House Bill 804, which has been passed by the Georgia General Assembly, will amend O.C.G.A. § 17-8-55, which currently provides for children ages ten and under to testify via closed-circuit television in criminal trials.
The bill repeals the current section in full, and replaces it with another. The new statute defines “child” as an individual under the age of 17, instead of 10. Additionally, instead of applying in all criminal proceedings, it specifically applies when the child is a witness or an alleged victim of a violation of certain listed statutes–most of which are sex offenses.
For more information, see our post on Georgia Sex Offense Law.
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