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Case 1:20-cr-00330-PAE Document 452 Filed 11/12/21 Page 19 of 84
evidence, to evaluate what weight to give it. But that does not change whether Dr. Rocchio’s
opinions are squarely within the mainstream of psychological practice.
The defendant next argues that Dr. Rocchio’s patients are “self-selected,” and she has not
established the “representativeness of her patients as typical victims of so-called grooming
behavior.” (Def. Mot. 3 at 7). But the defendant makes no argument that the minor victims in this
case are distinctive in some way such that general principles of psychology may diverge as to
them. And in any event, that argument is for the jury to evaluate, and not a basis to preclude Dr.
Rocchio’s testimony. See Feb. 25, 2020 Tr. at 36:13-37:5, United States v. Randall, 19 Cr. 131
(PAE) (S.D.N.Y.), Dkt. No. 335 (rejecting a defense attempt to distinguish between native-born
and domestic-born women because, “while a court is to be a gatekeeper as to reliability so as to
keep ‘junk science’ away from juries, the Court must not overstep that role. Whether or not the
Court would be persuaded that adult native-born women can be subject to trauma bonding, the
Court is not to arrogate to itself that judgment.)
Finally, the defendant argues that Dr. Rocchio has no experience treating perpetrators of
sexual assault, so she cannot testify as to the psychology of perpetrators and their “so-called
‘grooming’ techniques.” (Def. Mot. 3 at 7-8). Many of the opinions the defendant challenges
concern the experiences of victims, not perpetrators. Dr. Rocchio will testify about the pattern to
which “minor victims are often subject,” which makes “victims vulnerable to abuse,” and builds
their “trust and attachment with their abuser.” (Expert Notice, Def. Mot. 3 Ex. 1 at 2 (emphasis
added)). Grooming creates in the victims “a relationship of trust and attachment” that “can prevent
victims from being aware that what they are experiencing is abuse and can prevent disclosure. (/d.
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Document Details
| Filename | DOJ-OGR-00006727.jpg |
| File Size | 690.4 KB |
| OCR Confidence | 93.9% |
| Has Readable Text | Yes |
| Text Length | 2,024 characters |
| Indexed | 2026-02-03 17:13:48.957717 |