Playing 911 Call Recording During a Trial

In State v. Yates, 152 N.H. 245, 876 A.2d 176 (2005) the court examined whether the trial court erred in allowing the State to play a 911 tape where the caller offered an opinion "that she could not have offered as a witness testifying at trial, namely that the victim appeared to have been sexually abused" and the 911 operator referred to the victim as being "sexually abused" and asked the caller if the "attacker" was close by. Yates, 152 N.H. at 249. The court found that the record did not indicate the 911 tape was "highly probative," and that the unfair prejudice of admitting such portions of the 911 tape was substantial. See id. at 251. As to the unfair prejudice, the court stated that it resulted "not from the emotional nature of the call, . . . but from the content of the discussion between the caller and the 911 operator." Id. at 251.