California IN BRIEF : SAN DIEGO : Wrong Photo Used in Child Abuse Case

Children’s Hospital officials have admitted using the wrong photographs in a sexual abuse case that led to the conviction of a Chula Vista couple for allegedly allowing their young daughter to be molested. Five months after the trial, attorneys were told at a court hearing that the photographs used as evidence were of the wrong girl, according to the San Diego Union. In a written declaration, Geri Beattie, associate director of the hospital’s Center for Child Protection, said the negatives had been inadvertently switched with those of another child with the same initials. The family’s attorneys said the foul-up is grounds for a new trial, but the family would rather get on with their lives. The couple took their daughter to a pediatrician after finding blood in her panties. The doctor referred them to the hospital. The parents said the girl had been learning to ride a bike and suffered several accidents. The girl said the same in court and repeatedly denied being molested.