211 Conn. 591 | Conn. | 1989
Lead Opinion
Certification was granted in this case limited to the question: “Did the state violate the guarantees of equal protection contained in the Connecticut and United States constitutions by declining to credit pretrial jail time against the length of an insanity acquittee’s commitment to a mental hospital?” Franklin v. Berger, 208 Conn. 816, 546 A.2d 282 (1988). The Appellate Court answered this question in the affirmative. Franklin v. Berger, 15 Conn. App. 74, 544 A.2d 650 (1988). We disagree.
The facts relevant to this appeal are not in dispute and have been set forth in the opinion of the Appellate Court; id.; but can be briefly summarized as follows. On March 5, 1976, the petitioner was arrested and charged with manslaughter in the first degree in violation of General Statutes § 53a-55.
On January 5, 1978, a criminal court adjudged the petitioner not guilty by reason of insanity. Pursuant to General Statutes (Rev. to 1977) § 53a-47 (repealed and replaced by General Statutes § 17-257),
On March 24,1987, the petitioner filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus alleging that the refusal to grant him credit for his pretrial jail time was violative of the equal protection guarantees of the federal and state constitutions.
At this point we note that “the concept of equal protection [under both the state and federal constitutions
General Statutes §§ 17-257a through 17-257w govern the treatment of persons found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect pursuant to General Statutes § 53a-13.* *****
If the acquittee is confined, he is under the sole jurisdiction of the psychiatric security review board (board). General Statutes § 17-257c (h). Although the statute states that the acquittee “shall be immediately discharged at the expiration of the maximum term of commitment”; General Statutes § 17-257c (h); he may be confined for either more or less time than that originally set by the court under § 17-257c (e) (1) (A), depending on his dangerousness to himself or others. The acquittee will be discharged before the end of the
Under § 17-257n, therefore, an acquittee will not be released from confinement until he is no longer a danger to himself or others, regardless of the maximum term originally set by the court under § 17-257c (e) (1) (A). Our interpretation of § 17-257n is supported by its legislative history. Discussing the discharge of insanity
The date of discharge of an acquittee from confinement is, therefore, not calculated by counting days as if the acquittee were sentenced to prison, but rather, is indeterminate, being totally dependant on the acquit-tee’s personal mental health. Since the fixed maximum term set by the court does not determine the date an acquittee will be discharged from confinement, the petitioner’s argument that the refusal of the state to credit his jail time against the fixed maximum term creates distinctions in the calculation of confinement time based on wealth is not valid. Subtracting an indigent acquit-tee’s pretrial jail time from the fixed maximum term will not secure his discharge from confinement any sooner than if he were not credited with jail time. Jail time credit is irrelevant in calculating the release of an insanity acquittee because he is confined or released based on his dangerousness. There is, therefore, no difference in the treatment of wealthy and indigent acquittees under § 17-257n. The discharge of all insanity acquittees from confinement, rich or poor, is based on their ability to prove that they are no longer a danger to themselves or others, not on a lapse of time. General Statutes § 17-257n (f).
In addition to arguing that the fixed maximum term set by the court at the commencement of an acquittee’s commitment is significant in calculating his discharge
General Statutes (Rev. to 1987) § 17-257n (f), which discusses the need for a hearing prior to a court ruling on all applications for discharge or petitions for continued confinement, states that “the acquittee or the board when applying for an order of discharge, shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the acquittee is a person who should be discharged.” Although § 17-257n (f) appears to be silent on the issue of who bears the burden of proof at hearings for continued commitment, amendments were made to that section in 1987 which place the burden on the acquittee to prove that he is a person who should be discharged at a hearing on an application of discharge and at a hearing on a petition for continued commitment. Public Acts 1987, No. 87-486. The 1987 amendment eliminated the language “when applying for an order of discharge” from § 17-257n (f), and the statute now reads: “After receipt of the board’s report and separate examination reports, the court shall promptly commence a hearing on the recommendation or application for discharge or petition for continued commitment. At the hearing, the acquittee shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the acquittee is a person who should be discharged.” (Emphasis added.) While the 1987 amendment is not controlling in this case,
Accordingly, because confinement of all acquittees under § 17-257 et seq. is based on dangerousness, the state’s refusal to credit the petitioner’s pretrial jail time against the fixed maximum term set by the court does not cause him to be confined for a longer period of time than acquittees who were not confined prior to trial because they were able to-post a bond. Since the statute treats all acquittees the same, the equal protection clause is not implicated. State ex rel. Francis v. Resweber, 329 U.S. 459, 465, 67 S. Ct. 374, 91 L. Ed. 422 (1947) (if a “law applies to all alike, the requirements of ‘equal protection [of the laws]’ are met.”)
