Judge Denies Bid to Review Twin’s Records

An Orange County Superior Court judge Monday refused to let defense attorneys examine the medical and psychological records of Sunny Han, who took an overdose of sleeping pills during an overnight break in testifying against her twin sister, who is accused of plotting to have her murdered.

Han, 23, appeared recovered from the overdose that forced her to be rushed from the courtroom to the hospital last week. She seemed ready to continue her testimony against Jeen Han, but the squabble over her medical records kept her from taking the stand.

Salvatore P. Ciulla, who is defending John Sayarath--one of two teenagers also charged in the case--was expected to file a motion Monday with the 4th District Court of Appeals seeking to overturn the ruling of Judge Eileen Moore, who denied access to Han’s records.

“We know the witness was incapacitated,” Ciulla told the judge. “She was held in the hospital for three days where people did not believe she could be safely released. Her attitude and bias in this case is reflected in what she did.”

Jeen Han, 16-year-old Sayarath and Archie Bryant, 17, have pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to commit murder, burglary, false imprisonment and other charges in connection with the Nov. 6, 1996, attack on Sunny Han and her roommate, Helen Kim.

Although she doesn’t believe her sister masterminded the attack, as the prosecution contends, Sunny Han is required to render what could be damaging testimony against her twin. Defense attorneys wonder if the overdose, which Sunny Han said she took because of a fight with her mother and a breakup with her boyfriend, was an attempt to avoid giving further testimony.

“Was it a real suicide attempt or just some dramatic effort on her part?” asked deputy public defender Roger Alexander, Jeen Han’s attorney.

Ciulla said he wants to ask her about the overdose when she returns to the stand and he needs the medical records to challenge her answers if needed. Defense attorneys also seek to know if she is suffering from long-term depression and if she had any other drugs in her system in addition to the 35 sleeping pills she told authorities she took. They believe such factors could have colored her testimony last week.

“Generally, a person does not attempt to kill themselves unless they are extremely depressed,” Alexander said. “Did that depression exist the day before and was it strong enough to color her testimony and is it still ongoing? We all saw the state she was in when she was here.”

Last Tuesday, Sunny Han appeared in court an hour late and was dazed, nearly incoherent and unable to walk.

Outside the presence of the jury Monday, Moore asked Sunny Han if she objected to her medical records being released.

At first, the young woman agreed, but then asked the judge, “Should I be opposed?” She then asked, “Does this have something to do with the case?”

After looking at the medical records with a representative from Western Medical Center in Santa Ana, where she was treated last week, she said she did not want the records released.

Prosecutor Bruce Moore argued that the overdose is “irrelevant to the case” and should not be mentioned in front of the jury. He said the defense is on a “fishing expedition.”

The trial was delayed until Wednesday, and Sunny Han will not return to the stand until the matter of her medical records is ruled on by the appellate court.