U.S. v. Stewart

• Citation: 452 F.3d 266
• Decision Date: 03 July 2006
• Docket Number: No. 05-2732.,05-2732.
• Parties: UNITED STATES of America v. Anthony STEWART, Appellant.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (3rd Circuit)

Page 266

452 F.3d 266

UNITED STATES of America v. Anthony STEWART, Appellant.

No. 05-2732.

United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit.

Argued April 26, 2006.

Filed July 3, 2006.

As Amended July 19, 2006.

Andrea D. Bergman, Esquire (Argued), Office of the Federal Public Defender, Trenton, NJ, for Appellant.

Caroline A. Sadlow Ski, Esquire (Argued), George S. Leone, Esquire, Office of United States Attorney, Newark, NJ, for Appellee.

Before SCIRICA, Chief Judge, NYGAARD, Circuit Judge, and YOHN,^* District Judge.

OPINION OF THE COURT

YOHN, District Judge.

In 2004, Anthony Stewart was found not guilty by reason of insanity for randomly stabbing a post-office customer in Harrison, New Jersey. At a subsequent hearing, the District Court committed Stewart to the custody of the United States Attorney General because Stewart failed to prove by clear and convincing evidence that his release into the community "would not create a substantial risk of bodily injury to another person or serious damage to the property of another" under 18 U.S.C. § 4342(e). Stewart appeals, contending that the District Court erred in denying his release. For the reasons stated below, we will affirm.

I.

Born in 1961, Stewart's adult life has been punctuated by a history of psychiatric illness and criminal behavior. Although Stewart obtained a General Education Degree after leaving high school in the eleventh grade, Stewart began to have problems with the law at the age of twenty when he was convicted in state court of possession of stolen property. The record reflects that Stewart's mental health also began to deteriorate in his twenties, resulting in several psychiatric hospitalizations for schizophrenia. These problems corresponded with a gradual escalation in Stewart's criminal behavior, from shoplifting and resisting arrest to larceny and burglary. Although Stewart received antipsychotic medication while hospitalized or incarcerated, Stewart typically did not comply with his medication regimen postrelease.

A. The Underlying Offense & Criminal Trial

On April 29, 1999, Stewart was in a Harrison, New Jersey post office when he randomly approached customer Elizabeth Higgins from behind and stabbed her in the back of the head with a Leatherman blade. Stewart then calmly turned around and walked out. Higgins suffered a 10-centimeter laceration to the lower back of her head. Stewart was apprehended that same day a short distance from the post office.

Stewart was initially charged in Hudson County Superior Court and detained at various facilities for over a year. He was transferred to federal custody on June 12, 2000, and charged with knowingly committing an assault resulting in serious bodily injury within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 113(a)(6) and 2. Stewart was temporarily committed for a mental health evaluation pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4241(b).¹ Evaluations by mental health professionals concluded that Stewart was not competent to stand trial pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4241(d). As a result, Stewart was committed to the Attorney General's custody on January 17, 2001 pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4241(d)(1).²

After approximately six months of treatment at Federal Medical Center ("FMC") Devens in Massachusetts, Stewart was evaluated by Thomas Patenaude, Ph.D., a forensic psychologist at FMC Devens. In accordance with that evaluation, on September 4, 2001, Stewart was found competent to stand trial. However, Stewart was released to Passaic County Jail, where his mental state again deteriorated. In February 2002, Stewart was determined to be incompetent to stand trial and recommitted to FMC Devens.

On July 29, 2002, the Court ordered a psychiatric examination to determine whether Stewart suffered from mental illness at the time of the April 1999 offense pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4242.³ Dr. Patenaude and Dr. Catherine M. Barber, Stewart's retained psychologist, both concluded with a reasonable degree of psychological certainty that at the time of the offense Stewart was suffering from severe mental disease and, as a result, was unable to appreciate the nature, quality, and wrongfulness of his actions. On October 24, 2004, a stipulated fact trial was conducted by the District Court and Stewart was found not guilty by reason of insanity pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4242(b)(3).

