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Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document 435 Filed 11/11/21 Page4of11
The Defense instead argues that Dr. Rocchio’s method is unreliable, that it is not relevant
to the jury’s determination, and that its prejudicial effect would substantially outweigh its
probative value. These arguments rely heavily on a district court opinion from outside this
circuit, United States v. Raymond, 700 F. Supp. 2d 142 (D. Me. 2010). After careful
consideration of the Defense’s arguments and the thorough reasoning in Raymond, the Court
concludes that Dr. Rocchio’s anticipated testimony is admissible with one exception. The Court
will address first why Dr. Rocchio’s testimony is admissible and then address the one opinion
that it will exclude.
First, Dr. Rocchio’s method is reliable and well-accepted in her profession. It is for this
reason that several courts in this circuit have admitted the testimony of similar experts, such as
testimony on so-called trauma bonding to explain why prostitutes may not flee from their pimps
even when not physically restrained. In United States v. Kidd, the court admitted the testimony,
finding it to be “quite common| ]” and accepted in the academic literature. 385 F. Supp. 3d at
263. Identical testimony was admitted by Judge Furman in United States v. Dupigny, No. 18-
Cr.-528 (JMF) (S.D.N.Y. 2019), Dkt. No. 198 at 27, by Judge Engelmayer in United States v.
Randall, 19 Cr. 131 (PAE) (S.D.N.Y. 2020), Dkt. No. 335 at 24-30, and by Judge Cote in United
States v. Torres, No. 20-CR-608 (DLC), 2021 WL 1947503, at *7 (S.D.N.Y. May 13, 2021).
Their decisions are consistent with the vast majority of courts to consider the admission
of such experts. A number of courts have admitted experts on the particular topic of grooming at
issue here, a sample of which include the Seventh Circuit in United States v. Romero, 189 F.3d
576, 585 (7th Cir. 1999), the Fifth Circuit in United States v. Hitt, 473 F.3d 146, 158 (Sth Cir.
2006), the Ninth Circuit in United States v. Halamek, 5 F.4th 1081, 1087-89 (9th Cir. 2021), the
Tenth Circuit in United States v. Batton, 602 F.3d 1191, 1201-02 (10th Cir. 2010), the Eighth
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| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00006345.jpg |
| File Size | 730.7 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 93.6% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 2,157 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 17:10:07.776904 |