People v. J.C.People v. J.C.
- Reporters:
- ,
- Before:
- Duarte, Butz, Renner
APPEAL from a judgment of the Superior Court of Sacramento County, James P. Arguelles, Judge. Reversed with directions.
Lauren E. Dodge, under appointment by the Court of Appeal, for Defendant and Appellant.
* Pursuant to California Rules of Court, rules 8.1105 and 8.1110, this opinion is certified for publication with the exception of parts II and III.
Kamala D. Harris, Attorney General, Gerald A. Engler, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Michael P. Farrell, Assistant Attorney General, Stephen G. Herndon, Melissa Lipon, Deputy Attorney General, for Plaintiff and Respondent.
When J.C. was 12 years old, the juvenile court adjudicated him a ward of the court based on his commission of a forcible lewd act (sodomy) on a five-year-old. (
On appeal, J.C. contends lifetime sex offender registration for juveniles is cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution. We reject this contention as we explain in the published portion of this opinion.
In the unpublished portion of this opinion, we address J.C.‘s challenges to his commitment based on the juvenile court‘s errors in committing him before obtaining a risk assessment, subsequently relying on an inapplicable risk assessment tool, and misstating his maximum period of confinement. We shall remand for administration of an age-appropriate risk assessment and correction of the maximum term of confinement.
FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
J.C. was born in December of 1996. His early years were marked by extreme neglect and abuse. He was removed from his mother at age five and placed in numerous foster homes until he was eventually adopted.
The following year J.C. admitted a violation of probation, being in the presence of minors under age 14 without the supervision of an adult. The court revoked and reinstated probation on the same terms.
In 2012 it was reported that J.C. inappropriately touched his disabled minor sister. J.C.‘s (adoptive) mother stated she could no longer adequately supervise J.C. The juvenile court granted a motion to modify custody and J.C. was placed with Martin‘s Achievement Place group home. The People filed a new wardship petition, based on the same allegations that J.C. had committed two lewd and lascivious acts on his 12-year-old sister. A psychological evaluation reported that J.C. was not making progress at the sex offender‘s program at Martin‘s Achievement Place. J.C. admitted one lewd act, placing his mouth and tongue on his sister‘s breast, as a violation of probation. The second violation of probation and the petition were dismissed. The court committed J.C. to (level B) placement at Lakeside Academy in Michigan.
At first, J.C. did well there, but then stagnated in the sex offender treatment program. In late 2014, J.C. inappropriately touched another student at the group home, grabbing a boy‘s buttocks, and Lakeside Academy requested that he be moved. A violation of probation was filed based on this incident.
The juvenile court sustained the violation of probation and considered the question of proper placement. The juvenile court recognized that if J.C. were sent to DJF,2 he would be required to register as a sex offender; the court commented that minors were usually not required to register so as not to “mess up the rest of their lives by hanging this tag on them.” J.C.‘s counsel suggested placement at the Victory Outreach Program, a one-year Christian program for recovery from addiction. He admitted the program usually did
Probation reported that no juvenile sex offender counseling was available at Victory Outreach; however, the program reported that it would allow J.C.‘s mother to take him to counseling. There were concerns that J.C. might face retaliation if others learned of his past and that he would have potential contact with children while at the program.
The juvenile court found Victory Outreach was not a good fit and committed J.C. to DJF, with a maximum confinement of 10 years,3 not to exceed the statutory limitation of commitment to age 23. The court ordered J.C. to register as a sex offender.
DISCUSSION
I
Lifetime Sex Offender Registration for Juveniles
J.C. contends lifetime sex offender registration for an offense committed as a juvenile is cruel and unusual punishment. He challenges the rationale underpinning the registration requirement, contending juvenile sex offenders have low rates of recidivism and registration does not promote public safety. He argues that mandatory lifetime registration for juveniles fails to distinguish between adult and juvenile offenders as required by recent United States Supreme Court case law. He contends such registration constitutes punishment because although the intent is regulatory, the effect is punitive.
A. Forfeiture
The People contend J.C. has forfeited this issue by failing to raise it in the juvenile court. The People rely on numerous cases that hold a claim that a punishment is cruel and unusual is forfeited by the failure to object on that ground. The rationale of these cases is that the challenge is fact specific, requiring an “examination of the offense and the offender.” (People v. Norman (2003) 109 Cal.App.4th 221, 229; see also People v. Dejesus (1995) 38 Cal.App.4th 1, 27 [application of People v. Dillon (1983) 34 Cal.3d 441 is fact specific].)
Thus we will consider whether
B. Registration Requirements for Juveniles
Not all juveniles who commit sex offenses, even serious offenses, are required to register. Juvenile wards are required to register as sex offenders only “when they are discharged or paroled from [DJF] after having been committed for one of the enumerated offenses.” (In re Bernardino S. (1992) 4 Cal.App.4th 613, 619-620.)
