State v. Ira

• Decision Date: 24 January 2002
• Docket Number: No. 21,375.,21,375.
• Citation: 132 N.M. 8,43 P.3d 359,2002 NMCA 37
• Court: Court of Appeals of New Mexico
• Parties: STATE of New Mexico, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Joel IRA, Defendant-Appellant.

43 P.3d 359

132 N.M. 8

2002 NMCA 37

STATE of New Mexico, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Joel IRA, Defendant-Appellant.

No. 21,375.

Court of Appeals of New Mexico.

January 24, 2002.

Certiorari Denied April 4, 2002.

Patricia A. Madrid, Attorney General, James O. Bell, Assistant Attorney General, Santa Fe, NM, for Appellee.

Gary C. Mitchell, Gary C. Mitchell, P.C., Ruidoso, NM, for Appellant.

Certiorari Denied, No. 27,355, April 4, 2002.

OPINION

PICKARD, Judge.

{1} In this case, we are called upon to determine whether a 91½-year adult sentence imposed against the juvenile Defendant for brutally and repeatedly sexually abusing his younger stepsister over a two-year period is cruel and unusual punishment. Defendant also argues that the district court abused its discretion in refusing to allow him to withdraw his guilty plea. We hold that the sentence is constitutional and that the trial court did not err in refusing to allow the plea withdrawal. We therefore affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

{2} This appeal arises from a series of sexual assaults and other violent attacks committed by Defendant, when he was fourteen and fifteen years old, mostly upon his stepsister, who is nearly six years younger than he is. The State charged Defendant with ten counts of first-degree criminal sexual penetration, one count of aggravated battery against a household member, one count of aggravated battery, one count of battery against a household member, and one count of intimidation of a witness. The State also filed notice of its intent to invoke adult sanctions.

{3} Under New Mexico's Children's Code, once the notice of intent to invoke adult sanctions is filed and the child is adjudged a youthful offender, the district court is given the discretion to impose either an adult sentence or juvenile disposition on the child. See NMSA 1978, § 32A-2-20(A) (1995). Prior to July 1, 1996, the definition of a youthful offender included a child, fifteen to eighteen years of age at the time of the offense, who is adjudicated for committing at least one of a number of enumerated offenses, including aggravated battery and criminal sexual penetration. NMSA 1978, § 32A-2-3(I)(1) (1995). Effective July 1, 1996, the age range for youthful offender status was changed to cover juveniles fourteen to eighteen years of age at the time of the offense. NMSA 1978, § 32A-2-3(I)(1) (1996). If the court chooses to impose a juvenile disposition on an adjudicated youthful offender, the court may enter a judgment for the supervision, care, and rehabilitation of the child that may include an extended commitment until the child reaches the age of twenty-one. See NMSA 1978, § 32A-2-20(E) (1996); see also NMSA 1978, §§ 32A-2-19 (1996) & -23 (1995). To impose an adult sentence on an adjudicated youthful offender, the court must find that "(1) the child is not amenable to treatment or rehabilitation as a child in available facilities; and (2) the child is not eligible for commitment to an institution for the developmentally disabled or mentally disordered." Section 32A-2-20(B). In making such findings the court is required to consider several factors, focusing on the seriousness of the offense and the likelihood of a reasonable rehabilitation of the child that would provide adequate protection of the public. Section 32A-2-20(C)(1)-(8).

{4} Following a plea hearing at which Defendant was advised that he could be sentenced as an adult on all charges for a maximum sentencing exposure of 185 years, Defendant entered into a plea and disposition agreement in which he agreed to plead no contest to all charges except for one count of battery against a household member (his father), which the State agreed to dismiss. Under the plea agreement, the district court retained sentencing discretion, with the understanding that Defendant would argue for a juvenile disposition and the State would argue for adult sanctions.

{5} The district court held an extensive sentencing hearing to determine whether to sentence Defendant as a child or an adult. The court began by hearing about the nature and seriousness of Defendant's offenses through the testimony of Defendant's stepsister (the Victim). The Victim testified that Defendant came to live with her family during 1995, when she was eight years old and Defendant was fourteen years old. The Victim testified that Defendant was nice to her at first, but he soon began to sexually abuse her.

