Girl, 8, Won’t Testify at Stalker Hearing : Prosecutor Acts After Judge Refuses to Allow Closed Testimony

After a judge ruled Tuesday that an 8-year-old Eagle Rock rape victim must testify in open court, the prosecutor in the preliminary hearing for accused Night Stalker Richard Ramirez said the girl will not take the witness stand and that no evidence on the incident is likely to be presented.

Deputy Dist. Atty. P. Philip Halpin, who had sought a closed hearing, said the decision will not have a negative impact on the overall case against Ramirez even if the charges concerning the March, 1985, incident are dropped.

Ramirez is charged with 14 murders and 54 other felonies between June, 1984, and his arrest in August, 1985.

According to Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. Gilbert I. Garcetti, the decision to keep the child off the witness stand was reached after an extensive discussion between Halpin and the child’s parents.

“Given the age and psychological condition of the child, we did not feel we were in a position to force the child to testify in open court,” Garcetti said. “Given the number of other victims who will be testifying, it won’t affect the strength of the overall case.”

Los Angeles Municipal Judge James F. Nelson said he ruled that the girl must testify in open court if she is called as a witness because Halpin did not show proof that doing so would result in “serious psychological harm.”

Although Halpin presented a sealed statement from the child’s parents, he neither presented additional evidence from experts nor proposed alternate means of testifying, such as closed-circuit television.

Nelson said psychological harm would more likely result from a “circus atmosphere” in the courtroom rather than from the mere fact that the public was present. The judge made his ruling after hearing arguments in favor of an open courtroom from attorneys representing the Los Angeles Times and KNBC-TV.

Ramirez is accused of kidnaping and raping the 8-year-old girl on March 20, 1985. He is also charged with committing two burglaries at the same residence--on March 2, 1985, and on the day of the alleged kidnaping.