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Dennard v. State

The indictment against defendant was not perfect in form since it did not identify the victim.

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Samuel Kevin Dennard was indicted for attempted child molestation, attempted statutory rape, attempting to entice a child for indecent purposes, and attempted sexual exploitation of children. Dennard filed general and special demurrers to the indictment, asserting that the various counts failed to allege the commission of any crime and were imperfect in form. The trial court overruled the demurrers, and we granted Dennard’s application for interlocutory review. For reasons discussed below, we hold that the trial court properly overruled Dennard’s general demurrers, but erred in overruling his special demurrers.

Although our decision turns on the language of the indictment, we set forth briefly the relevant facts as they appear in the record. Dennard placed a message on an internet newsgroup site stating that he was looking for girls between the ages of 15 and 18 who were interested in asphyxiation, strangulation, smothering, drowning, and hanging. Sergeant Darin Meadows responded to this inquiry, pretending to be a 15-year-old girl named “Shari”. Dennard and Shari exchanged a series of messages over the internet, in which Dennard indicated that he was interested in a sexual relationship involving asphyxiation. During this correspondence, Dennard expressed his concern that, because Shari was underage, they needed to be careful. Dennard and Shari also exchanged photographs of each other.

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