In re Interest of T.H.

• Decision Date: 15 June 2018
• Docket Number: No. 16–0158,16–0158
• Citation: 913 N.W.2d 578
• Parties: IN the INTEREST OF T.H., Minor Child. T.H., Minor Child, Appellant.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

913 N.W.2d 578

IN the INTEREST OF T.H., Minor Child. T.H., Minor Child, Appellant.

No. 16–0158

Supreme Court of Iowa.

Filed June 15, 2018

Zachary S. Hindman of Mayne, Arneson, Hindman, Hisey & Daane, Sioux City, and Kathryn C. Stevens, Public Defender, Sioux City (until withdrawal), for appellant.

Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Mary A. Triick, Assistant Attorney General, and Diane Murphy, Assistant County Attorney, for appellee.

CADY, Chief Justice.

In this appeal, we must decide if substantial evidence was presented to establish that a juvenile committed a sex offense by force and whether the mandatory sex offender registry statute for certain juvenile sex offenders violates the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment under either the Iowa or United States Constitution. The juvenile court found the juvenile committed a sex offense by force and ordered him to register as a sex offender. We transferred the appeal to the court of appeals. It found substantial evidence that the juvenile committed a sex offense by force and that the sex offender registry requirements imposed by law did not violate the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment under either the Iowa or United States Constitution. On our further review from the court of appeals decision, we affirm the decision of the juvenile court and the decision of the court of appeals.

I. Factual Background and Proceedings.

On or about July 15, 2015, T.H., a fourteen-year-old boy, knocked on the door of I.N., a sixteen-year-old girl whom T.H. had known for a few years. I.N. answered the door, and T.H. told her he had a gift for her. He told I.N. he had ordered a ring and wanted to give it to her. I.N. asked her mother if she could talk with T.H. on the front porch, and her mother gave her permission. Once the two were outside, they talked for a few minutes, and T.H. began to kiss I.N., over her objections. T.H. then sat on the porch and asked I.N. to join him. She initially refused, but T.H. continued to insist.

I.N. sat down on the porch next to T.H., who then exposed his penis and shoved the back of I.N.’s head downward toward it. I.N. protested repeatedly, and as she said "no," T.H.’s penis entered her mouth. T.H. kept his hand on I.N.’s head so she could not raise her head. I.N. then bit T.H.’s penis in order to free herself, prompting T.H. to release her head. T.H. asked her why she had bit him, and I.N. responded that she did not want to do this and had said no. I.N. slapped T.H. in the face, and T.H. went home.

I.N. ran inside and told her mother what had happened. I.N.’s mother called the police. I.N. was interviewed by the police and a few days later interviewed by the Child Advocacy Center. The police also interviewed T.H. Although T.H. initially denied the incident, after an officer falsely represented to him that there was surveillance footage of the encounter, T.H. admitted to forcing I.N. to perform oral sex and that she bit him in the process. After the police interview, without an officer in the room, T.H. wrote an apology letter to I.N. He wrote,

Dear [I.N.],

I sorry for forcing you to suck my penis. I’m so sorry. If you forgive me, I’ll be happy. So just remember I still care about you.

Love, [T.H.]

Since the incident, I.N. has experienced recurring nightmares about the incident and is wary around boys who resemble T.H. She also has had difficulty participating in school when the topic of sexual abuse is discussed.

On July 21, 2015, the State filed a delinquency petition alleging the delinquency of T.H. based on a number of incidents. The State alleged T.H. committed sexual abuse in the third degree by performing a sex act by force or against the will of I.N. in violation of Iowa Code section 709.4(1)(a ) (2016). Based on domestic incidents that occurred in late June 2015, the State also alleged two counts of simple assault for punching and choking his mother, one count of simple assault for punching his brother, and one count of criminal mischief in the fifth degree for throwing a mop through a window of his residence.

The juvenile court held an adjudicatory hearing during which I.N. testified about the incident, as well as the detective who conducted the investigation. Following the witnesses’ testimonies, the juvenile court dismissed the four counts relating to the domestic incidents. On December 11, the juvenile court adjudicated T.H. delinquent for performing a sex act by force and against the will of I.N. in violation of Iowa Code section 709.4(1)(a ). The court, therefore, found that T.H. had committed sexual abuse in the third degree and that his offense was committed with force.

