JAMES RESPONDENT APPELLANT v. << (2012)

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

DAVID C. SCHOPP, ATTORNEY FOR THE CHILDREN, THE LEGAL AID BUREAU OF BUFFALO, INC., BUFFALO (CHARLES D. HALVORSEN OF COUNSEL), FOR JANIECE B., JAYME B.-S., AND JOVAN B.-S.

It is hereby ORDERED that the order so appealed from is unanimously affirmed without costs.

Memorandum:  Respondent father appeals from a dispositional order determining, following a hearing, that he abused the subject children.   Contrary to the father's contention, the out-of-court statements of the children “were sufficiently corroborated by other evidence tending to support their reliability” (Matter of Lydia C., 89 AD3d 1434, 1435;  see Family Ct Act § 1046[a][vi];  Matter of Nicole V., 71 N.Y.2d 112, 117–118;  Matter of Nicholas J.R., 83 AD3d 1490, 1490, lv denied 17 NY3d 708).   The cross-corroborating accounts of the children with respect to the nature and progression of the sexual abuse “[gave] sufficient indicia of reliability to each [child's] out-of-court statements” (Nicole V., 71 N.Y.2d at 124;  see Matter of Breanna R., 61 AD3d 1338, 1340;  Matter of Rebecca S., 269 A.D.2d 833).   The allegations of sexual abuse were further corroborated by the fact that the children “had age-inappropriate knowledge of sexual matters” (Breanna R., 61 AD3d at 1340;  see Matter of Yorimar K.-M., 309 A.D.2d 1148, 1149).

Frances E. Cafarell

Clerk of the Court