[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},"mediaId",6324215,"mediaKeyId","2339187-90e50f97c6b3f544b861cffbc38a868a","parentId",2339187,"title","Victim testifies that doctor swiped fingers between her labia; DNA and SANE evidence submitted","audioSeconds",1721,"startMs",1911000,"endMs",3632000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2339187-90e50f97c6b3f544b861cffbc38a868a&start=1911&end=3632","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2339187-90e50f97c6b3f544b861cffbc38a868a/thumbnail_1911000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6324215/Texas/Victim-testifies-that-doctor-swiped-fingers-between-her-labia-DNA-and-SANE-evidence-submitted","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6324215-163f8d71397ae8b0cfc14db2d78517c3/orig.mp4?Expires=1775715966&Signature=fqxY41PsAb~BWJjB0wt2A1JySxKP0Q1TAzFU9PbENAzhRWkOA5mmg5drxLQSQCn~5b3OQM0gYYtOPs5ilQLX-aPvj269-~25-55fG1n3V9XN5i43eXiqmUhd3Ke2Ioec~WHHLH4J-zLqWmWsrBJQKRqD~IsaL1vgiPqf-N~KRn5qwaIK64UC8BthBwO4SBwNeIQPsnOD5eCHRhcHP4gdROVtmhPX4H2LZva7TFsVwkFbdLIKgB4eZ1LRrqfVMdSNETLZCwtndJHCmlgoGPf5Cehvdrjzv9qfUBtwfN~~z~xY2irWYMyGDM09g5TvkI7Gbhy-1J0iSeJXUyx~883wLA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","","date","2025-02-18T19:06:42Z","article","Taylor Dempsey testified under oath that, during a follow-up appointment in April 2022 at a Port Arthur cosmetic surgery center, Dr. Nir Venier pulled down her clothing and \"slid his fingers between my labia.\" She testified the doctor was not wearing gloves during the suture removal and that the conduct happened on more than one occasion during the visit.

Dempsey told jurors she left the clinic with her mother, Carolyn Dempsey, who described her daughter as \"hysterical\" and said the pair immediately went to the Port Arthur Police Department to report the incident. The same-day visit included a forensic, acute SANE (sexual-assault forensic) exam and collection of swabs, the prosecutor said.

Prosecutor Michael Coleman told jurors that an initial DNA test was inconclusive but that a \"subsequent, more thorough\" analysis showed DNA on the outside of the complainant's genital area that matched the defendant. The state obtained a search warrant for the defendant's buccal (cheek) swab and delivered both the SAFE kit and the defendant's buccal sample to the lab. The court admitted both items into evidence as State's Exhibits 4 and 5.

The defendant, identified in court as Dr. Nir Venier, denied penetrating the complainant's vaginal canal and in recorded questioning told detectives he sometimes does not wear gloves when changing dressings because gloves may stick to sutures. Detectives testified the doctor consented to a recorded interview at his office and later consented to a DNA swab.

Defense counsel highlighted statements Dempsey made in earlier interviews in which she twice used the phrase \"he did not penetrate me.\" The defense argued those prior remarks undermined the state's theory that insertion occurred; prosecutors countered that the complainant and a SANE examiner later described the contact as entering beyond the outer labial folds. On the stand, Dempsey said her earlier understanding of \"penetration\" meant entering the vaginal canal and that she later understood the legal distinction between outer contact and penetration.

Separately, the court reviewed and excluded a video of the complainant's recorded interview with Officer Jesse Alvarado after sustaining the defense's hearsay objection to the state's proffer that the video qualified as an \"excited utterance.\" The judge found the brief, post-appointment recording did not meet the immediate-impact threshold for that hearsay exception.

