Terry Shaw

KOSCIUSKO — Opening statements were made and the first two witnesses gave testimony during the jury trial for Terry Shaw today, Feb. 6. Shaw was accused of child molestation in August 2016 after a minor female told relatives that Shaw, her grandmother’s boyfriend, had inappropriately touched her.

Deputy Prosecutor Brad Voelz presented the first opening statement on behalf of the state. Voelz’s statement targeted the emotions of the jurors.

“[The victim] is 12 years old today, 11 at the time, she is going to gather up all of her courage, sit in this chair and tell all of you about the worst thing that has ever happened in her life,” said Voelz. “It’s a case where the victim of this case, a child, a strong courageous child, will be a victim no longer.”

Defense Attorney John Barrett’s opening statement concentrated on there being no physical evidence and no eyewitness besides the victim. He elaborated on this by stating there would be no medical evidence, no forensic evidence, no physical evidence, no independent witnesses and no expert testimony presented.

“The lack of evidence is going to show you’re not going to have one scrap of external evidence to hang your hat on,” said Barrett.

The victim’s grandmother, “Nanna,” was called as the first witness in the trial. Nanna was dating Shaw at the time of the alleged molestation. She explained that on July 14, she was watching a movie on the sofa with the victim, the victim’s sister and Shaw. At one point, Nanna and the victim’s sister fell asleep. Nanna admitted to not hearing or seeing anything else that occured that night.

On July 16, Shaw and Nanna had gotten into a fight and Shaw was told to leave the home. Nanna testified that later that evening she was driving six children around on a golf cart. At one point, all of the children except the victim left.

Nanna testified that the victim told her about the inappropriate touching. According to Nanna, the victim initiated the conversation.

“She was upset, crying, just on the verge of hysterics,” recalled Nanna. “I believe in 10 minutes I went through every emotion possible, from anger to sadness. I’ll never forget the look on my granddaughters face when she asked me not to hate her.”

The victim then took the stand as the state’s second witness. Voelz spent several minutes going over the importance of telling the truth and reminding her that she was under oath.

The victim became very emotional while providing testimony, having to pause several times because she was unable to stop crying.

“Terry tried to … tried to touch me,” she began. With some coaxing, she was able to explain that Shaw had placed his hand beneath her underwear onto an area she referred to as her “hoot.” She told the court that he left his hand there for a few minutes without moving or inserting it. According to the victim, she then told Shaw she needed to go to bed and left the room.

When asked about the confession to her Nanna, the victim advised that it was her Nanna who first brought up the subject.

“She asked me if he ever tried to do something. I said yeah, that he had tried to do something,” she recalled.

Barrett confirmed with the victim that Shaw had never previously been inappropriate with her. He also had the victim clarify that she never actually looked down at Shaw’s hand while the incident was occuring.

A juror question was then submitted asking the victim if she had began to cry before Nanna asked her about the incident. The victim replied that no, she hadn’t cried before her Nanna had asked her if Shaw had ever been inappropriate with her.

Nanna was then brought back to the courtroom for clarification. Nanna again stated that it was her granddaughter who initiated the conversation.

At this point, the court entered a recess for the day. The trial will continue tomorrow, Feb. 7.

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