State v. Gonzalez

• Decision Date: 21 July 2006
• Docket Number: No. 05-1197.,05-1197.
• Citation: 718 N.W.2d 304
• Parties: STATE of Iowa, Appellant, v. Gaspar Fidel GONZALEZ, Jr., Appellee.
• Court: Iowa Supreme Court

Page 304

718 N.W.2d 304

STATE of Iowa, Appellant, v. Gaspar Fidel GONZALEZ, Jr., Appellee.

No. 05-1197.

Supreme Court of Iowa.

July 21, 2006.

Thomas J. Miller, Attorney General, Martha E. Boesen, Assistant Attorney

General, J. Patrick White, County Attorney, and Anne M. Lahey, Assistant County Attorney, for appellant.

David E. Brown of Hayek, Hayek, Brown, Moreland & Hayek, L.L.P., Iowa City, for appellee.

WIGGINS, Justice.

In this appeal, we must determine whether the district court correctly granted the defendant's motion to dismiss the trial information charging the defendant with sexual exploitation by a counselor or therapist. In its ruling, the district court found the defendant's conduct while working as a psychiatric nursing assistant did not fall within the scope of Iowa Code section 709.15 (Supp.2003). Because we find the facts alleged by the State in the trial information and attached minutes charge that the defendant was a counselor or therapist for purposes of section 709.15 and the defendant's constitutional claims fail, we reverse the district court's granting of the motion to dismiss and remand the case for further proceedings.

I. Background Facts and Proceedings.

The State charged Gaspar Fidel Gonzalez, Jr. with sexual exploitation by a counselor or therapist in violation of Iowa Code sections 709.15(1)(a), (b), (f)(3) and 709.15(4).¹ The charge was filed in connection with Gonzalez's alleged touching of a female patient's genital area in his role as a nursing assistant in the psychiatric unit of the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. Gonzalez entered a plea of not guilty.

According to the minutes of testimony, a psychiatric nursing assistant, "[w]ith supervision from a Registered Nurse, performs specific nursing tasks to assist members of the nursing team in providing care and monitoring of psychiatric patients." The characteristic duties and responsibilities of a psychiatric nursing assistant include establishing therapeutic relationships, participating in planning patient care appropriate for the patient's condition and age, documenting patient behavior and identifying material to report to the registered nurse, providing supervision of patients during activities, providing for a therapeutic environment, and participating in educational offerings. The minutes further state Gonzalez had regular contact with the female patient while she was in the unit. Gonzalez characterized their relationship as "a working relationship."

Gonzalez filed a motion to dismiss the trial information asserting his conduct did not fall within the intended scope of Iowa Code section 709.15 and the statute is unconstitutionally vague and overbroad as applied to him. The district court held an evidentiary hearing on the motion. The court sustained the motion and dismissed the trial information, finding Gonzalez was not within the purview of the statute because he did not directly provide treatment, assessment, or counseling to patients.

The State appeals.

II. Issues.

The issues presented in this case are: (1) whether the district court erred in finding Gonzalez's conduct while working as a psychiatric nursing assistant did not fall within the scope of Iowa Code section 709.15; and (2) whether Iowa Code section 709.15 is unconstitutionally vague and overbroad as applied to Gonzalez.

III. Scope of Review.

Our review of a district court's granting of a motion to dismiss a charge in a trial information is for the correction of errors at law. State v. Johnson, 528 N.W.2d 638, 640 (Iowa 1995). In addition, we review questions of statutory interpretation for the correction of errors at law. Id. We accept the facts alleged by the State in the trial information and attached minutes as true. Id. "We will reverse the trial court's dismissal of the charge at issue if the facts the State has alleged charge a crime as a matter of law." Id.

Our review of a constitutional challenge to Iowa Code section 709.15 is de novo. State v. Seering, 701 N.W.2d 655, 660-61 (Iowa 2005). In conducting our review, "`we must remember that statutes are cloaked with a presumption of constitutionality. The challenger bears a heavy burden, because it must prove the unconstitutionality beyond a reasonable doubt.'" Id. at 661 (citations omitted). The challenger is required to refute all reasonable bases upon which the statute could be declared constitutional. Id. If the statute may be construed in more than one way, one of which is constitutional, we will adopt such a construction. Id.

IV. Analysis.

A. Did the district court err in finding Gonzalez's conduct while working as a psychiatric nursing assistant did not fall within the scope of Iowa Code section 709.15?

