Joyce v. STATE, DEPT. OF CORRECTIONS

• Decision Date: 11 March 2003
• Docket Number: No. 26499-4-II.,26499-4-II.
• Court: Washington Court of Appeals
• Parties: Stephen JOYCE, individually and as the Personal Representative of the Estate of Paula Joyce, and as Guardian for the Estate of Paula Joyce, and as Guardian for the Estates of Marie Theresa Joyce, a minor, Thomas Joyce, a minor, Katherine Joyce, a minor, and Joseph Joyce, a minor, Respondent, v. STATE of Washington, DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, Appellant. and Vernon Valdez Stewart, a single man, Defendant.

75 P.3d 548

116 Wash. App. 569

Stephen JOYCE, individually and as the Personal Representative of the Estate of Paula Joyce, and as Guardian for the Estate of Paula Joyce, and as Guardian for the Estates of Marie Theresa Joyce, a minor, Thomas Joyce, a minor, Katherine Joyce, a minor, and Joseph Joyce, a minor, Respondent, v. STATE of Washington, DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS, Appellant. and Vernon Valdez Stewart, a single man, Defendant.

No. 26499-4-II.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 2.

March 11, 2003.

Republished After Denial of Reconsideration May 22, 2003.

Gary Edmund Andrews, Dept of Corrections OAS, Glen Andrew Anderson, Michael E. Tardif, Michael Patrick Lynch, Olympia, WA, for Appellant.

Darrell L. Cochran, Gordon Thomas Honeywell et al, John Robert Connelly, Tacoma, WA, for Respondent.

HOUGHTON, J.

While under community supervision by the Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC), Vernon Valdez Stewart caused an automobile accident that killed Paula Joyce. Paula Joyce's family and her estate (the Joyce family) sued DOC and a jury awarded damages. On appeal, DOC argues that the facts do not support finding that DOC's duty to control Stewart extended to Paula Joyce or that its supervision of Stewart was the proximate cause of Paula Joyce's death. DOC also argues that the trial court made errors in submitting several jury instructions and in admitting certain evidence and that the jury award was excessive. We affirm.

FACTS

On August 8, 1997, Stewart stole a vehicle and sped through a red light at an intersection in Tacoma. He collided with another vehicle, killing its driver, Paula Joyce.

At the time of the accident, Stewart was under community supervision as part of his sentence for a third degree assault/domestic violence conviction. In 1995, he pleaded guilty to third degree assault¹ after beating his girlfriend and allegedly threatening her with a gun. Then, on December 5, 1996, he was sentenced to additional community supervision for possession of stolen property after being pulled over for speeding in a stolen vehicle.

The complex facts require a lengthy recitation of DOC's community supervision notes, Stewart's mental health treatment history, and his criminal history while under community supervision.

Stewart's Community Supervision and Mental Health History

1995

On September 8, 1995, the court sentenced Stewart to 90 days in jail for assault, most of which he had already served. The remaining 9 days were converted to 72 hours of community service. Stewart was also sentenced to 24 months of community supervision and ordered to make restitution payments.

The conditions of Stewart's community supervision included completing his community service, not contacting his girlfriend for five years, not purchasing or possessing deadly weapons, completing domestic violence counseling, obeying all laws, and making his legal financial obligation payments.

The King County presentence report for the assault conviction included information from police reports and the probable cause determination of Stewart's arrest. It detailed the abusive nature of his relationship with his girlfriend and included various accounts of his assault against her. Stewart had no prior juvenile or adult felony convictions. His misdemeanor convictions included two juvenile convictions for driving without a valid license and convictions of third degree possession of stolen property and obstructing a public servant.

On October 17, Stewart met with Cathy Lo, his community corrections officer (CCO), to review the conditions of his community supervision. Stewart told Lo that he lived with his mother and sister. Lo told him that she was required to visit him at home twice a month and would have to walk through his home on the first visit.

On October 19, Lo attempted to visit Stewart at home, but no one answered the door. She left a card telling Stewart to call her. On November 2, she attempted another home visit but again, no one answered the door.

On November 15, Stewart met with Lo at her office. He was one hour late for the appointment. Stewart had not completed any of his community service requirements, entered domestic violence counseling or found a job. On November 16, Lo visited Stewart's home again. This time Stewart's mother answered the door and Stewart gave Lo a tour of the house.

