State Of Iowa v. Cashen

• Decision Date: 05 August 2010
• Docket Number: No. 07-2109.,07-2109.
• Citation: 789 N.W.2d 400
• Parties: STATE of Iowa, Appellant, v. Ross Ian CASHEN, Appellee.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

789 N.W.2d 400

STATE of Iowa, Appellant,

v.Ross Ian CASHEN, Appellee.

No. 07-2109.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

July 2, 2010.

Rehearing Denied Aug. 5, 2010.

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Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Jean C. Pettinger and Mary Tabor (until withdrawal), Assistant Attorneys General, Jennifer A. Miller, County Attorney, and Suzanne M. Lampkin, Assistant County Attorney, for appellant.

Jennifer L. Steffens of Steffens & Grife, P.C., Marshalltown, Kelly T. Bennett, Newton, and Christopher A. Clausen of Boliver, Clausen & Bidwell Law Firm, Marshalltown, for appellee.

WIGGINS, Justice.

In this appeal, we review a district court order and court of appeals decision allowing a criminal defendant to gain access to a victim's privileged mental health records. The district court and the court of appeals allowed the defendant access without restriction. We now adopt a protocol that balances a patient's right to privacy in his or her mental health records against a defendant's right to present evidence to a jury that might influence the jury's determination of guilt. Accordingly, we vacate the decision of the court of appeals, affirm in part and reverse in part the judgment of the district court, and remand the case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

I. Background Facts and Proceedings.

This case involves a domestic dispute between Ross Cashen and Jane Doe. ¹ As a result of the dispute, on April 18, 2007, the State charged Cashen with the offenses of domestic abuse assault, third offense, and willful injury, class “D” felonies.

On July 3 Cashen filed a notice that he intended to rely on the defense of self-defense. On July 25 Cashen asked the court to enter an order authorizing him to hire an expert to review and aid in the interpretation of Doe's mental health records as well as to present expert testimony to the jury regarding Doe's credibility and propensity for violence. The district court denied the motion, finding it was premature because the court had not made a determination as to whether the records would be admissible at trial.

Cashen then proceeded to depose Doe. In her deposition, Doe acknowledged she had been involved in past abusive relationships with other men. She also testified she had been diagnosed with posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and had been in counseling and therapy since she was fifteen years old. She indicated she had displayed impulsive and reactive behavior in the past and became easily frustrated when she was in her relationship with Cashen. Doe also said she was taking a prescription antidepressant. She said she was taking the medication because she was nervous about the safety and welfare of her boyfriend, who was serving in the armed services. She also believed Cashen was a very violent man, and she worried about retribution from him.

Cashen also employed a private investigator who acquired some of Doe's mental health records from a medical office and a hospital. After the State learned Cashen had acquired these records, it filed a motion in limine to exclude the records, as well as other matters, from trial. The State also sought to preclude admission of Doe's prior mental health history revealed in her deposition.

The district court denied the motion in limine. It found the mental health history of Doe, specifically her propensities for violence and explosive behavior, was relevant to Cashen's defense of self-defense. It also determined the records could be relevant to Doe's credibility as a witness to accurately observe and recall the events leading to the charges and may be helpful to impeach her at trial. The court continued the trial to allow Cashen the opportunity to secure an expert to review the records and testify, if necessary, on the issues of Doe's propensity for violence and her credibility.

On November 29 Cashen filed two separate motions, the first to reconvene Doe's deposition and the second to obtain Doe's mental health records. On December 11 the court ordered Doe to execute a patient waiver form in favor of Cashen's counsel and, upon receipt of the records, permit Cashen's counsel to reconvene the deposition of Doe to explore those areas connected to the records.

The State responded by filing an application for discretionary review. We granted the application and transferred the case to the court of appeals. The only issue argued on appeal was whether the district court erred in allowing the disclosure of Doe's mental health records.

The court of appeals affirmed the district court's order in part and reversed in part. It found Cashen had demonstrated a compelling need for the mental health records and affirmed the decision of the district court ordering disclosure of the records and admission of expert testimony on the issues of Doe's propensity for violence and her credibility. It additionally found the district court had no authority to order the State to secure and produce the patient waiver of a witness, but failed to further address the procedure for the production of the records. We granted further review.