What happens next: The SANE examiner's testimony, and the judge's pre-testimony ruling on scope, remained pending. The jury trial was scheduled to continue the next morning at 9 a.m.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Judge Raquel West's Personal Meeting Room","oneSentenceSummary","Taylor Dempsey testified that Dr. Nir Venier inserted fingers between her labia during a post-op appointment. Her mother corroborated that Dempsey was upset. Police executed a search warrant for the doctor's DNA and the court admitted the SAFE kit and buccal swab into evidence; a police interview video of the complainant was excluded as hearsay.","taxTitle","252nd District Court, District Court Judges, Judicial, Texas","taxId",66306,"location","Texas","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":56,"_74":56},6324220,"Judge limits expert scope, hears legal argument over meaning of \"penetration\" ahead of Venier trial",13638,157000,13795000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2339187-90e50f97c6b3f544b861cffbc38a868a&start=157&end=13795","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2339187-90e50f97c6b3f544b861cffbc38a868a/thumbnail_157000.jpg","/articles/6324220/Texas/Judge-limits-expert-scope-hears-legal-argument-over-meaning-of-penetration-ahead-of-Venier-trial","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6324220-e891b2f1c2b2c2909d36eb71238c541d/orig.mp4?Expires=1775715966&Signature=WFv~xkvbM-ZTLY1GC5uI-E5fm~8Pfc5bN-QM3n4nWtXlXYxwCNs7EWwljl82Hiqtdp~2tmQI6cCbVmNmmHvVqUlB5eYh48gzr5mqiUuY7mrP~BgyTToNPPiXRqObTMuYldFj8kKmgtbSNkew9cRfbRdB8MjxBSBTcSRnsTEU2ZaiXgW7bw4IfeUWOGifRoZRzI-s1J9f6p1sO0ymnHGoriAhGUCOzcskX15RRVHWII5hTpLxu35wvZEWH7xBsC4J8SYRcfBXy~~lJv3jdur-ZNFL3c4qESljEYu7C7NXpDtCDOP551QxE5bs1oXlu5hxeU~YOIsWPQOIi2yxWXdKUA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","A Jefferson County judge told lawyers on Friday he will limit expert testimony and make a ruling before the sexual-assault nurse examiner testifies after defense objections over how the word \"penetration\" may be defined for the jury.

The dispute began when defense counsel objected to anticipated testimony from the SANE (sexual-assault nurse examiner) that the state's use of the term \"penetration\" should be conflated with a medical examiner's description of contact. Prosecutor Michael Coleman told the court the state would not conflate touching with penetration and proffered that the nurse would testify he and she shared a \"common meaning\" of penetration as \"breaking the plane,\" specifically \"breaking the plane of the labia majora.\" Defense counsel argued the words should be given their common, lay meaning and objected to an expert offering a novel definition.

Why it matters: The legal characterization of what counts as penetration is central to the charges. If jurors are presented testimony that reinterprets statutory language, defense attorneys said, it could change the elements the jury must find beyond a reasonable doubt.

At a hearing outside the jury's presence, counsel debated whether case law supports the prosecutor's formulation. The state cited case law it said supports the proposition that \"penetration is complete, however slight,\" while defense counsel stressed that the penal code does not itself define the term. The judge said he will not permit the SANE to offer undisclosed expert opinions and will make a pre-testimony ruling. \"So I'm going to let her testify as to what her understanding is of her job, which is, do I file this case? Is there evidence that there was touching or penetration?\" the judge said.

The court also addressed the prosecutor's effort to offer a SANE supervisor as a witness. The defense pointed out the supervisor had not been disclosed as an expert; the judge signaled he would allow the nurse to lay foundation and explain routine SANE procedures and reports but not to offer undisclosed expert conclusions interpreting another nurse's findings.

Other evidentiary rulings reached in the hearing included the judge's decision to review, outside the jury, a body-worn camera recording of the complainant and to rule on hearsay objections. The judge sustained the defense hearsay objection to the state's proffer of an officer-recorded interview as an \"excited utterance\" and excluded the video from admission on that basis after previewing the recording.

Defense counsel repeatedly emphasized the presumption of innocence and that jurors must follow legal definitions the court gives them at charge conference. The prosecutor argued prosecutors, SANE personnel and detectives routinely rely on training and case law in deciding whether a report meets the threshold to present charges.

The court said it would revisit the disputed issues immediately before the SANE examiner takes the stand and directed counsel to confer and provide the court any case law they rely on before testimony begins. Trial proceedings were scheduled to resume the next morning at 9 a.m.","During the trial of Dr. Nir Venier, attorneys argued over whether a SANE nurse or other witnesses may define \"penetration\" or offer expert interpretation; the judge limited testimony and said he would rule before the nurse testifies.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Victim testifies that doctor swiped fingers between her labia; DNA and SANE evidence submitted

Judge limits expert scope, hears legal argument over meaning of "penetration" ahead of Venier trial