The judgment of the Appellate Court is reversed.
In this opinion Covello and Hull, Js., concurred.
“[General Statutes] Sec. 53a-55. manslaughter in the first degree: class b felony, (a) A person is guilty of manslaughter in the first degree when: (1) With intent to cause serious physical injury to another person, he causes the death of such person or of a third person; or (2) with intent to cause the death of another person, he causes the death of such person or of a third person under circumstances which do not constitute murder because he committed the proscribed act or acts under the influence of extreme emotional disturbance, as provided in subsection (a) of section 53a-54a, except that the fact that homicide was committed under the influence of extreme emotional disturbance constitutes a mitigating circumstance reducing murder to manslaughter in the first degree and need not be proved in any prosecution initiated under this subsection; or (3) under circumstances evincing an extreme indifference to human life, he recklessly engages in conduct which creates a grave risk of death to another person, and thereby causes the death of another person.
“(b) Manslaughter in the first degree is a class B felony."
Although the petitioner was originally committed under General Statutes § 53a-47, General Statutes (Rev. to 1987) § 17-257w (a) makes General Statutes § 17-257 et seq. applicable in the instant action. That section states that “sections 17-257a to 17-257v, inclusive, apply ... (2) to any person who, prior to July 1,1985, was found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect . . . and who, on July 1,1985, is confined ... or otherwise subject to court supervision pursuant to section 53a-47 of the general statutes, Revision of 1958, revised to January 1, 1985.” Amendments to General Statutes (Rev. to 1987) § 17-257 et seq. became effective on October 1,1987, and are codified in the current volumes of the General Statutes. See General Statutes § 17-257 et seq.; Public Acts 1987, No. 87-486. Although the 1987 amendment made no substantive changes, we note that because the petitioner’s habeas petition was heard by the Superior Court in May, 1987, all references to § 17-257 et seq. in this opinion are to the preamended statute, General Statutes (Rev. to 1987) § 17-257.
In addition, the petitioner asserted in his petition for habeas corpus that he was statutorily entitled to have the time he spent in confinement in a
While his appeal was pending before the Appellate Court, the petitioner’s maximum term of commitment expired. Finding that the petitioner’s claim was not moot on the basis of the principle of capable of repetition, yet evading review; Delevieleuse v. Manson, 184 Conn. 434, 437, 439 A. 2d 1055 (1981); the Appellate Court determined that it had the authority to hear the claim. Franklin v. Berger, 15 Conn. App. 74,77-78, 554 A. 2d 650 (1988). We agree with the Appellate Court and base our jurisdiction on the same reasoning.
The constitution of Connecticut, article first, § 20, provides: “No person shall be denied the equal protection of the law nor be subjected to segregation or discrimination in the exercise or enjoyment of his civil or political rights because of religion, race, color, ancestry or national origin.”
The constitution of the United States, amendment fourteen, § 1, provides: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
We discuss the state and federal clauses simultaneously as “ ‘[t]he equal protection provisions of the federal and state constitutions have the same meaning and limitations.’ Keogh v. Bridgeport, 187 Conn. 53, 66, 444 A.2d 225 (1982).” Daily v. New Britain Machine Co., 200 Conn. 562, 577, 512 A.2d 893 (1986).
The petitioner recognizes that there could be an “indeterminate confinement [period] based solely on [an acquittee’s] mental health” but
“[General Statutes] Sec. 53a-13. lack of capacity due to mental disease or defect as affirmative defense, (a) In any prosecution for an offense, it shall be an affirmative defense that the defendant, at the time he committed the proscribed act or acts, lacked substantial capacity, as a result of mental disease or defect, either to appreciate the wrongfulness of his conduct or to control his conduct within the requirements of the law.
