PEOPLE OF MI V JANICE MARIE TIPTON
Annotate this Case
Download PDF
STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS
PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN,
UNPUBLISHED
December 26, 2000
Plaintiff-Appellee,
v
No. 216487
Genesee Circuit Court
LC No. 97-1223-FC
JANICE MARIE TIPTON,
Defendant-Appellant.
Before: Griffin, P.J., and Holbrook, Jr., and Murphy, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
Defendant appeals as of right from her convictions of first-degree criminal sexual conduct
(person under thirteen years old), MCL 750.520b(1)(a); MSA 28.788(2)(1)(a), and pandering,
MCL 750.455; MSA 28.710, following a six-day jury trial. Defendant was sentenced as a second
habitual offender, MCL 769.10; MSA 28.1082, to fifteen to twenty-five years’ imprisonment on
each charge. We affirm.
Defendant first contends that the trial court erred in admitting the sworn probate court
testimony of defendant’s then twelve-year-old daughter as substantive evidence in defendant’s
criminal trial. The victim testified in probate court at defendant’s termination of parental rights
hearing that she had sex at defendant’s request with an adult male in an abandoned house in
exchange for defendant’s promise of expensive shoes and money. The victim subsequently
recanted this story at defendant’s preliminary examination and trial, contending that she had
fabricated the story to avoid being punished for skipping school.
Generally, an out-of-court statement offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted is
inadmissible hearsay. MRE 801(c); MRE 802. However, MRE 801(d)(1)(A) defines as
nonhearsay the prior statement of a witness who testifies at trial and is subject to crossexamination concerning the statement, provided (1) the statement is inconsistent with the trial
testimony and (2) the statement was given under oath at a hearing or other proceeding. Prior
inconsistent statements that meet these requirements are admissible as substantive evidence.
People v Chavies, 234 Mich App 274, 281-284; 593 NW2d 655 (1999); see also People v
Malone, 445 Mich 369, 375-378, 381-383; 518 NW2d 418 (1994).
Undoubtedly, the victim’s probate court testimony was an out-of-court statement offered
to prove the truth of the matter asserted. Nevertheless, the probate court testimony was given
-1-
under oath, the victim testified at defendant’s preliminary examination and trial, and she was
subject to vigorous cross-examination at both the preliminary examination and trial.
Accordingly, the probate court testimony was nonhearsay, and MRE 801(d)(1)(A) permits its
admission as substantive evidence.
Because we conclude that the trial court properly admitted this testimony as substantive
evidence, we need not address defendant's remaining related issues.
Affirmed.
/s/ Richard Allen Griffin
/s/ Donald E. Holbrook, Jr.
/s/ William B. Murphy
-2-
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.