State v. Elson
Decision Date | 03 June 2014 |
Docket Number | SC 18737 |
Court | Connecticut Supreme Court |
Parties | STATE OF CONNECTICUT v. ZACHARY JAY ELSON |
The "officially released" date that appears near the beginning of each opinion is the date the opinion will be published in the Connecticut Law Journal or the date it was released as a slip opinion. The operative date for the beginning of all time periods for filing postopinion motions and petitions for certification is the "officially released" date appearing in the opinion. In no event will any such motions be accepted before the "officially released" date.
All opinions are subject to modification and technical correction prior to official publication in the Connecticut Reports and Connecticut Appellate Reports. In the event of discrepancies between the electronic version of an opinion and the print version appearing in the Connecticut Law Journal and subsequently in the Connecticut Reports or Connecticut Appellate Reports, the latest print version is to be considered authoritative.
The syllabus and procedural history accompanying the opinion as it appears on the Commission on Official Legal Publications Electronic Bulletin Board Service and in the Connecticut Law Journal and bound volumes of official reports are copyrighted by the Secretary of the State, State of Connecticut, and may not be reproduced and distributed without the express written permission of the Commission on Official Legal Publications, Judicial Branch, State of Connecticut.Rogers, C. J., and Norcott, Palmer, Zarella, Eveleigh, McDonald and
Espinosa, Js.*
Hubert J. Santos, with whom, on the brief, were Hope C. Seeley, Benjamin B. Adams and Jessica M. Santos, for the appellant (defendant).
Timothy J. Sugrue, assistant state's attorney, with whom, on the brief, were Stephen J. Sedensky III, state's attorney, and Warren C. Murray, supervisory assistant state's attorney, for the appellee (state).
This certified appeal raises several significant issues concerning the review of unpreserved claims under both State v. Golding, 213 Conn. 233, 239-40, 567 A.2d 823 (1989), and our supervisory authority over the administration of justice, in connection with the well established constitutional principle that "the [a]ugmentation of sentence based on a defendant's decision to stand on [his or her] right to put the [g]overnment to its proof rather than plead guilty is clearly improper." (Internal quotation marks omitted.) State v. Kelly, 256 Conn. 23, 81, 770 A.2d 908 (2001). The defendant, Zachary Jay Elson, appeals, upon our grant of his petition for certification,1 from the judgment of the Appellate Court affirming the judgment of the trial court, rendered after a jury trial, convicting him of assault in the first degree in violation of General Statutes § 53a-59 (a) (1), unlawful restraint in the first degree in violation of General Statutes § 53a-95 (a), and committing an offense while on pretrial release in violation of General Statutes § 53a-40b (1).2 State v. Elson, 125 Conn. App. 328, 331, 9 A.3d 731 (2010) (en banc). The defendant claims, inter alia, that: (1) the Appellate Court improperly declined to review, under Golding, his unpreserved claim that the trial court improperly penalized him for exercising his right to a jury trial, as indicated by the court's comments at sentencing; and (2) given the adverse effect of such comments on the public perception of our criminal justice system, this court should exercise its supervisory authority to vacate his sentence and remand the case for resentencing. Because we overrule the requirement, articulated in, inter alia, State v. Ramos, 261 Conn. 156, 171, 801 A.2d 788 (2002), that a party must "affirmatively request" Golding review in its main brief in order to receive appellate review of unpreserved constitutional claims, we conclude that the Appellate Court improperly declined to review the defendant's constitutional claims on that ground. We then reach the merits of the defendant's constitutional claims and conclude that under State v. Kelly, supra, 81-82, the defendant has not established that the trial court penalized him for exercising his right to a jury trial. Finally, however, we agree with the defendant that the use of our supervisory authority is warranted in order to prevent the adverse implications on the public's perception of the procedural fairness of the criminal justice system that arise when a trial judge refers to, and could appear to have considered, a defendant's decision to exercise his right to a trial. Accordingly, we reverse in part the judgment of the Appellate Court.
The record and the Appellate Court opinion set forth the following relevant facts and procedural history. On September 3, 2004, the defendant, who was intoxicated, entered a classroom at Western Connecticut State Uni-versity and made a romantic overture toward the victim, who was a student working alone on an art project. State v. Elson, supra, 125 Conn. App. 331-33. After the victim rebuffed him, the defendant left the classroom, only to return shortly thereafter, threaten her with a knife and then physically assault her, causing numerous physical injuries to her fingers, right hand, arm and face, some of which required surgical treatment.3 Id., 332-34.
The state subsequently charged the defendant with assault in the first degree in violation of § 53a-59 (a) (1), attempt to commit assault in the first degree in violation of General Statutes §§ 53a-49 and 53a-59 (a) (1), unlawful restraint in the first degree in violation of § 53a-95 (a), and committing an offense while on pretrial release in violation of § 53a-40b (1). After trial, the jury returned a verdict of guilty on the charges of assault in the first degree and unlawful restraint in the first degree.4 After the jury returned its verdict, the defendant entered a plea of guilty on the charge of committing an offense while on pretrial release. The trial court subsequently rendered judgment in accordance with the jury's verdict and the defendant's plea.
Thereafter, the trial court conducted a sentencing proceeding, which forms the basis for the claims in this certified appeal. "At the commencement of the proceeding, the prosecutor addressed the court, ultimately recommending a total effective sentence of thirty-five years incarceration, suspended after twentyfive years, followed by five years probation with special conditions. Thereafter, the victim read an impact statement she had written.5 The defendant's attorney addressed the court, suggesting that the court consider factors that supported a lenient sentence. The court listened to statements made by a family friend of the defendant as well as the defendant's father. The defendant exercised his right of allocution, expressing remorse for the criminal conduct underlying his convictions. He stated in relevant part:
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