Sweet v. COMMISSIONER OF HUMAN SERVICES

• Decision Date: 23 August 2005
• Docket Number: No. A04-2274.,A04-2274.
• Citation: 702 N.W.2d 314
• Parties: Reginald SWEET, Relator, v. COMMISSIONER OF HUMAN SERVICES, Respondent.
• Court: Minnesota Court of Appeals

702 N.W.2d 314

Reginald SWEET, Relator, v. COMMISSIONER OF HUMAN SERVICES, Respondent.

No. A04-2274.

Court of Appeals of Minnesota.

August 23, 2005.

Bradford W. Colbert, Legal Assistance to Minnesota Prisoners, St. Paul, MN, for relator.

Mike Hatch, Attorney General, Stephanie A. Riley, Assistant Attorney General, St. Paul, MN, for respondent.

Considered and decided by DIETZEN, Presiding Judge; HALBROOKS, Judge; and PARKER, Judge.¹

OPINION

DIETZEN, Judge.

Relator Reginald Sweet challenges the decision of the Commissioner of Human Services (commissioner) denying relator's request to set aside his disqualification from working as a counselor in a state-licensed program because of his criminal record, including convictions of first-degree and third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Relator argues that the commissioner's decision was arbitrary, capricious, and unsupported by substantial evidence and that the commissioner violated relator's right to due process. Because substantial evidence supports the commissioner's decision and relator had the opportunity and exercised his right to present written evidence to the commissioner, we affirm.

FACTS

In August and November 1992, relator was convicted of separate controlled-substance crimes. In June 1998, relator was convicted of both first-degree and third-degree criminal sexual conduct. After the 1998 convictions, relator was incarcerated. While incarcerated, he completed a program designed to help African-American men prepare for their release from incarceration; spent two years tutoring and facilitating classes for other inmates on issues relating to housing, employment, personal attitudes, and change; completed a computer-training program; and completed a psycho-educational sexual behavior class. He was released in May 2003.

After his release, relator became a minister; joined the AMICUS Re-Entry Advisory Group and speaker's bureau, mentoring incarcerated individuals on issues related to release from prison; became a speaker for the Council on Crime and Justice; and provided counseling at Aftercare Services, Inc. (Aftercare) to current and former inmates with drug and alcohol addictions.

Because Aftercare is a state-licensed program, the Minnesota Department of Human Services' Division of Licensing was required by law to conduct a background study on relator, who had direct contact with individuals served by the program. Minn.Stat. § 245C.03, subd. 1 (2004). In the course of conducting the background study, the Division of Licensing discovered relator's prior convictions of controlled-substance crimes and first-degree and third-degree criminal sexual conduct. In July 2004, the Minnesota Department of Human Services sent relator a letter informing him that he was disqualified under Minn.Stat. § 245C.14, subd.1 (2004), from providing direct-contact services for Aftercare. The disqualification letter stated that relator's convictions disqualify him from "providing direct contact services for facilities licensed by the Department of Human Services and the Minnesota Department of Health. . . ." After reviewing the disqualifying information, the commissioner stated that relator poses an imminent risk of harm to the clients he served based on the serious nature of the convictions, the number of convictions, and the vulnerability of the clients of Aftercare.

Under Minn.Stat. § 245C.21, subd. 1 (2004), relator had the right to seek reconsideration of the disqualification. An application form to request reconsideration prepared by the commissioner required that relator answer certain questions pertaining to whether he poses a risk of harm to Aftercare's clients. The burden of proof was on relator to demonstrate no risk of harm to Aftercare's clients. See Minn.Stat. § 245C.22, subd. 4 (2004). In determining whether relator poses a risk of harm, the commissioner was required by statute to give preeminent weight to the safety of each person served by Aftercare, but was also required to consider:

(1) the nature, severity, and consequences of the event or events that led to the disqualification;

(2) whether there is more than one disqualifying event;

(3) the age and vulnerability of the victim at the time of the event;

(4) the harm suffered by the victim;

(5) the similarity between the victim and persons served by the program;

(6) the time elapsed without a repeat of the same or similar event;

(7) documentation of successful completion by the individual studied of training or rehabilitation pertinent to the event; and

(8) any other information relevant to reconsideration.

