BROWN, J.
. . . Ind. Evidence Rule 412(a) governs the admissibility of evidence of past sexual conduct and provides: In a prosecution for a sex crime, evidence of the past sexual conduct of a victim or witness may not be admitted, except:
(1) evidence of the victim’s or of a witness’s past sexual conduct with the defendant;
(2) evidence which shows that some person other than the defendant committed the act upon which the prosecution is founded;
(3) evidence that the victim’s pregnancy at the time of trial was not caused by the defendant; or
(4) evidence of conviction for a crime to impeach under Rule 609.
In addition to these enumerated exceptions, a common-law exception has survived the 1994 adoption of the Indiana Rules of Evidence. See Walton, 715 N.E.2d at 826-828. This exception provides that evidence of a prior accusation of rape is admissible if: (1) the victim has admitted that his or her prior accusation of rape is false; or (2) the victim’s prior accusation is demonstrably false. Id.
Here, evidence that A.S. viewed an allegedly pornographic video [footnote omitted] and had been previously molested does not fall into one of the enumerated exceptions of Ind. Evidence Rule 412 or under the common law exception. [Footnote omitted.] The Indiana Supreme Court has held that the exclusion of past molestation was not erroneous under Indiana’s Rape Shield Statute and Rule. . . . Based upon these cases, we conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion under Ind. Evidence Rule 412 by excluding the evidence that A.S. had viewed an allegedly pornographic videotape and had been previously molested.
. . . .
There are instances where the application of the Rape Shield Rule may violate a defendant’s Sixth Amendment right. Williams, 681 N.E.2d at 201. “For example, admission of such evidence may be constitutionally required where the evidence is offered not to show the victim’s consent but to establish some other point such as that an injury could have been inflicted by someone other than the defendant.” Id. (citing Tague, 3 F.3d at 1136-38). “It may also be required when the trial court restricts a defendant from giving his own account of the events at issue.” Id. “And the Sixth Amendment may be implicated when a defendant establishes that the victim engaged in a similar pattern of sexual acts.” Id. Consequently, to determine whether Oatts’s rights were violated, we move beyond a pure rape shield act analysis to consider whether evidence to show the child’s pre-existing sexual knowledge is admissible. . . . .
. . . .
Oatts argues that the trial court erred by excluding the evidence that A.S. had watched the video and had been previously molested because the evidence was relevant to demonstrate that A.S. had knowledge of the nature of sex acts and the investigative process.13 We note that Oatts’s arguments constitute what some commentators refer to as the sexual innocence inference theory. See Christopher B. Reid, The Sexual Innocence Inference Theory as a Basis for the Admissibility of a Child Molestation Victim’s Prior Sexual Conduct, 91 MICH. L. REV. 827 (1993).
The theory is based on the premise that because most children of tender years are ignorant of matters relating to sexual conduct, a child complainant’s ability to describe such conduct may persuade the jury that the charged conduct in fact occurred. To demonstrate that the child had acquired sufficient knowledge to fabricate a charge against the defendant, the theory reasons, the court should allow the defense to offer evidence that the child acquired sexual experience with someone else before he or she accused the defendant.
Grant v. Demskie, 75 F.Supp.2d 201, 213 (S.D.N.Y. 1999) (quoting Clifford S. Fishman, Consent, Credibility, and the Constitution: Evidence Relating to a Sex Offense Complainant’s Past Sexual Behavior, 44 CATH. U. L. REV. 709, 806 (1995)), affirmed by 234 F.3d 1262 (2nd Cir. 2000). Courts have varied in their approach to the sexual innocence inference theory. At least one court has rejected this theory. See, e.g., State v. Clarke, 343 N.W.2d 158, 163 (Iowa 1984) (rejecting the theory because it was based on unsubstantiated assumptions and fears about what a jury may infer from the complaining witness’s testimony). Other courts have embraced the theory. See, e.g., Summitt v. State, 697 P.2d 1374 (Nev. 1985) (embracing the theory and holding that the probative value of the evidence must be balanced against its prejudicial effect). See generally Grant, 75 F.Supp.2d at 214-216 (discussing the different responses of courts to the sexual innocence inference theory). The approaches of various courts have been described as follows:
At present, the lower courts are split over the question of whether this theory of logical relevance is potent enough to surmount a rape shield law. Maine, Nevada and New Hampshire courts have embraced this theory. According to one commentator, these liberal decisions represent the trend in the case law. However, there are conservative decisions from Iowa and Michigan rejecting the theory. Furthermore, there is a third, compromise view, followed in such states as Arizona, Massachusetts, and Wisconsin. The courts in these jurisdictions carefully scrutinize the quantum of the probative value of the evidence. Hence, they might grant the accused a right to introduce evidence of the complainant child’s sexual contact with a third party if the sexual conduct in question was not only unusual but also strikingly similar to the alleged contact with the accused. Francis A. Gilligan, Edward J. Imwinkelried & Elizabeth F. Loftus, The Theory of “Unconscious Transference”: The Latest Threat to the Shield Laws Protecting the Privacy of Victims of Sex Offenses, 38 B.C. L. REV. 107, 140-141 (1996) (footnotes omitted).
The cases following the compromise approach place the burden on the defendant to show that the prior sexual act occurred and that the prior sexual act was sufficiently similar to the present sexual act to give the victim the knowledge to imagine the molestation charge. . . . In the interests of balancing a defendant’s Sixth Amendment rights with the policy behind the rape shield rule, we find the compromise view to be the more enlightened approach and adopt the compromise view of the sexual innocence inference theory. Thus, Oatts was required to show that the prior sexual act occurred and that the prior sexual act was sufficiently similar to the present sexual act to give the victim the knowledge to imagine the molestation charge. [Footnote omitted.] Here, Oatts failed to show that the prior acts closely resembled those in the present case. Oatts’s attorney did not proffer any evidence that the prior molestation was similar to the current offense. Oatts’s attorney stated that the “similarities of the allegations are very, very close” and the current allegation “is that Mr. Oatts touched [A.S.] while they were in bed together, and in fact Tony touched [A.S.] while she was in bed.” . . . However, Oatts did not offer specific details of the previous molestation and thus failed to show that the prior molestation was similar to the current offense. We also conclude that Oatts did not offer specific details of the videotape and thus failed to show that the conduct in the videotape was similar to the current offense.
Oatts failed to show that either the prior molestation or videotape were similar to the current offense. Oatts also failed to show that the evidence was relevant or that the probative value outweighed the prejudicial effect. Under the circumstances, we cannot say that the exclusion of the evidence violated Oatts’s right to cross examine witnesses under the Sixth Amendment of the United States Constitution and Article 1, Section 13 of the Indiana Constitution.
ROBB, J. and CRONE, J. concur.