“(b) It shall not be a defense under this section if such mental disease or defect was proximately caused by the voluntary ingestion, inhalation or injection of intoxicating liquor or any drug or substance, or any combination thereof, unless such drug was prescribed for the defendant by a licensed practitioner, as defined in section 20-184a, and was used in accordance with the directions of such prescription.
“(c) As used in this section, the terms mental disease or defect do not include (1) an abnormality manifested only by repeated criminal or otherwise antisocial conduct or (2) pathological or compulsive gambling.”
After a psychiatric examination by a state psychiatrist, the acquittee may request an examination by an independent psychiatrist. General Statutes § 17-257c (c).
The procedures at such hearings are set forth at General Statutes §§ 17-257p, 17-257q, 17-257r. “At any hearing before the board, the acquit-tee, or any applicant seeking an order less restrictive than the existing order, shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence the existence of conditions warranting a less restrictive order.” General Statutes § 17-257q (f).
The board is required to “conduct a hearing to review the status of the acquittee within ninety days of an order committing the acquittee to the jurisdiction of the board . . . .” General Statutes § 17-257d. Following that initial hearing, the board is required under General Statutes § 17-257Í to “conduct a hearing to review the status of the acquittee not less than once every two years.” Further, the superintendent of the state hospital to which the acquittee is committed is required, on the order of the board, to “submit to the board at least every six months a written report with respect to the mental condition of the acquittee.” General Statutes § 17-257g. Copies of this report must be sent to counsel for the acquittee and the state’s attorney. General Statutes § 17-257g.
“Person who should be discharged” is defined in General Statutes § 17-257a (10) as “an acquittee who is not mentally ill to the extent that his discharge would constitute a danger to himself or others.”
The board acts under General Statutes § 17-257e which provides: “FINDING AND ACTION BY BOARD. RECOMMENDATION OF DISCHARGE. ORDER OF CONDITIONAL release or CONFINEMENT. At any hearing before the board considering the discharge, conditional release or confinement of the acquit-tee, except a hearing pursuant to section 17-257m or subsection (d) of section 17-257n, the board shall make a finding as to the mental condition of the acquittee and, considering that its primary concern is the protection of society, shall do one of the following:
“(1) If the board finds that the acquittee is a person who should be discharged, it shall recommend such discharge and, pursuant to section 17-257n, file an application for discharge with the court.
“(3) If the board finds that the acquittee is a person who should be confined, the board shall order the person confined in a hospital for mental illness for custody, care and treatment.”
Under General Statutes § 17-257m (a), the hospital superintendent may request the board to recommend to the court the discharge of the acquit-tee in custody. Following such a request, the board is required to conduct a hearing to determine whether the acquittee should be discharged. General Statutes § 17-257n (a). Also, the board may, on its own motion, consider whether to recommend discharge of the acquittee from custody and, after notice to the acquittee’s counsel and the state’s attorney, conduct a hearing to make a finding of whether the acquittee is a person who should be discharged. If the board determines that the acquittee should be discharged, it is required to apply to the court for discharge under General Statutes § 17-257n. General Statutes § 17-257m (b) and (c). Finally, the acquittee may, under the jurisdiction of the board, apply to the court for discharge from custody. General Statutes § 17-257n (a). An acquittee may not, however, “apply for discharge . . . more than once every six months and no sooner than six months after the initial board hearing held pursuant to section 17-257d.” General Statutes § 17-257n (a).
“ ‘Danger to himself or others’ includes danger to the property of others.” General Statutes § 17-257a (5).
General Statutes § 17-257n (f) provides: “After receipt of the board’s report and any separate examination reports, the court shall promptly commence a hearing on the application for discharge or petition for continued commitment. At the hearing, the acquittee or the board when applying for an order of discharge, shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the acquittee is a person who should be discharged.”