See Minn.Stat. § 245C.22, subds. 3, 4 (2004).

Relator was not afforded an oral hearing, but he did submit a written response to the application form and provided extensive written documentation to support his request for reconsideration. The application form asks questions relevant to determining whether relator poses an imminent risk of harm. In response to the question: "Explain the details of the crime you committed. What did you do?", relator wrote, in part, "I am [the victim's] fifth victim. I know what I did was wrong but NO sexual activity took place. I have enclosed the medical reports to prove such. Please do a background check on [the victim]!!! I am not the only person [the victim] has sent to jail on the same charge." Under the space provided for "Additional Comments", relator wrote, in part, "I have enclosed the sexual examination papers along with the finding on the bottle. You will see no DNA or fluids from me. It's impossible to have sex without the exchange of DNA and body fluids."

Relator also described in his application for reconsideration the changes he has undergone since he committed the crime and how his experiences could help him be a better counselor. Relator wrote, "I received rehabilitation while incarcerated.... I learned about coping with stress management, boundaries, and [the] sexual assault cycle. And as a minister, I have to be able to teach others from my past mistakes." Relator submitted 13 certificates and awards showing he had completed courses in psycho-educational sexual behavior, computer training, life skills, and ministry. He also submitted 12 letters of support from his supervised-release agent, various organizations through which he provided counseling or training services, and program organizers he had worked with in prison. The letters described relator as "dedicated to providing positive guidance to young men recently released from various Minnesota Correctional Facilities," "a major asset in working with and helping those who are chemically dependent," making "positive contributions to human services," and showing "great promise with his diligent approach for change." Relator did not provide any medical or psychological evaluations describing his rehabilitation or showing whether he poses a risk of harm to Aftercare's clients.

In September 2004, the Minnesota Department of Human Services sent relator a letter informing him of the results of the commissioner's reconsideration. The commissioner stated that she applied and weighed the eight applicable statutory factors with respect to relator's disqualification record and gave preeminent weight to the safety of Aftercare's clients. The commissioner noted the serious and violent nature of relator's criminal offenses. The commissioner stated that because of relator's history of assaultive behavior and because the clients relator would work with may have "extensive challenging behaviors," there could be a greater risk that relator would react inappropriately to his clients' behaviors than an individual "who [had] never committed a violent act." The commissioner observed that relator's responses on the application form blaming the victim of relator's crimes indicate that relator has failed to take responsibility for his actions. Regarding the letters of support, the commissioner stated that their authors did not witness and were not victims of any of relator's disqualifying acts, and relator's "behavior at the time of the disqualifying event may not be characteristic of [his] behavior with the person who submitted the letter of support." The commissioner also noted that relator did not address his two disqualifying drug offenses. Based on these findings, the commissioner decided that relator had not proved that he was rehabilitated and no longer poses a risk of harm, and, therefore, the commissioner did not set aside relator's disqualification. Relator then filed a petition for writ of certiorari with this court.

ISSUES

I. Was the commissioner's decision denying relator's motion to set aside his disqualification supported by substantial evidence?

II. Was relator deprived of his right to procedural due process because he did not receive an evidentiary hearing?

ANALYSIS

I.

Relator argues that the commissioner's refusal to set aside relator's disqualification was not supported by substantial evidence and was arbitrary and capricious. An appellate court may reverse an administrative decision if it is not supported by substantial evidence or is arbitrary and capricious. In re Excess Surplus Status of Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Minn., 624 N.W.2d 264, 277 (Minn.2001); Johnson v. Comm'r of Health, 671 N.W.2d 921, 923 (Minn.App.2003). Substantial evidence is "1. [s]uch relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion; 2.[m]ore than a scintilla of evidence; 3.[m]ore than some evidence; 4.[m]ore than any evidence; and 5.[e]vidence considered in its entirety." White v. Minn. Dep't of Natural Res., 567 N.W.2d 724, 730 (Minn.App.1997), review denied (Minn. Oct. 31, 1997). An agency's conclusion is arbitrary and capricious if there is no rational connection between the facts and the agency's decision. Blue Cross & Blue Shield, 624 N.W.2d at 277.

Relator argues that the commissioner erred by failing to properly consider the statutory criteria and by failing to find...