In certain circumstances a juvenile may obtain relief from the registration requirement. A person who has been adjudicated a ward of the court may petition to have his or her juvenile records sealed. (
C. Policy Challenges
J.C. challenges the various rationales for sex offender registration, contending they do not apply to juveniles. Citing several law review articles and studies, he asserts that juvenile sex offenders, unlike adults, have low rates of recidivism. He contends this lower recidivism rate shows that juvenile sex offender registration is not rationally related to a nonpunitive purpose and lifetime registration is excessive because most juveniles will not re-offend. J.C. further contends that juvenile registration does not promote public safety, but may actually impede it by limiting the juvenile‘s opportunities to pursue a normal life and engage in the community.
These policy arguments, although certainly intriguing, are properly addressed to the Legislature. “Courts do not sit as super-legislatures to determine the wisdom, desirability or propriety of statutes enacted by the Legislature.” (Estate of Horman (1971) 5 Cal.3d 62, 77.) “In reviewing the constitutionality of legislation, it must be remembered that ‘[c]ourts have nothing to do with the wisdom of laws . . . ,
Further, J.C. has not established that juvenile offenders have lower recidivism rates. His own record of multiple offenses is not particularly supportive of this claim. The general issue of recidivism rates for juveniles was not raised in the trial court, and the People did not address it in their briefing, much less stipulate to any record of undisputed facts that would provide us with sufficient foundation to decide the issue in the first instance.
At oral argument, the deputy attorney general remarked that social science studies show the general recidivism rate of juvenile sex offenders is low, while arguing that J.C. is a dangerous predator and recidivist, as shown by his own criminal history. This casual reference to unspecified studies does not provide us with an adequate factual foundation to address J.C.‘s argument that minors have different recidivism rates than adults. Absent the necessary factual record, we cannot find J.C.‘s assertion on this factual issue is undisputed. The appellate court is not the proper place to lay the factual foundation for an argument.6
D. Registration as Punishment
A necessary predicate to a finding of cruel and unusual punishment is that juvenile sex offender registration is punishment. (See In re Alva (2004) 33 Cal.4th 254, 260 (Alva).) J.C. has failed to establish this necessary predicate.
1. Case Law
Both the United States Supreme Court and our Supreme Court have held that mandatory lifetime sex registration is not cruel and unusual punishment.
In Smith v. Doe (2003) 538 U.S. 84 [155 L.Ed.2d 164] (Smith), the United States Supreme Court held retroactive application of the Alaska Sex Offender Registration Act (SORA) did not violate the ex post facto clause. SORA required a sex offender to register with law enforcement authorities and made public much of the registration information. (Id. at p. 89.) The court looked first to the intent of the Alaska Legislature and found the intent was “to create a civil, nonpunitive regime.” (Id. at p. 96.) The court looked next to the effects of SORA and whether they were so punitive as to negate the intent. (Id. at p. 92.) In analyzing the effects, the court referred to the seven-factor test of Kennedy v. Mendoza-Martinez (1963) 372 U.S. 144, 168-169 [9 L.Ed.2d 644] (Mendoza-Martinez). (Smith, at p. 97.)
The Smith court found the “most relevant” of the Mendoza-Martinez factors to be “whether, in its necessary operation, the regulatory scheme: has been regarded in our history and traditions as a punishment; imposes an affirmative disability or restraint; promotes the traditional aims of punishment; has a rational connection to a nonpunitive purpose; or is excessive with respect to this purpose.” (Smith, supra, 538 U.S. at p. 97.) It found sex registration laws did not resemble colonial punishments designed to inflict public disgrace. There was no infliction of physical pain or direct confrontation between offender and the public. (Id. at p. 98.) “[T]he stigma of Alaska‘s Megan‘s Law results not from public display for ridicule and shaming but from the dissemination of accurate information about a criminal record, most of which is already public. Our system does not treat dissemination of truthful information in furtherance of a legitimate governmental objective as punishment.” (Ibid.)
SORA imposed no physical restraint and its obligations were less than occupational disbarment which had been held to be nonpunitive. (Smith, supra, 538 U.S. at p. 100.) “Although the public availability of the information may have a lasting and painful impact on the convicted sex offender, these consequences flow not from the Act‘s registration and dissemination provisions, but from the fact of conviction, already a matter of public record.” (Id. at p. 101.) That SORA might deter future crime was insufficient to show it was punitive. ” ‘To hold that the mere presence of a deterrent purpose
The Smith court found SORA‘s rational connection to a nonpunitive purpose to be the ” ‘most significant factor’ ” in determining its effects were not punitive. (Smith, supra, 538 U.S. at p. 102.) SORA had a legitimate, nonpunitive purpose of public safety, advanced by alerting the public to risk of sex offenders in their community. (Id. at pp. 102-103.) In this regard, it was not necessary that SORA be narrowly drawn to accomplish its purpose; a categorical judgment based on the conclusion “that a conviction for a sex offense provides evidence of substantial risk of recidivism” was sufficient. (Id. at p. 103.) The duration of the reporting requirements was not excessive given empirical research that offenders may reoffend many years after release.7 (Id. at p. 104.)
