Opinion
SC: 159843 COA: 341560
02-04-2020
PEOPLE of the State of Michigan, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Christopher Dewayne WHITLOCK, a/k/a Christopher Dwayne Whitlock, Defendant-Appellant.
Order
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the May 9, 2019 judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered. We DIRECT the Oakland County Prosecuting Attorney to answer the application for leave to appeal within 28 days after the date of this order. In particular, the prosecuting attorney shall address whether: (1) the trial court properly admitted other-act evidence pursuant to MCL 768.27a and People v. Watkins , 491 Mich. 450, 818 N.W.2d 296 (2012) ; (2) the admission of the other-act evidence may have confused jurors regarding the nature of the charged acts; and (3) the prosecutor’s use of the forensic interviewer’s testimony entitles the defendant to a new trial pursuant to People v. Thorpe , 504 Mich. 230, 934 N.W.2d 693 (2019).
The application for leave to appeal remains pending.