(a) IIn any superior court case alleging a sex-related offense in which a minor child was a victim, the court shall allow the use of anatomically correct drawings and/or anatomically correct dolls as demonstrative evidence to assist the alleged victim or minor witness in testifying, unless otherwise ordered by the court for good cause shown. (b) In the event that the alleged victim or minor witness is nervous, afraid, timid, or otherwise reluctant to testify, the court may allow the use of leading questions during the initial testimony but shall not allow the use of such questions relating to any essential element of the criminal offense. (c) The clerk shall schedule a pretrial conference, to be held within forty-five days of the filing of an indictment, for the purpose of establishing a discovery schedule and trial date. At such conference, the court shall consider the advisability and need for the appointment of a guardian ad litem to represent the interests of the alleged victim. (d) In the event that a guardian ad litem is appointed to represent the interests of a minor victim or witness, the role and scope of services of the guardian ad litem shall be explicitly outlined by the trial judge prior to trial. (e) The guardian ad litem appointed under this rule shall be compensated at the same hourly rate and shall be subject to the same case maximums as set forth for defense counsel in misdemeanor cases under the provisions of Supreme Court Rule 47. The guardian ad litem shall also be reimbursed for the guardian’s investigative and related expenses, as allowed under Rule 47, upon a finding of necessity and reasonableness by a justice of the appropriate court, made prior to the said expenses being incurred.
N.H. R. Crim. P. 44
Adopted effective January 1, 2016 in Strafford and Cheshire counties and July 1, 2016 in Belknap County.
