their stories to match what they believe authority figures want to hear.

What should I do if I am accused of child abuse based on a forensic interview?

Contact an experienced criminal defense attorney immediately — before speaking with investigators. Do not attempt to contact the child or discuss the allegations with family members who may become witnesses. Your attorney should obtain the full video recording of the forensic interview, investigate the pre-interview timeline to identify potential contamination, and examine whether investigators followed proper protocols.

Why choose The Brancato Law Firm for child abuse defense?

Attorney Rocky Brancato brings over 25 years of criminal defense experience, including years in an elite unit handling exclusively child abuse, sex crimes, and homicide cases. As former Chief Operations Officer of the Hillsborough County Public Defender’s Office, he led and mentored a staff of over 100 attorneys. Throughout his career, he has mentored generations of criminal defense lawyers. This specialized background means he understands forensic interview protocols, the science of child memory, and how to expose contamination and investigator bias.

Protect Your Future. Call Now.

Facing allegations based on a child’s statement is a nightmare that requires experienced legal representation. Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Rocky Brancato and The Brancato Law Firm, P.A. understand the science of memory, the rules of evidence, and exactly how to challenge contaminated testimony.

Call (813) 727-7159 Now for a Confidential Consultation

The Brancato Law Firm, P.A.

620 E Twiggs Street, Suite 205, Tampa, FL 33602

Serving Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties

For how The Brancato Law Firm, P.A. defends these cases, see our Tampa child abuse defense practice and our forensic science defense practice.

Tampa Child Abuse Defense Attorney

Tampa Sex Crimes Defense Attorney

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