On December 20, Stewart appeared for an appointment with Lo but left without seeing her. The next day, Lo went to Stewart's home, but again, no one answered the door. She left a card instructing Stewart to report on January 3, 1996. Stewart reported on that day and told Lo about his inability to begin his community service hours at a local food bank.

1996

On January 4, 1996, Lo went to Stewart's home and again, no one answered the door. Lo returned to Stewart's home on January 25, but a woman at the door said that Stewart was not home.

On February 7, Stewart did not show up for an appointment. The next day Lo went to Stewart's home but no one answered the door and she left a card telling him to call.

On February 13, Lo sent Stewart a letter advising him of his failure to report on February 7, to pay his legal financial obligations since December 1995, to undergo domestic violence counseling, and to do any community service. She told him that she was writing a violation report to submit to the court and to report on February 21.

Stewart appeared for his February 21 appointment with Lo. She reviewed his community supervision violations and they discussed his community service hours and finding a job. Lo said she had trouble reaching him at home and asked if he had another residence; Stewart said that he did not.

Lo explained that she had delayed sending a violation report because she was hoping for some improvements in his conforming to the community supervision conditions. She told Stewart that she would file the violation report but that she would remove the failure to report violation because he appeared for their current meeting. Lo advised Stewart that if he used the two to three months before the hearing to fulfill some of his conditions, she would recommend leniency to the court.

The next day, on February 22, Lo attempted to visit Stewart at home, but was told that he was not home.

On February 25, Lo issued a notice of violation of Stewart's community supervision conditions. The notice stated that Stewart failed to enter domestic violence counseling, failed to perform his community service, and failed to make the five dollar monthly restitution payments. Lo recommended that the court schedule a hearing, convert any remaining community service time to jail time, and sanction Stewart with ten additional days of jail time. A hearing was noted for this motion for April 18.

On March 6, a Washington State Patrol Trooper stopped Stewart on I-90 in Kittitas County for driving 86 mph. The trooper discovered that Stewart was driving a stolen car and arrested him. The State charged Stewart with first degree possession of stolen property, third degree driving with a suspended license, and failure to sign a notice of infraction.

Presumably, because of his arrest, Stewart failed to report to a March 6 meeting with Lo and she mailed Stewart a letter advising him to contact her immediately. Apparently, Lo did not learn about Stewart's possession of stolen property charge resulting from his traffic stop until April 18.

On March 11, Stewart called Lo. He claimed not to have received the March 6 letter because he did not retrieve his mail at his mother's house. Lo told him it was his responsibility to check his mail at his mother's house because that was the address she had on record for him. Stewart then told Lo that he had been spending a considerable amount of time at his father's house and gave Lo that address. Lo told him that he had missed his mandatory reporting for the month, but that she would give him one more chance. Lo rescheduled Stewart to report in on March 21.

Stewart reported to Lo on March 21, as required. They again discussed Stewart's failure to begin domestic violence counseling or complete community service. Stewart told Lo that he had not started the counseling or community service because he got nervous around groups of people.

On April 11, Stewart went to the Providence Medical Center emergency room complaining of auditory and visual hallucinations and paranoia. He was voluntarily admitted to the Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit. He was diagnosed with bipolar affective disorder with psychosis.

On April 16, Lo attempted to visit Stewart at his mother's house. Stewart's mother told Lo that Stewart had been in the Providence Hospital psychiatric ward since the previous week.

After Lo returned to her office, she received a message that Stewart had called and left the telephone number for his father's home. Lo called the Providence psychiatric ward and verified that Stewart had been admitted but, lacking a signed release, Lo could obtain no more information. Lo then called Stewart's father who also confirmed that Stewart was in the hospital. Because of Stewart's hospitalization, his April violation hearing was continued until May 21.

Providence Hospital released Stewart on April 25. On May 2, Lo visited Stewart at his mother's house. Lo asked Stewart about the rescheduled hearing. He claimed not to know what she was talking about and said that he had not received a hearing notice. Lo advised him to take responsibility for receiving his mail and to call her for a reporting appointment.

On about May 7, Stewart underwent a mental health assessment at Harborview Medical Center. At this assessment, Stewart again complained about "hearing and seeing things." Exhibit 54, at 12.

On May 9, Stewart showed up at Lo's office without an appointment, but Lo could not see him. Lo mailed him a letter telling him to report again on May 16. He showed up for that appointment.

At the appointment, Stewart claimed...