Order Michigan Supreme Court
Lansing, Michigan
January 11, 2013 Robert P. Young, Jr.,
Chief Justice
145743 Michael F. Cavanagh
Stephen J. Markman
Diane M. Hathaway
Mary Beth Kelly
Brian K. Zahra
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN, Bridget M. McCormack,
Plaintiff-Appellee, Justices
v SC: 145743
COA: 304459
Oakland CC: 2010-234100-FH
BRANDON JERROLD JOHNSON,
Defendant-Appellant.
_________________________________________/
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the June 28, 2012
judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered, and it is DENIED, because we are not
persuaded that the questions presented should be reviewed by this Court.
MARKMAN, J. (concurring).
Although I concur in the order, I write separately to state my agreement with the
Court of Appeals partial dissent that the victim’s statement here did not constitute
hearsay and, in any event, was admissible under the hearsay exception for statements
“made for purposes of medical treatment or medical diagnosis.” MRE 803(4). A
statement is only hearsay if it is offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted.
MRE 801(c). Here, the testimony was not offered to prove that defendant “carries a
gun,” but was instead offered to describe the process of the examination of the victim and
the gathering of the information contained in necessary medical forms. Further, even if
the testimony did constitute hearsay, it was reasonably necessary for medical diagnosis or
treatment of the victim. The Court of Appeals held in People v Mahone, 294 Mich App
208, 214-215 (2011), that particularly in sexual assault cases, in which injuries might be
“latent” or “psychological” in nature, a victim’s complete history and recitation of the
totality of the circumstances of the assault are properly considered statements made for
purposes of medical treatment or diagnosis.
HATHAWAY, J., not participating.
I, Corbin R. Davis, Clerk of the Michigan Supreme Court, certify that the
foregoing is a true and complete copy of the order entered at the direction of the Court.
January 11, 2013 _________________________________________
p0108 Clerk