Assuming that the equal protection clauses were implicated, the Appellate Court held that it was unfair to deny indigent acquittees their pretrial jail time because the state’s interest of protecting society would be better served by petitioning for continued confinement under General Statutes § 17-257n. Franklin v. Berger, 15 Conn. App. 74,83, 544 A. 2d 650 (1988). In so holding, the court stated that the burdens on the state under § 17-257n were minimal as they would merely have to file a petition for continued confinement. In footnote six of its opinion, the court stated, misciting General Statutes § 17-257e, that in a hearing for continued confinement the acquittee would have the burden of proving that he is a person who should be discharged. Id.
Arguing that the Appellate Court erred in finding that the state’s burden under § 17-257n was minimal, the state maintains on appeal that the court was incorrect in finding that the acquittee, and not the state, has the burden of proving that the acquittee should be discharged at hearings for continued confinement. Stating that § 17-257n is ambiguous, the state urges us to find that the burden is on the state at such hearings and, therefore, the state’s burden under the statute is more than minimal. While the Appellate Court did cite the wrong statutory provision in footnote six, it did not misstate the law. As discussed, infra, § 17-257n (f) places the burden on the acquittee at hearings for continued confinement to prove that he is a person who should be discharged.
See footnote 2, supra.
Concurrence Opinion
concurring. Although I agree with the result, I disagree with the majority’s conclusion that, under General Statutes (Rev. to 1987) § 17-257n (f), “the acquittee bears the burden to prove that he is no longer a danger to himself or others when seeking discharge before the expiration of the fixed maximum term [of commitment] and also when contesting a petition by the state seeking continued confinement beyond the fixed maximum term.”
Section 17-257n (f), as revised to 1987, provides in full: “After receipt of the board’s report and any separate examination reports, the court shall promptly commence a hearing on the application for discharge or petition for continued commitment. At the hearing, the acquittee or the board when applying for an order of discharge, shall have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the acquittee is a person who should be discharged.” (Emphasis added.)
The construction given by the majority is, I believe, at variance with the language of § 17-257n. By its express terms, subsection (f) fixes the burden of proof on the acquittee or the board only when discharge is sought prior to the expiration of the maximum term. It is silent with regard to the burden of proof on the state’s attorney’s application for continued confinement. It is a well settled principle of statutory construction that the expression of one thing is the exclusion of the other. Thus, subsection (f)’s limitation to applications for discharge would appear to express the intent that the state’s attorney bears the burden of proving the acquittee’s continued dangerousness when petitioning for a commitment beyond the maximum term. Further, “one seeking relief bears the burden of demonstrating that he is entitled to it.” Clark v. Community for Creative Non-Violence, 468 U.S. 288, 293 n.5, 104 S. Ct. 3065, 82 L. Ed. 2d 221 (1984).
It seems to me that, once an acquittee completes the fixed maximum term, he becomes entitled to the same rights as anyone else respecting involuntary commitment to a mental health facility. Those rights include the right not to be committed unless the party seeking the commitment proves the necessity of commitment by clear and convincing evidence. General Statutes § 17-178 (c). Moreover, this is not a case in which the statute pertaining to insanity acquittees provides for indefinite commitment without any fixed maximum commitment term. Cf. Jones v. United States, 463 U.S. 354,103 S. Ct. 3043, 77 L. Ed. 2d 694 (1983).
