People v. Zapotocky
| Decision Date | 14 February 1994 |
| Docket Number | No. 93SA80,93SA80 |
| Citation | 869 P.2d 1234 |
| Parties | The PEOPLE of the State of Colorado, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Michael Paul ZAPOTOCKY, Defendant-Appellee. |
| Court | Colorado Supreme Court |
John W. Suthers, Dist. Atty., Fourth Judicial Dist., Colorado Springs, for plaintiff-appellant.
David F. Vela, State Public Defender, Karen M. Gerash, Deputy State Public Defender, Denver, for defendant-appellee.
This appeal is brought by the People of the State of Colorado from a finding by the trial court that section 16-8-114.5(2), 8A C.R.S. (1993 Supp.), pertaining to the termination of criminal proceedings against an incompetent defendant, is unconstitutional on its face and as applied to the defendant-appellee, Michael Paul Zapotocky. 1 Finding that the trial court incorrectly construed the statute, we hold that the statute is constitutional. We reverse and remand the case with directions.
Zapotocky was charged with second degree murder in El Paso District Court on August 30, 1988. It is alleged that on July 22, 1988, he kicked Rowan Monteith to death in the bathroom of a workshop for the developmentally disabled in Colorado Springs. Zapotocky, who is presently thirty-four years old, is severely developmentally disabled and moderately retarded. His autism and retardation appear to stem from brain trauma suffered at birth. As a consequence, Zapotocky suffers from an organic personality disorder which periodically has resulted in explosive and assaultive behavior throughout his life.
On September 30, 1988, the trial court ordered that Zapotocky be examined to determine his competency. Zapotocky then moved to terminate the criminal proceeding pursuant to section 16-8-114.5(2), 8A C.R.S. (1986). At that time, the statute required the court to terminate the criminal proceeding if there was a substantial probability that the defendant would not be restored to competency within the foreseeable future.
If, on the basis of the available evidence, ... there is a substantial probability that the defendant will not be restored to competency within the foreseeable future, the court shall terminate the criminal proceeding and the commitment or treatment order under section 16-8-112(2) and shall either order the release of the defendant or the commencement of civil proceedings under the provisions of article 10 of title 27, C.R.S.
§ 16-8-114.5(2), 8A C.R.S. (1986).
A competency hearing was held pursuant to section 16-8-111, 8A C.R.S. (1986), on December 15, 1988. At that hearing, the trial court found Zapotocky to be incompetent to proceed, but it did not dismiss the criminal case without additional evidence obtained by evaluations. Instead, the trial court reset the case for a hearing regarding termination of the criminal proceeding and ordered that Zapotocky be released on bond to his family.
On February 2, 1989, the trial court held a hearing on Zapotocky's motion to terminate the criminal proceeding. Although evidence was presented that Zapotocky would not be restored to competency, the trial court did not dismiss the case, concluding that Zapotocky must first be committed to the department of institutions pursuant to section 16-8-112(2), 8A C.R.S. (1986). 2 The trial court then committed Zapotocky to the Mental Health Institute at Pueblo.
Zapotocky again moved to terminate the criminal proceeding on April 5, 1989. At a hearing on April 21, 1989, the trial court heard further evidence that Zapotocky would not be restored to competency. However, the trial court again refused to find that there was a substantial probability that Zapotocky would not be restored to competency in the foreseeable future and did not terminate the criminal proceeding. According to the trial court, Zapotocky's motion was premature because the department of institutions had not exhausted every treatment alternative before concluding that Zapotocky's condition would not improve. 3
On April 27, 1989, the General Assembly amended section 16-8-114.5(2) (the amended statute) to provide that a court could terminate a criminal proceeding against an incompetent defendant only upon motion of the district attorney. Ch. 150, sec. 1, § 16-8-114.5(2), 1989 Colo.Sess.Laws 867, 867. The district attorney refused to move to dismiss the criminal proceeding because he believed that Zapotocky was a threat to public safety and that civil commitment would not adequately protect the public.
A fourth hearing was held on February 19, 1993. At this hearing, the trial court found Zapotocky to be "forever and totally incompetent." The trial court also applied the amended statute to Zapotocky and declared the statute to be unconstitutional in violation of Zapotocky's due process rights and the doctrine of separation of powers. The trial court then dismissed the charges against Zapotocky under the pre-1989 statute and ordered the commencement of civil commitment proceedings under sections 27-10-101 to -129, 11B C.R.S. (1989).