B. Risk Assessment Panel Report

The Court subsequently ordered a psychiatric evaluation of Stewart by a panel of medical personnel at FMC Devens, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §§ 4243(a), (b), and 4247(b).⁴ The Risk Assessment Panel Report, filed on December 30, 2004, examined Stewart's psychiatric and criminal history, his treatment at FMC Devens, and his future risk of violent recidivism. According to the panel, Stewart suffers from disorganized personality paranoid schizophrenia, and can exhibit "grandiosity [and] hyper-religiosity, possibly of delusional proportions." Appellant's App. vol. II, at 27 (Risk Assessment Panel Report, Nov., 30, 2004). During one examination, for example, Stewart stated "he is `Allah' and that he is the most gracious, most compassionate, and most worthy." Id. Furthermore, the panel found that if improperly medicated, Stewart's mental illness can impact and impair his judgment, as demonstrated by his past criminal history and acts of violence. For example, while at FMC Devens, Stewart assaulted a Correctional Officer and attempted to assault the Chief Psychiatrist on November 14, 2002. However, Stewart "responded well to treatment," and after an increase in his medication, the panel reported he committed no further violence. Id. Stewart advanced through the mental health unit system and was eventually able to live in the least restrictive setting. The panel found that in while in the highly structured prison environment, Stewart was compliant with his medication, attended all of his psychiatric appointments, and appeared "to be at his baseline." Id. at 29.

The panel also conducted a series of psychological evaluations to determine Stewart's risk for future violent behavior. The results indicated Stewart was at a "moderate risk for violent behavior," with a 17% chance he will engage in future acts of violence within the next seven years, and a 31% chance he will engage in future acts of violence within the next ten years. Id. at 30-31. According to the report, Stewart's history of violence, his serious mental illness, and his limited insight into his mental illness increased his risk for future violence, "especially if he becomes noncompliant in taking his prescribed psychotropic medication." Id. However, the panel concluded that if Stewart remained "properly medicated and in a structured and supervised environment, he is not a dangerous individual." Id. at 32-33.

C. The 18 U.S.C. § 4243 Hearing

On Stewart's motion, a hearing pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 4243(c) was conducted on May 3, 2005 to determine whether he should be released from custody. In accordance with 18 U.S.C. § 4243(d), Stewart had "the burden of proving by clear and convincing evidence that his release would not create a substantial risk of bodily injury to another person or serious damage to the property of another due to a present mental disease or defect."⁵ If Stewart was successful, both parties agreed that Stewart's release was subject to no court-imposed conditions whatsoever, because the statute does not permit the district court to order a conditional release at a § 4243(c) hearing. Under § 4243(e), which governs the disposition of a § 4243(c) hearing, a district court is only granted authority to either commit the defendant or release him unconditionally.⁶ United States v. Baker, 155 F.3d 392, 394-95 (4th Cir.1998).

Stewart presented testimony from three witnesses: Dr. Dennis Becotte, Chief Forensic Psychologist at FMC Devens, Cheryl Tolentino, a clinical team leader for the Union County Integrated Case Management Services ("ICMS"),⁷ and Wanda McNeil, Stewart's cousin. Becotte testified that while Stewart had improved at FMC Devens, Stewart's risk of future violent behavior was critically dependent on Stewart's medication regimen and living environment. Becotte stated that Stewart's stability had improved over the past two and a half years and that Stewart had "recently" acknowledged his mental illness and his need to stay on medication. Becotte also testified that Stewart's prognosis was good, his moderate risk of violent recidivism was relatively positive, and he currently did not pose a substantial risk of danger to the public. However, Becotte clearly expressed that Stewart's medication regimen was crucial to his stability. Without taking his required medication, Becotte testified that Stewart's risk of engaging in violent behavior substantially increased. Furthermore, Stewart's history of postrelease medication noncompliance indicated that Stewart needed a structured and supervised environment to give him "the best chance of success." Appellant's App. vol. II, at 76 (§ 4243(c) Hearing Tr., May 3, 2005). According to Becotte, this environment would ensure that Stewart received his medication biweekly, attended weekly meetings with mental health professionals who would monitor his illness, and participated in ongoing counseling therapy. This type of oversight was available through a community outpatient program, Becotte concluded, but not possible if Stewart was living on his own.

Because Stewart's release under § 4243(e) would be subject to no court-imposed conditions whatsoever, Stewart's attorney presented evidence that there would be "safeguards" in place to provide Stewart with a structured and supervised environment. Id. at 119. However, the witnesses' testimony raised doubts as to the level of structure and support these resources would truly provide. While Tolentino testified that ICMS could provide weekly mental health visits for Stewart, arrange for his biweekly medications, and would make referrals to other...