The State claims the district court erred in finding Gonzalez's duties as a psychiatric nursing assistant did not bring him within the scope of Iowa Code section 709.15. A counselor or therapist who commits sexual exploitation in violation of Iowa Code section 709.15(2)(c) commits a serious misdemeanor. Iowa Code § 709.15(4)(c). Section 709.15(2)(c) provides such a violation occurs when there is "[a]ny sexual conduct with a patient or client . . . for the purpose of arousing or satisfying the sexual desires of the counselor or therapist or the patient or client." The Code defines "patient or client" as "a person who receives mental health services from the counselor or therapist." Id. § 709.15(1)(e). A "counselor or therapist" is defined by the Code as

a physician, psychologist, nurse, professional counselor, social worker, marriage or family therapist, alcohol or drug counselor, member of the clergy, or any other person, whether or not licensed or registered by the state, who provides or purports to provide mental health services.

Id. § 709.15(1)(a) (emphasis added). "`Mental health service' means the treatment, assessment, or counseling of another person for a cognitive, behavioral, emotional, mental, or social dysfunction, including an intrapersonal or interpersonal dysfunction." Id. § 709.15(1)(d). The crime does not include touching as part of a necessary examination or treatment provided in the scope of the counselor's or therapist's practice or employment. Id. § 709.15(2).

Gonzalez claims "the duties of a psychiatric nursing assistant do not fall within the meaning of `mental health service' provided by a `counselor or therapist' " as those terms are defined under Iowa Code section 709.15(1). To resolve Gonzalez's claim, we must interpret this section. When confronted with the task of statutory interpretation, this court has stated:

The goal of statutory construction is to determine legislative intent. We determine legislative intent from the words chosen by the legislature, not what it should or might have said. Absent a statutory definition or an established meaning in the law, words in the statute are given their ordinary and common meaning by considering the context within which they are used. Under the guise of construction, an interpreting body may not extend, enlarge or otherwise change the meaning of a statute.

Auen v. Alcoholic Beverages Div., 679 N.W.2d 586, 590 (Iowa 2004) (citations omitted).

The interpretation of a statute requires an assessment of the statute in its entirety, not just isolated words or phrases. State v. Young, 686 N.W.2d 182, 184-85 (Iowa 2004). Indeed, "we avoid interpreting a statute in such a way that portions of it become redundant or irrelevant." T & K Roofing Co. v. Iowa Dep't of Educ., 593 N.W.2d 159, 162 (Iowa 1999). We look for a reasonable interpretation that best achieves the statute's purpose and avoids absurd results. Harden v. State, 434 N.W.2d 881, 884 (Iowa 1989). We strictly construe criminal statutes with doubts resolved in the accused's favor. State v. Schultz, 604 N.W.2d 60, 62 (Iowa 1999).

Iowa Code section 709.15 clearly states any person providing or purporting to provide mental health services is considered a "counselor or therapist." Iowa Code § 709.15(1)(a). It is thus necessary to determine if the trial information and attached minutes allege facts demonstrating Gonzalez was providing mental health services as a psychiatric nursing assistant. "`Mental health service'" consists of treatment, assessment, or counseling for certain dysfunctions. Id. § 709.15(1)(d). We have already determined the term "does not encompass strictly personal relationships involving the informal exchange of advice." State v. Allen, 565 N.W.2d 333, 337 (Iowa 1997).

We may consult a dictionary in order to determine the ordinary meanings of words used by the legislature. State v. Evans, 671 N.W.2d 720, 724 (Iowa 2003). The dictionary defines "treatment" as "the action or manner of treating a patient medically or surgically"; "treat" means "to care for (as a patient or part of the body) medically or surgically," "deal with by medical or surgical means," and "give a medical treatment to." Webster's Third New Int'l Dictionary 2434-35 (2002). The term "assessment" means "an appraisal or evaluation (as of merit)." Id. at 131. The term "counseling" means

a practice or professional service designed to guide an individual to a better understanding of his problems and potentialities by utilizing modern psychological principles and methods esp. in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes.

Id. at 518.

Accepting the facts alleged by the State in the trial information and attached minutes as true, Gonzalez's role as a psychiatric nursing assistant is embraced by the legislature's use of these terms. Gonzalez provided "treatment" to the patients because he performed nursing tasks to assist in providing care of psychiatric patients, such as establishing therapeutic relationships, providing for a therapeutic environment, and participating in planning patient care. He provided "assessment" of the patients because he performed nursing tasks to assist in...