People v. Olsson

• Decision Date: 30 June 2014
• Docket Number: 2–13–1271.,Nos. 2–13–1217,s. 2–13–1217
• Parties: The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee, v. Paul OLSSON, Defendant–Appellant. The People of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee, v. Paul Olsson, Defendant–Appellant.
• Court: United States Appellate Court of Illinois

13 N.E.3d 802

The PEOPLE of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee
v.
Paul OLSSON, Defendant–Appellant.

The People of the State of Illinois, Plaintiff–Appellee
v.
Paul Olsson, Defendant–Appellant.

Nos. 2–13–1217
2–13–1271.

Appellate Court of Illinois, Second District.

June 30, 2014.

13 N.E.3d 804

Gillian E. Gosch, of Gosch Law Firm, P.C., of Waukegan, for appellant.

Michael G. Nerheim, State's Attorney, of Waukegan (Lawrence M. Bauer and Jay Paul Hoffmann, both of State's Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor's Office, of counsel), for the People.

OPINION

Justice ZENOFF delivered the judgment of the court, with opinion.

¶ 1 Defendant, Paul Olsson, appeals from orders entered by the circuit court of Lake County on October 16, 2013, and November 7, 2013, remanding him to the Department of Human Services (Department) after hearings pursuant to section 104–25(g)(2)(i) of the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963 (Code) (725 ILCS 5/104–25(g)(2)(i) (West 2012)). We affirm.

¶ 2 I. BACKGROUND

¶ 3 In 2005, defendant was charged with sex offenses involving children. In October 2007, he was found unfit to stand trial. In December 2009, at a discharge hearing, the trial court found defendant “not not guilty” of several of the charged offenses. The court ordered defendant's treatment extended to October 12, 2010. In September 2010, the State filed a motion to commit defendant to the Department pursuant to section 104–25(g)(2) of the Code, and, after a hearing, the trial court committed defendant to the Department. While defendant is committed under section 104–25(g)(2), he is entitled to a review of his status and treatment needs every 180 days. 725 ILCS 5/104–25(g)(2)(i) (West 2012). Pursuant to section 104–25(g)(2), every 90 days the Department must file with the trial court a treatment plan report in which the Department includes, inter alia, (1) an assessment of the defendant's treatment needs; (2) a description of the services recommended for treatment; (3) the goals of each type of element of service; (4) an anticipated timetable for the accomplishment of the goals; and (5) a designation of the qualified professional responsible for the implementation of the plan. 725 ILCS 5/104–25(g)(2) (West 2012); People v. Olsson, 2012 IL App (2d) 110856, ¶ 14, 366 Ill.Dec. 181, 979 N.E.2d 982.

¶ 4 On September 9, 2013, pursuant to our mandate (People v. Olsson, 2013 IL App (2d) 121036–U ), the trial court conducted a section 104–25(g)(2)(i) hearing. Defendant was not present. According to the treating psychiatrist's affidavit, defendant refused to attend the hearing after being informed of the court date. Over defense counsel's objection, the trial court ruled that defendant validly waived his right to be present.

¶ 5 Defense counsel then objected to proceeding with the hearing, because the Department had not filed a treatment plan report in compliance with section 104–25(g)(2) of the Code. After reviewing the

13 N.E.3d 805

treatment plan report dated June 12, 2012, as revised on August 6, 2013, the court overruled defendant's objection, finding that the report was prepared in accordance with section 104–25(g)(2).

¶ 6 Dr. Richard Malis, defendant's treating psychiatrist, was the only witness who testified at the September 9, 2013, hearing. According to Dr. Malis, defendant was mentally ill in that he suffered from pedophilia. Dr. Malis opined that defendant required hospitalization for mental health treatment because he continued to present a danger to others. Dr. Malis testified that defendant's refusal of treatment, his young age when he first offended, and the fact that his victims were male increased the risk of recidivism. On cross-examination, Dr. Malis said that he used the risk factors identified in formal risk assessments, but he admitted that he had not personally conducted a formal risk assessment of defendant. He also testified that, because defendant refused treatment, he had received no meaningful treatment or assessment beyond a review of the offense file. At the conclusion of the September 9, 2013, hearing, the trial court orally ruled that defendant presented a serious threat to public safety and remanded him to the Department for further treatment. However, the trial court's written order was not entered until October 16, 2013. Defendant timely appealed (No. 2–13–1217).

¶ 7 On November 7, 2013, the trial court conducted another hearing pursuant to section 104–25(g)(2)(i). The record on appeal includes no treatment plan report relating to the November 7, 2013, hearing. However, the State asserted at the hearing that the Department had filed a treatment plan report on September 11, 2013—subsequent to the September 9 hearing—and one dated October 31, 2013. Asked if he had received those reports, counsel for defendant replied: “I believe I have, your Honor.”

¶ 8 Defendant was not present at the hearing, and the trial court found, over defense counsel's objection, that defendant waived his right to be present. Dr. Malis once again was the only witness to testify at the hearing, and his testimony was substantially similar to his testimony at the September 9, 2013, hearing. During cross-examination, he stated that defendant continued to refuse most of the recommended treatment and that the treatment that defendant agreed to receive was very peripheral to the diagnosis of pedophilia. He added that defendant had recently made progress regarding his fitness to stand trial, because he had been cooperating with defense counsel. Dr. Malis explained that on October 15, 2013, defendant met with defense counsel about filing an appeal. Additionally, Dr. Malis stated that on October 16 or 17, defendant sent correspondence to defense counsel requesting assistance in filing a motion to attend a funeral. Dr. Malis viewed these acts as showing an ability to cooperate with counsel, and he said that his...