II. Standard of Review.

Ordinarily, we review discovery orders for an abuse of discretion. State v. Schuler, 774 N.W.2d 294, 297 (Iowa 2009). However, to the extent the issues in this case involve constitutional claims, our review is de novo. State v. Reyes, 744 N.W.2d 95, 99 (Iowa 2008). Because the issues in this case rest on constitutional claims involving Cashen's due process right to present a defense, our review is de novo. See Pennsylvania v. Ritchie, 480 U.S. 39, 56, 107 S.Ct. 989, 1001, 94 L.Ed.2d 40, 57 (1987) (holding a due process analysis applies in determining whether to disclose a child protective service agency's privileged records for purposes of a defendant presenting a defense).

III. Analysis.

A. The State's Claims. In State v. Heemstra, 721 N.W.2d 549, 563 (Iowa 2006), we allowed a defendant to obtain the medical records of a homicide victim to assist the defendant in presenting his defense. There, the defendant was facing a first-degree murder charge that carried a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Heemstra, 721 N.W.2d at 551, 563. In this appeal, the State argues this case is distinguishable from our decision in Heemstra because it “does not present any ‘unique facts' warranting abrogation of the psychotherapist privilege and intrusion into the victim's mental health records.” The only real difference between this case and Heemstra is the severity of the penalty. If convicted, Cashen can be deprived of his liberty and potentially sentenced to ten years in prison. See Iowa Code § 902.9(5) (2005) (stating a defendant's conviction for a class “D” felony subjects the defendant to possible confinement for no more than five years). Regardless of the charge or the penalty, all defendants have a right to a fair trial. See generally Gentile v. State Bar of Nev., 501 U.S. 1030, 1075, 111 S.Ct. 2720, 2745, 115 L.Ed.2d 888, 923 (1991) (Rehnquist, C.J., dissenting in part) (“Few, if any, interests under the Constitution are more fundamental than the right to a fair trial.”). Thus, there is no reason to apply the law regarding the disclosure of privileged records differently based on the severity of a defendant's sentence.

The State's fallback position is that if the records are made available to the defendant's attorney, the records should only be disclosed on a limited basis. We agree that if privileged records are to be made available in a criminal proceeding, a certain protocol must be followed to balance the patient's right to privacy with the defendant's right to present evidence to a jury that might influence the jury's determination of guilt. Today, we set forth the proper protocol to be used by a court to determine when and how a defendant's attorney can gain access to a victim's privileged mental health records.

B. Prior Case Law. We have previously applied a balancing test to determine if a party to a proceeding is entitled to review the confidential medical records of a nonparty. Chidester v. Needles, 353 N.W.2d 849, 853 (Iowa 1984). The first decision to adopt and apply this test was Chidester. Id. In Chidester, the county attorney sought thirteen patients' medical records in connection with his investigation into Medicaid fraud. Id. at 851. The first issue we considered was the nature of the patients' right in keeping the records private.

Id. at 851-53. We rejected the patients' claim that Iowa Code section 622.10, the statutory physician-patient privilege, protected the records from the county attorney's subpoena because section 622.10 only protects the giving of testimony. Id. at 852-53. Instead, we determined the patients' constitutional right to privacy protected the patients' interests in avoiding disclosure of personal matters and maintaining independence when making certain kinds of important decisions. Id. at 853.

Although we recognized the patients had a constitutional right to privacy in their medical records, we acknowledged this privilege was not absolute, but qualified. Id. Thus, we adopted a balancing test and stated, “The privacy interest must always be weighed against such public interests as the societal need for information, and a compelling need for information may override the privacy interest.” Id. In weighing the interests, we said, “[S]ociety has a strong interest in allowing official investigators of criminal activity broad authority to conduct thorough investigations.” Id. We also declared, “[T]he privacy interest must be balanced against society's interest in securing information vital to the fair and effective administration of criminal justice.” Id. (emphasis added). We then concluded the patients' privacy interest in their records yielded to “the State's interest in well-founded criminal charges and the fair administration of criminal justice” and allowed the county attorney...