Concurrence Opinion
concurring. I write separately because, in my view, our resolution of this appeal requires us to address directly the issue upon which we granted certification: “Did the state violate the guarantees of equal protection contained in the Connecticut and United States constitutions by declining to credit pretrial jail time against the length of an insanity acquittee’s commitment to a mental hospital?” Franklin v. Berger, 208 Conn. 816, 546 A.2d 282 (1988). I believe that we must address this issue regardless of whether the burden of proof is on the acquittee or the state when the state files a petition for continued commitment. Upon analysis, I conclude that the state did
Equal protection of the laws requires that similarly situated persons be treated similarly or if persons or classes are treated disparately, that there be a justification for such disparate treatment. Johnson v. Manson, 196 Conn. 309, 321-22 n.12, 493 A.2d 846 (1985), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 1063,106 S. Ct. 813, 88 L. Ed. 2d 787, reh. denied, 475 U.S. 1061, 106 S. Ct. 1290, 89 L. Ed. 2d 597 (1986), citing Salsburg v. Maryland, 346 U.S. 545, 551, 74 S. Ct. 280, 98 L. Ed. 281 (1954), Baxtrom v. Herold, 383 U.S. 107, 112, 86 S. Ct. 760, 15 L. Ed. 2d 620 (1966), and Missouri v. Lewis, 101 U.S. 22, 31, 25 L. Ed. 989 (1880).“ ‘Equal protection analysis must commence with a determination of whether a legislative classification is invidious, or “inherently suspect,” or whether the legislation impinges upon a fundamental right. Where the legislation impinges upon a fundamental right or creates a suspect classification then it must be struck down unless justified by a compelling state interest. . . . Where the statute does not involve fundamental rights
Although I agree with the majority opinion insofar as it says that it is often impossible to reduce commitment periods by jail time because most acquittees are committed to a mental health facility for an indefinite period of time depending on their mental health, this argument does not seem to hold true for those acquit-tees who serve the definite maximum commitment term as set by the trial court and who are released upon the expiration of that term. This is precisely the claim that the petitioner asserts. For this group of individuals that serves no more or no less than the maximum term of commitment, there necessarily are disparate periods of total confinement (jail time and commitment time) between those who can and those who cannot afford bail. The question presented to this court must be whether this disparate treatment violates the constitutional guarantee of equal protection of the laws.
As stated earlier, we must determine whether the classification of the two groups, i.e., (1) those individuals who are confined in jail before trial and for the maximum term of commitment in a mental health facility, and (2) those who are confined only for the maximum term of commitment in a mental health facility, is “inherently suspect” or whether the legislative scheme impinges on a fundamental right. I conclude that this case involves neither a suspect class nor a fundamental right.
Although the petitioner argues that the court’s analysis of this equal protection issue must be guided by the strict scrutiny standard, he does not allege, nor would I find, that his status as an indigent makes him a member of a suspect class. See Petitioner’s Brief, p. 15; San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez, 411 U.S. 1, 28-29, 93 S. Ct. 1278, 36 L. Ed. 2d 16 (1973); Moscone v. Manson, 185 Conn. 124, 130, 440 A.2d 848 (1981); J. Nowak, R. Rotunda & J. Young, Constitutional Law (2d Ed. 1983) p. 731. Rather, the petitioner claims, as the Appellate Court found, that strict scrutiny is the appropriate standard of review based on the infringement of a fundamental right. The petitioner claims that “[hjere the refusal to credit petitioner with jail time affects the period of his confinement under the fixed maximum term. His liberty right is impinged upon by the additional 293 days he is confined before the expiration of that term triggers a discharge or a shifting of the burden of proof at a court hearing.”
I disagree with the petitioner’s contention. I am inclined to follow the reasoning of those cases that hold jail time credit to be a matter of legislative grace rather than a constitutional requirement. See, e.g., Lewis v. Cardwell, 609 F.2d 926, 928 (9th Cir. 1979); Jackson v. Alabama, 530 F.2d 1231, 1237 (5th Cir. 1976); Johnson v. Manson, supra, 321 n.12; People v. Turman, 659 P.2d 1368, 1373-74 (Colo. 1983); cf. Johnson v. Prast, 548 F.2d 699, 702 (7th Cir. 1977); King v.
Because I consider jail time credit as a matter of legislative grace, and I do not view the denial of such credit as implicating fundamental rights or, in this case,
Without doubt, the state has a legitimate interest in protecting society from individuals who are mentally disabled and pose a danger to others. Similarly, the state has an interest in protecting mentally disabled persons from harm that they might inflict upon themselves. General Statutes § 17-257c provides for this protection by authorizing the commitment of persons found not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect in our state mental health facilities. While committed, these individuals receive treatment that may eventually enable them to be released from the mental health facilities. See General Statutes § 17-257c (e) (1). Undoubtedly, treatment of one’s mental disease or defect is essential.
As Justice Glass states in his concurring opinion, there is no such mental health treatment during pretrial jail time. Accordingly, it is rational not to reduce
Accordingly, I concur in the result reached by the majority.
