Lawyer Rebuked For Harsh Conduct At Sex Trial Attorney Relentless In Trying To Discredit Key Testimony Of Girl, 13

A judge scolded a defense lawyer Thursday for grilling a 13-year-old girl for hours about her account of being raped and molested at an East Wenatchee church.

Robert Van Siclen of Auburn was trying to discredit the girl during the Douglas County Superior Court trial of his client, Honna Sims, who is accused of sexually abusing the girl and another youngster.

“The issue is not if she was abused, but by whom, when and how often it occurred,” Judge John Bridges told Van Siclen.

The jury was not in the courtroom as Bridges told Van Siclen he had “serious concerns” about his attack Wednesday on the girl’s credibility.

The girl is a key witness in several sexual abuse cases now under investigation in the Wenatchee area. She was the first of dozens of witnesses scheduled to testify in the trial of Sims, a Sunday school teacher accused of sexually abusing two girls at the East Wenatchee Pentecostal House of God Church of Prayer.

Sims was the 11th member of the East Wenatchee church to be arrested in recent months. Others include Pastor Robby Roberson and his wife, Connie. They are accused of having group sex with children at the church.

At least 23 adults have been charged since last fall with participating in two loosely organized sex rings, which authorities say have operated since 1988.

In 14 cases, defendants have pleaded guilty or been convicted of charges including child rape, incest and molestation of a child. One case has been dismissed and several are pending.

The girl has accused Sims, the Robersons and Bill Davis, the church bus driver, of sexually abusing her. She attended the church regularly, sometimes several times a week, from March to June 1994. She has also accused Wenatchee foster parent Robert Devereaux, with whom she had lived for nearly six years, of sexual abuse.

Hugging a large stuffed teddy bear, the teenager testified Wednesday that she was first raped by Sims in the bathroom of the church while Roberson was giving a sermon in the sanctuary nearby. She said she was told by a friend that Sims wanted to see her, then pointed in the direction of the bathroom.

“It hurt really, really bad,” she said quietly.

Van Siclen questioned the girl closely, asking her how she knew which way Sims was sitting if she had her eyes closed the whole time. He also pointed out that the girl initially said that she was penetrated with a pencil-like object. She later said she had no idea how big or what shape the object was.

Van Siclen also asked the girl why she had accused other people, including her current stepfather, of molesting her when she later said it never happened. She said she lied because she was mad and wanted to get her own way.

“When I’m angry, sometimes I say things,” she said.

During his opening statement, Van Siclen said he believes the girl, who has been in foster care since she was 3 or 4 years old, is lying to get attention. He said the girl has been interviewed 14 times since September about sexual abuse matters.

The girl first disclosed the alleged abuse by Sims to authorities in early April. She accused Devereaux last year.