Rieder v. State
| Decision Date | 03 September 2021 |
| Docket Number | Court of Appeals Case No. 21A-CR-390 |
| Citation | 175 N.E.3d 339 (Table) |
| Parties | Kevin RIEDER, Appellant-Defendant, v. STATE of Indiana, Appellee-Plaintiff. |
| Court | Indiana Appellate Court |
Attorney for Appellant: Scott H. Duerring, South Bend, Indiana
Attorneys for Appellee: Theodore E. Rokita, Attorney General of Indiana, Jodi K. Stein, Supervising Deputy Attorney General, Indianapolis, Indiana
[1] Following a jury trial in the St. Joseph Superior Court, Kevin Rieder was found guilty but mentally ill on four counts of felony intimidation. On appeal, Rieder argues that his convictions are not supported by sufficient evidence.
[2] We affirm.
[3] In 2007, Rieder was convicted of possession of ammunition while under court order—a conviction that Rieder maintains was both unlawful and initiated a "conspiracy" that he has been "fighting" ever since. Tr. Vol. II, pp. 92, 177. That same year, mental health professionals evaluated Rieder and found that he "suffered from delusions and has persecutory tendencies." Tr. Vol. III, p. 96.
[4] Over the next decade, Rieder's delusions manifested into the following beliefs: he discovered a hidden language called "krail"—regularly used by "the media" and "government officials"—that can explain "what's going on when it comes to mass shootings, bombings, and natural disasters"; his discovery of "krail" is the "greatest ... in the history of the United States" and "is changing the world"; he teaches "krail" all over the world; he has "divine intervention," which is "highly documented by the federal government"; he has been placed on "a black list" by the government and has been "losing a million dollars a day just on Twitter because of the authority"; he is, despite no legal training, "an undefeated trial attorney" who has "never lost in four different decades, two different centuries, triple digits, civil and criminal court"; and he is a "self-made billionaire." Tr. Vol. II, pp, 39, 44, 83, 90, 94–95, 101, 105, 156, 170, 175; Tr. Vol. III, pp. 14, 17, 105, 146, 157.
[5] Beginning in 2016, Rieder's conspiratorial beliefs began to shift toward four St. Joseph County Judges who took a series of adverse actions against him. In July, Magistrate Andre Gammage issued a protective order against Rieder in favor of a news station employee. The following week, Judge Steven Hostetler issued a workplace violence restraining order against Rieder on behalf of the employee's news station. In October, when the State filed criminal charges alleging that Rieder violated the July workplace restraining order, the case was assigned to Magistrate Elizabeth Hardtke. She presided over several of Rieder's hearings in that case, and she also issued a no-contact order against Rieder in favor of the employee. Finally, in February 2017, Magistrate William Wilson issued a workplace violence restraining order against Rieder on behalf of a different news station's employee.
[6] As these events unfolded in the courts, Mitchell Kajzer, the Director of the Cybercrimes Unit for the St. Joseph County Prosecutor's Office, investigated Rieder's text messages. Director Kajzer confirmed Rieder's phone number and reviewed messages sent from that number to the two news stations referred to above. Then, in December 2016, Rieder contacted Director Kajzer personally, first by leaving "a voicemail" and then by sending "several hundred text messages." Tr. Vol. III, p. 92. In those messages, Rieder discussed the "conspiracies against him" and referred to himself as "Judgment Day God" and the "Holy Ghost." Id. Rieder also sent "several messages" disparaging county "judges and magistrates." Id. at 92–93.
[7] In May 2017, Magistrate Hardtke—who was presiding over Rieder's pending criminal case—arranged for Doctors Evert Vanderstoep and Linda Monroe to evaluate Rieder's mental health. Both doctors concluded that Rieder suffers from a "delusional disorder." Tr. Vol. II, pp. 105, 112. According to Dr. Vanderstoep, "[p]eople with delusional disorders have the ability to maintain a life independent of their delusion," even though the "disorder is notoriously difficult to treat." Id. at 105–06. Dr. Vanderstoep recommended Rieder be placed for "a period of time" in a psychiatric hospital and "perhaps forced treatment." Id. at 106. But he also cautioned that people with Rieder's diagnosis "tend not to respond to antipsychotic medication." Id. Rieder did not receive treatment, and his delusions continued to manifest.
[8] In July, Rieder left an "[e]xtremely" rude voicemail on Magistrate Hardtke's office phone that included racially derogatory remarks directed at Magistrate Gammage. Tr. Vol. III, p. 51. Rieder was becoming increasingly "frustrated" with the four previously mentioned St. Joseph County Judges. Id. at 108–09. Believing that he "was a victim" of "crimes" committed by "St. Joe County court officials," Tr. Vol. II, pp. 157–58, Rieder wanted to air his concerns "through the proper channels," id. at 171. Though he "had to call congressmen, senators, [and] governors," Rieder eventually found the Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission (the "Commission"). Tr. Vol. III, pp. 102–03.
