State v. Kenneth B.

Citations

• 223 Conn. App. 270

Syllabus

Convicted, after a jury trial, of the crime of assault in the second degree, and, under a part B information, on a plea of guilty, of being a persistent serious felony offender, the defendant appealed to this court. The victim did not testify at the defendant's trial. Instead, the state introduced evidence of the victim's injuries through, inter alia, the testimony of S, the emergency room physician who treated the victim on the night of the incident. Over the objection of the defendant, two photographs of the victim were also admitted into evidence. These photographs were taken shortly after the assault occurred and depicted the victim with lacerations on her forehead and lips and with blood on her face and shirt. On the defendant's appeal, held: 1. There was sufficient evidence to sustain the defendant's conviction of assault in the second degree: the jury reasonably could have concluded that the victim suffered a serious physical injury on the basis of the evidence regarding her loss of consciousness during the incident, as this court previously has held that loss of consciousness may constitute a serious loss or impairment of the function of a bodily organ; moreover, contrary to the defendant's contention, the jury was entitled to rely on S's testimony regarding the victim's statement to him that she had experienced a brief loss of consciousness because the hearsay was admitted without objection; furthermore, the evidence was not insuffi- cient merely because it was in conflict with or inconsistent with testi- mony that defense counsel elicited from S that certain medical records indicated that the victim had denied any loss of consciousness to the registered nurse who treated the victim on the night of the incident. 2. The trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting into evidence the two photographs of the victim: contrary to the defendant's assertions, the photographs were relevant because they were probative of the two statutory (§ 53a-60 (a) (1)) e