{6} The Victim recounted numerous instances of vaginal, oral, and anal sex that took place about every other day over the course of about two years. She also recalled times when Defendant forced her to swallow his urine and semen. The Victim described how Defendant's acts would sometimes cause her so much pain that she would stick her head into a pillow to scream, she would almost vomit at times, and she would bleed from her rectum. Defendant also had a method of signaling the Victim that another rape was about to occur; he would tap his fingers on the arm of his chair. In addition to the sexual abuse, Defendant physically abused the Victim on several occasions and frequently threatened to kill her if she ever told anyone about his actions. He once choked her to unconsciousness. The Victim also talked about Defendant's violent mistreatment of her dog and other creatures, and described how he liked to play with fire.

{7} The Victim also testified about the mental and emotional toll that she suffered from the abuse. In particular, she indicated that her grades began to drop, she was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder, and, after Defendant was finally arrested, she began to have nightmares about Defendant looking for her all over the world to kill her. In one nightmare, she stabs Defendant in the back when he finds her, and in another nightmare, Defendant finds her and stabs her to death.

{8} In an effort to assess Defendant's amenability to treatment and the threat that he posed to society, the court also received testimony from a number of mental health and juvenile justice professionals. Defendant's juvenile probation officer recounted Defendant's extensive history of prior delinquency referrals for other offenses, and he described the extent to which Defendant did or did not comply with prior rehabilitation efforts. The juvenile probation officer further noted that Defendant lacked remorse, feeling that he did not do anything wrong in this case. In light of the seriousness of Defendant's current offenses, the juvenile probation officer did not believe that Defendant was amenable to treatment in the juvenile justice system and strongly urged the court to impose an adult sentence, remarking that Defendant's case was the first time he had ever recommended adult sanctions for a juvenile offender.

{9} The court also heard testimony from the Director of Psychological Services at the New Mexico Boys' School. He opined that Defendant had a very low chance of rehabilitation and did not believe he would benefit from the treatment services offered at the Boys' School. Although the Boys' School does have a sex offender treatment program, Defendant is not the type of client the program treats because of his tendency toward combining sex with other violent, antisocial conduct. Because Defendant was abused to some degree as a young child, had a history of hurting animals, had a fascination with fire, and exhibited violent sexual behavior, the director suggested that Defendant fit the profile of a serial offender and was of the opinion that New Mexico has no facilities to treat Defendant.

{10} The testimony received by the court from three other mental health experts who evaluated Defendant was remarkably consistent. One psychotherapist described Defendant as a pedophile who could not be successfully rehabilitated and would need a long-term institution. The other psychotherapist and clinical psychologist both diagnosed Defendant as having a severe conduct disorder, with tendencies towards violent sexual behavior and domination, that would require intensive, secured, long-term treatment. Perhaps most disturbing was their conclusion that Defendant is in effect a child without a conscience who lacks empathy or the ability to be concerned for others. All three experts noted that Defendant failed to show any remorse and refused to take responsibility for his actions. They also uniformly agreed that Defendant could not be treated successfully at the New Mexico Boys' School, and, that if sent there, he would surely re-offend upon release. To the extent that the experts believed Defendant might benefit from a long-term, intensive treatment program, the limited number of potentially available treatment programs were discussed and were generally deemed inadequate. However, even assuming that an adequate treatment program could be found, none of the experts could predict how long such treatment would take, nor could they give the court any degree of assurance that rehabilitation efforts would be successful.

{11} After considering the evidence presented at the sentencing hearing, the court issued a thoughtful and detailed explanation of its sentencing decision. Portions of that decision, which so clearly set forth the circumstances of this case and the dilemma faced by the court, are set forth below:

In a day of extraordinary testimony by some of the most experienced and qualified experts in the field of juvenile corrections and psychotherapy, this Court was told that [Defendant] is a child devoid of conscience and devoid of empathy for other human beings, most notably the victims of the heinous acts charged in this case. The experts say that each human being must develop these tools at a young age, for personalities become fixed before the teenage years and it is very hard, if not impossible, to implant a conscience in a sixteen year old where none existed before. These experts looked, in this case, for evidence of remorse or empathy that would

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