The court soon thereafter issued its dispositional order, which discussed T.H.’s mental health history, past behavioral problems, and prior rehabilitation efforts by the State. T.H.’s father has never played a role in his life, and his mother has been married three times. Her second husband was an alcoholic, and her third husband abused her, sometimes in T.H.’s presence. After the third husband left the home, T.H. kept in contact with him, as he provided drugs to T.H. and his friends. Currently, the man who is living in T.H.’s home is a multistate offender with prior arrests for narcotics possession, domestic violence, and child endangerment. T.H.’s mother has a history of substance abuse, although she has been sober for over seven years. She currently works the overnight shift at Wal-Mart. From 2004 to 2008, T.H. lived with his maternal grandmother and stepgrandfather in Texas, and they have since continued to request custody of T.H.

Prior to the incident with I.N., T.H. had received a number of services to address his mental health and behavioral needs. In August 2011, T.H. was removed from his home by the police and taken to St. Luke’s Hospital for aggressive behavior. In September 2011, he was placed in the Four Oaks PMIC Program and resided in the facility for seven months. In December 2012, T.H. was committed to the Cherokee Mental Health Institute (MHI) after threatening to stab kids at school with a paper knife, drawing pictures of shooting people and blowing up houses, and stating that voices in his head were telling him to do bad things. He remained at Cherokee MHI until February 2013, when he received a placement at the Boys and Girls Home in Sioux City. Through each of the out-of-home placements, T.H. was given services relating to anger management, coping mechanisms, age-appropriate social skills, communication skills, and self-esteem. T.H. was returned to his parental home in August 2013 with a good prognosis.

Beginning in January 2014, the Sioux City police were frequently called to assist with family disturbances in his home. T.H.’s mother struggled to contain T.H.’s behavior and sought assistance from juvenile officers and a therapist. In September 2014, after T.H. broke a window in the family home, he was placed on an Informal Adjustment and assigned twenty hours of community service. T.H.’s mother also pursued outpatient mental health services and medication for T.H. School liaison services were also added to support him at school. In June of 2015, police were twice called to address incidents within his home after T.H. punched his brother and mother and placed his mother in a choke hold during an argument. Juvenile officers discussed the possibility of a second Informal Adjustment, but opted to give T.H. one month to demonstrate his ability to live in the home without aggression. Less than a month later, T.H. was brought to detention for sexually abusing I.N.

After being placed in detention, T.H. completed two psychological evaluations. T.H. was diagnosed with a schizoaffective disorder, bipolar type; an attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, combined presentation; an oppositional defiant disorder, moderate; and an unspecified anxiety disorder. T.H. expressed a desire not to be returned to his parental home, stating he was afraid he would hurt his mother, brother, or do something sexual again.

Considering the above circumstances and T.H.’s history of prior services, the court concluded that it was in T.H.’s best interests to be placed in a residential treatment facility. The court ordered T.H. to be placed in the S.T.O.P. program at the Four Oaks facility where he would receive a number of services. The court also found that T.H.’s offense is a tier III sexual offense, and therefore, T.H. was required to register as a sex offender pursuant to Iowa Code section 692A.102(1)(c )(10). The court explained it had no discretion to defer or waive the sex offender registration requirements, as T.H. was fourteen years old and committed his offense with force. Accordingly, the court ordered T.H. to register as a sex offender pursuant to Iowa Code section 692A.103(4).

T.H. appealed and raised two issues. First, he asserted there was insufficient evidence to find he committed sexual abuse by force. Second, he argued the mandatory sex offender registration constituted cruel and unusual punishment in violation of both the Iowa and United States Constitutions. We transferred the case to the court of appeals. It concluded there was substantial evidence to support a finding that T.H. sexually abused I.N. by force. It also found that mandatory sex offender registration for juveniles was not cruel and unusual punishment.

We granted T.H.’s application for further review.

II. Standard of Review.

Juvenile delinquency proceedings are "special proceedings that provide an alternative to the criminal prosecution of children where the best interest of the child is the objective." In re M.L. , 868 N.W.2d 456, 460 (Iowa Ct. App. 2015). We consider the sufficiency of the evidence in juvenile delinquency adjudications de novo. In re D.S. , 856 N.W.2d 348, 351 (Iowa 2014). We review constitutional challenges de novo. State v. Roby , 897 N.W.2d 127, 137 (Iowa 2017).

III. Analysis.

A. Sufficiency of Evidence. A person commits sexual abuse in the third degree when the...