I agree with Justice Glass’s analysis of General Statutes (Rev. to 1987) § 17-257n (f) in finding that this statute is ambiguous and that the burden of proof is on the state when the state’s attorney files a petition for continued commitment. As the statute existed in 1987, it was silent as to the burden of proof upon a petition for continued commitment. I also am not presuaded that the 1989 revision of § 17-257n (f) was intended to clarify the issue of upon whom the burden of proof rests when the state initiates a petition for continued commitment as claimed by the majority. In addition to Justice Glass’s analysis, I would add that in my view, to place the burden of proof on the acquittee to establish eligibility for discharge upon the expiration of the maximum commitment term impinges on the acquit-tee’s liberty interest and thus implicates due process concerns. See Fasulo v. Arafeh, 173 Conn. 473, 476, 378 A.2d 553 (1977). While I do not dispute the power of the state to continue the commitment of those insanity acquit-tees who still pose a danger to themselves or others after the expiration of the maximum commitment term, to avoid constitutional infirmity I believe that the burden of proof to establish such a danger at the end of that term must be on the state. See id., 480-81.
Whether the burden of proof shifts to the acquittee at the expiration of the definite maximum term in the event that the state files a petition for continued commitment does not obviate the disparate treatment between those persons who have spent time in jail prior to their commitment and those who have not spent time in jail prior to their commitment. The former group necessarily has been confined for a longer period of time than the latter.
While I recognize that our discussion in Laden v. Warden, 169 Conn. 540, 544, 363 A.2d 1063 (1975), which we reiterated in Payton v. Albert, 209 Conn. 23, 33, 547 A.2d 1 (1988), where we said that “[t]he refusal to credit the plaintiff with jail time affects the period of his confinement and directly impinges on his fundamental right of liberty,” is inconsistent with our statement in Johnson v. Manson, 196 Conn. 309, 321 n.12, 493 A.2d 846 (1985), cert. denied, 474 U.S. 1063,106 S. Ct. 813, 88 L. Ed. 2d 787, reh. denied, 475 U.S. 1061,106 S. Ct. 1290, 89 L. Ed. 2d 597 (1986), I agree with the state’s argument that the statement in Laden is too broad. The overbroad nature of the statement in Laden is demonstrated by the logical inference from it that the denial of good time credit also implicates a fundamental liberty right because such a denial also necessarily affects the length of an individual’s confinement. This court and the United States Supreme Court have declared, however, that there is no constitutional right to good time credit. See Wolff v. McDonnell, 418 U.S. 539, 577, 94 S. Ct. 2963, 41 L. Ed. 2d 935 (1974); Frazier v. Manson, 176 Conn. 638, 646-47, 410 A.2d 475 (1979). Thus, I maintain that jail time credit is a matter of legislative grace and is not constitutionally required.
Furthermore, it must be noted that most of the cases holding that jail time credit is not constitutionally mandated recognize that under the United States Supreme Court’s holdings, such as Tate v. Short, 401 U.S. 395, 91 S. Ct. 668,28 L. Ed. 2d 130 (1971), and Williams v. Illinois, 399 U.S. 235, 90 S. Ct. 2018, 26 L. Ed. 2d 586 (1970), such credit may be necessary to avoid constitutional difficulty when an indigent defendant is sentenced to the maximum allowable term for an offense. I conclude that this principle is inapposite here because the petitioner’s maximum term of commitment based on his insanity acquittal was not the maximum allowable term that the trial court could have imposed under the offense charged, i.e., manslaughter in the first degree. See General Statutes § 17-257c (e). A distinction must be drawn between the maximum term of commitment to a mental health facility and the maximum allowable sentence under the charge upon which the individual was acquitted. The trial court can set the maximum term of commitment at any length of time not exceeding the maximum allowable sentence that the individual could have received if convicted of the crime charged. See General Statutes § 17-257c (e). The trial court in this case ordered the petitioner committed for a maximum term of ten years, whereas the maximum allowable term of incarceration for manslaughter in the first degree, the charged offense, was twenty years. See General