Due process precludes placing a defendant on trial while he is incompetent. Drope v. Missouri, 420 U.S. 162, 172, 95 S.Ct. 896, 904, 43 L.Ed.2d 103 (1975); Coolbroth v. District Court, 766 P.2d 670, 673 (Colo.1988); Jones v. District Court, 617 P.2d 803, 806 (Colo.1980). See also § 16-8-110(1), 8A C.R.S. (1986) (). A person is incompetent to proceed when he "is suffering from a mental disease or defect which renders him incapable of understanding the nature and course of the proceedings against him or of participating or assisting in his defense or cooperating with his defense counsel." § 16-8-102(3), 8A C.R.S. (1986).
In Colorado, when the trial court has reason to believe that a defendant is incompetent to proceed, it must suspend the proceeding and determine the competency of the defendant. § 16-8-110(2)(a), 8A C.R.S. (1986). If the trial court determines that the defendant is competent to proceed, the criminal proceeding continues. § 16-8-112(1). On the other hand, if the trial court finds that the defendant is incompetent to proceed, the proceeding is not resumed. 4 Instead, section 16-8-112(2) provides that the trial court must commit the defendant to the custody of the department of institutions until he is able to stand trial. However, the defendant cannot remain confined for a period in excess of the maximum term which could be imposed for the offense, less minimum good time. § 16-8-114.5(1). Moreover, the trial judge has a duty to review the defendant's case at least every six months to consider the probability that the defendant will be restored eventually to competency and the justification for continued commitment. § 16-8-114.5(2); Parks v. Denver Dist. Court, 180 Colo. 202, 207, 503 P.2d 1029, 1032 (1972).
If the defendant is charged with an offense which does not involve violent behavior, the trial court may order the defendant to undergo outpatient treatment at an appropriate facility. § 16-8-112(2). The trial court also may release the defendant on bail under the criteria set forth in Colorado statutes and the Rules of Criminal Procedure, section 16-8-112(3), even if the defendant is charged with a violent crime. People v. White, 819 P.2d 1096, 1098 (Colo.App.1991).
The question raised in this case concerns what occurs when it becomes apparent the defendant is unlikely in the foreseeable future to regain competency to stand trial. Prior to April 27, 1989, the trial court was required to terminate the criminal proceeding and any commitment or treatment order rendered by the court pursuant to section 16-8-112(2), once it determined that there was a substantial probability that the defendant would not be restored to competency. § 16-8-114.5(2), 8A C.R.S. (1986). The court then was required to order either the release of the defendant or the commencement of civil commitment proceedings. Id. Under the amended statute, however, a trial court can terminate the criminal proceedings only upon motion of the district attorney. § 16-8-114.5(2), 8A C.R.S. (1993 Supp.). It is this limitation which caused the trial court to find the statute to be unconstitutional facially and as applied.
We first address whether the trial court correctly held that the amended statute is an unconstitutional violation of Zapotocky's due process rights. Although the reasons for its decision are unclear, it appears that the trial court believed that the amended statute is unconstitutional because it allows the state both to maintain criminal proceedings against an incompetent defendant and to keep the defendant confined, even though it is unlikely that the defendant will ever be tried. We believe that this conclusion is based on an erroneous interpretation of the statute.
A
A court's primary task in construing a statute is to ascertain and give effect to the intent of the legislature. People v. Schuett, 833 P.2d 44, 47 (Colo.1992); People v. Terry, 791 P.2d 374, 376 (Colo.1990). In order to discern legislative intent, we look first to the language of the statute itself. People v. Davis, 794 P.2d 159, 183 (Colo.1990), cert. denied, 498 U.S. 1018, 111 S.Ct. 662, 112 L.Ed.2d 656 (1991); People v. District Court, 713 P.2d 918, 921 (Colo.1986). When the statutory language is clear and unambiguous, the statute must be interpreted as written without resort to interpretive rules and statutory construction. Jones v. Cox, 828 P.2d 218, 221 (Colo.1992). However, if the intended scope of the statutory language is unclear, a court may apply other rules of statutory construction and look to pertinent legislative history. Terry, 791 P.2d at 376; Griffin v. S.W. Devanney & Co., Inc., 775 P.2d 555, 559 (Colo.1989). A court also may consider the consequences of a particular construction when determining the legislature's intent. Walgreen Co. v. Charnes, 819 P.2d 1039, 1044 (Colo.1991); ...
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