[9] And so, on September 26, Rieder called the Commission late at night and left the following voicemail:
Ah Yes. I called Earlier Today.[1 ] My name is Kevin Rieder. Umm ... My address is [ ]. Umm ... Believe it or not I sort of changed my mind. Umm ... By the end of next week I want to see every Indiana Supreme Court Judge on my front steps. We'll go have lunch down at Simaris. And we're going to talk about this face to face. If not. Think I'll ... Well, they call me Judgement Day God. I'm going to live their lives and I'm going to decide whether they go to heaven or hell. Which this is a true story. I know it sounds crazy. But here we are. Umm ... Again, I want to see everyone. They have until the end of next week. Ok? If not, they're going to pay the people's prices that have been attacking me in the Organized Crime System in St. Joseph County. The Judges. Gammage, Hostetler, Wilson, Hardtke, McLaughlin, Fryska, Cotter, and we'll go from there. If not, we'll make them national news. Ok? Enough is enough. I've lost ... I have about five billion in the last year. True story. And ... enough of this madness. It's over. I'm dropping the hammer down. All these NFL things are about me. 78 Steelers. That's a G. that's a H. If you add them that's an O. And if you look up over his head that's a RI. Which is me. The Ghost. Holy Ghost. I'm Judgement Day God. Ok? I'm Gabriel. And I'm Mad as Hell. Ok? And I expect nothing but results. If not, feel my wrath on Judgement Day and Therefor after. Thank you, I appreciate your time, I'm rooting for you, I hope, I hope for the best. Thanks.
[10] The next day, the Indiana Supreme Court's Chief Administrative Officer forwarded the voicemail to Judge Hostetler, who considered Rieder's comments "threatening" and "something that needed to be taken seriously." Tr. Vol. III, p. 64; see also id. at 66–68. Judge Hostetler then alerted the other three named St. Joseph County Judges. Upon listening to the voicemail, Magistrate Gammage "was concerned for [his] safety" and the "safety of [his] family." Id. at 85. He spoke with law enforcement and arranged for "additional patrols in the neighborhood." Id. When Magistrate Hardtke "first heard it," she too "was extremely concerned." Id. at 47. And she also took several steps to protect herself and her family. Id. at 48.
[11] Based on the alleged threatening nature of the voicemail, the State charged Rieder with four counts of Level 5 felony intimidation. Count I alleged that Rieder communicated a threat to Magistrate Gammage with the intent that he "be placed in fear of retaliation for ... issuing a protective order in favor of [a news station employee] and against [Rieder]." Conf. App. p. 58. Count II alleged that Rieder communicated a threat to Magistrate Hardtke with the intent that she "be placed in fear of retaliation for ... presiding over [Rieder's] court hearings." Id. Count III alleged that Rieder communicated a threat to Magistrate Wilson with the intent that he "be placed in fear of retaliation for ... issuing a Workplace Violence Restraining Order in favor of [a different news station employee] and against [Rieder]." Id. at 59. And Count IV alleged that Rieder communicated a threat to Judge Hostetler with the intent that he "be placed in fear of retaliation for ... issuing a Workplace Violence Restraining Order in favor of [a news station] and against [Rieder]." Id.
[12] The next three-plus years included a litany of hearings, all held before Judge Jeffrey Sanford,3 during which Rieder regularly equivocated on legal representation, consistently attacked decisions by his appointed counsel, and repeatedly proclaimed the same delusional and conspiratorial beliefs identified above. See Tr. Vol. II, pp. 27, 29, 33–34, 40–44, 49, 54, 65, 78, 90–92, 94–95, 98–99, 101–02, 144, 151, 154, 156–58, 163–80, 195, 198. During this time, the trial court twice evaluated Rieder's competency to stand trial.
[13] In January 2019, Doctors Warren Sibilla and Jeff Burnett concluded that Rieder suffered from Delusional Disorder, but they were split on whether he was competent to stand trial. So, the court held a competency hearing in May. At the hearing, the four doctors who had thus far evaluated Rieder's mental health testified. Though each doctor concluded that Rieder was delusional, they diverged on his competency to stand trial. Ultimately, the trial court was "sympathetic to [Rieder's counsel's] very difficult position," but concluded that Rieder was competent to stand trial. Conf. App. p. 63. The court accordingly set an October trial date.
[14] On the first day of trial, as the parties discussed preliminary matters before empaneling the jury, Rieder informed the court that ...
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