Conn. Gen. Stat. » Title 54 — CRIMINAL PROCEDURE · Chapter 961 — Trial and Proceedings after Conviction
Connecticut General Statutes

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 54-86h (2026)

Competency of child as witness

✓ current as of May 2026
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No witness shall be automatically adjudged incompetent to testify because of age and any child who is a victim of assault, sexual assault or abuse shall be competent to testify without prior qualification. The weight to be given the evidence and the credibility of the witness shall be for the determination of the trier of fact.

(P.A. 85-587, S. 2.)

Cited. 211 C. 555; 241 C. 823.

Cited. 12 CA 585; 13 CA 368; 19 CA 36; 20 CA 737; 23 CA 509; 24 CA 146; 25 CA 21; 42 CA 186; judgment reversed, see 241 C. 823.

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Notes of Decisions
Cited in 24 cases, 1987–2012 · leading case: State v. James, 560 A.2d 426 (Conn. 1989).
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State v. James, 560 A.2d 426 (Conn. 1989). · cites it 11× “The principal issue in this appeal is whether the provision of General Statutes § 54-86h declaring that “any child who is a victim of assault, sexual assault or abuse shall be competent to testify without prior qualification” is constitutional.”
State v. Vargas, 835 A.2d 503 (Conn. App. Ct. 2003). · cites it 6× “In James , our Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of General Statutes § 54-86h, 6 the child victim competency rule, against a claim that it violates the right to confrontation by preventing defense counsel from challenging the competency of a child victim.”
State v. Rodriguez, 791 A.2d 621 (Conn. App. Ct. 2002). · cites it 4× “The defendant argues that the court (1) abused its discretion when it concluded that the victim was not a competent witness and (2) improperly rendered that decision after conducting a preliminary hearing, in violation of General Statutes § 54-86h, 3 to determine the victim’s…”
State v. Aponte, 738 A.2d 117 (Conn. 1999). · cites it 3× “General Statutes § 54-86h provides in relevant part: No witness shall be automatically adjudged incompetent to testify because of age and any child who is a victim of assault .”
State v. Hayes, 570 A.2d 716 (Conn. App. Ct. 1990). · cites it 6× “He claims that the instruction should have been given because the victim gave different versions of the incidents to others who provided constancy of accusation testimony at trial, because the trial court referred to the victim’s testimony in its instructions, and because the…”
In Re Tayler F., 995 A.2d 611 (Conn. 2010). · cites it 2× “§ 6-1 (“[e]xcept as otherwise provided by [this] Code, every person is competent to be a witness”); but see Practice Book § 32a-4 (b) (“[a]ny party who intends to call a child or youth as a witness shall first file a motion seeking permission of the judicial authority”).”
State v. Marquis, 699 A.2d 893 (Conn. 1997). · cites it 6× “In support of its argument, the state relies in part on General Statutes § 54-86h, 9 companion legislation to § 54-86g that precludes pro forma competency hearings for child witnesses.”
State v. Stephen O., 943 A.2d 477 (Conn. App. Ct. 2008). · cites it 4× “” General Statutes § 54-86h provides: “No witness shall be automatically adjudged incompetent to testify because of age and any child who is a victim of assault, sexual assault or abuse shall be competent to testify without prior qualification.”
State v. Aponte, 718 A.2d 36 (Conn. App. Ct. 1998). · cites it 3× “General Statutes § 54-86h provides in relevant part: “No witness shall be automatically adjudged incompetent to testify because of age and any child who is a victim of assault .”
State v. Michael H., 970 A.2d 113 (Conn. 2009). · cites it 2× “See General Statutes § 54-86h (“No witness shall be automatically adjudged incompetent to testify because of age and any child who is a victim of assault, sexual assault or abuse shall be competent to testify without prior qualification.”
In re Robert K., 532 A.2d 1319 (Conn. App. Ct. 1987). · cites it 5× “As a corollary to this argument, the respondent claims that, notwithstanding General Statutes § 54-86h, 2 corroboration is needed when the victim of a sexual assault is a young child.”
State v. Maldonado, 536 A.2d 600 (Conn. App. Ct. 1988). · cites it 2× “85-587 which amended General Statutes § 54-86h, substantially altering child witness competency determinations in cases where a “child .”
Show all 24 citing cases →
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.