In Alva, supra, 33 Cal.4th at page 262, the unanimous California Supreme Court held the mere registration of sex offenders under
disordered recidivist sex offenders beyond their prison terms was not punishment for double jeopardy or ex post facto purposes] and People v. Castellanos (1999) 21 Cal.4th 785 [sex offender registration not punishment under ex post facto clause], the court found “[b]eyond doubt” that sex offender registration was not punishment, but a legitimate, nonpunitive regulatory measure. (Alva, at pp. 279-280.) “Given the general danger of recidivism presented by those convicted of criminal sexual misconduct, and the relatively minor burden registration represents, the Legislature may adopt a rule of general application for this class of offenders, and may guard against the demonstrated long-term risk of reoffense by imposing a permanent obligation on persons convicted of such crimes.” (Ibid.)
Further, the Alva court considered whether sex offender registration, although civil in nature, was nonetheless punishment under Austin v. United States (1993) 509 U.S. 602 [125 L.Ed.2d 488], a civil forfeiture case. (Alva, supra, 33 Cal.4th at p. 286.) Under the Austin test, ” ’ “[A] civil sanction that cannot fairly be said solely to serve a remedial purpose, but rather can only be explained as also serving either retributive or deterrent purposes, is punishment, as we have come to understand the term.” [Citation.]’ [Citations.]” (Id. at p. 283.) Again, the Alva court found sex offender registration was not punishment. (Id. at p. 290.) Sex offender registration laws are “intended to assist law enforcement to maintain surveillance of recidivist sex offenders, and have no purpose to punish for past misconduct.” (Id. at p. 287.) The court again relied on the ” ’ “frightening and high” ’ ” danger of recidivism and the need for “regulatory leeway to deal with the serious problem of recidivist sex offenses.” (Id. at p. 289.)
This is the current state of the law. Broadly speaking, mandatory lifetime sex offender registration is not punishment. However, because the cases do not mention the age of the offender as a factor in the analysis,8 we turn to J.C.‘s attempts to distinguish Smith and Alva based on his juvenile status at the time of his offense.
2. Public Disclosure of Juvenile Information
J.C. contends Smith and Alva, holding that mandatory sex offender registration is not punishment, are not dispositive because they concern adult sex offender registration and juveniles are different from adults. Under the
J.C. focuses on the public disclosure aspects of juvenile sex offender registration and argues disclosure has a greater impact on juveniles because juvenile records are usually confidential rather than public as are adult records.9 In Smith, the United States Supreme Court rejected the argument that sex offender registration resembled the historic
punishment of shaming. (Smith, supra, 538 U.S. at p. 98 [“the stigma of Alaska‘s Megan‘s Law results not from public display for ridicule and shaming but from the dissemination of accurate information about a criminal record, most of which is already public“].) The court next found no affirmative disability or restraint, noting any painful impact was due to the conviction, a public record, not the Act‘s registration and dissemination requirements. (Id. at p. 101.)
J.C. argues mandatory lifetime registration for juvenile sex offenders does impose an affirmative disability or restraint because it “mandates the public dissemination of information that would otherwise be confidential.” We consider the extent to which registration under
First, we recognize that juvenile court records are generally confidential, “but not absolutely so.” (In re Keisha T. (1995) 38 Cal.App.4th 220, 231.)
J.C. contends that law enforcement may provide information about a registered sex offender to the public “when necessary to ensure the public safety.” (
Even assuming that
J.C. argues his identifying information “could be” published on the Megan‘s Law website (
J.C. recognizes these points but argues “there remains a risk that the Attorney General will change its policy and juvenile offenders like J.C. would be included on the Megan‘s Law website.” J.C. cannot prevail in his facial challenge to
There are disclosure requirements that expressly apply to juvenile offenders. Anyone required to register pursuant to
J.C. also objects to the breadth of the disclosure required of juveniles, contending it includes private information such as Internet identifiers. J.C. misstates the scope of this requirement. It is true that registered sex offenders may be required to provide a list of all Internet identifiers. (
J.C. has failed to show the limited degree of public disclosure applicable to juveniles required to register pursuant to
3. The Differences between Juveniles and Adults
As to the remaining Mendoza-Martinez factors applied to identify punishment, J.C. contends the analysis must be different than that in Smith or Alva because
In Roper v. Simmons (2005) 543 U.S. 551 [161 L.Ed.2d 1], the court adopted a categorical rule barring imposition of the death penalty on
In Graham v. Florida (2010) 560 U.S. 48, 74 [176 L.Ed.2d 825, 845], the court held a sentence of life without parole for a juvenile offender who did not commit homicide violated the Eighth Amendment. If a state imposes a sentence of life on a juvenile offender, “it must provide him or her with some realistic opportunity to obtain release before the end of that term.” (Id. at p. 82.) In rejecting the harsher punishment for juveniles, the court emphasized the characteristics of youth, identified in Roper, that make juveniles less culpable and less susceptible to deterrence than adults. (Id. at pp. 68-72.)
In J.D.B. v. North Carolina (2011) 564 U.S. 261 [180 L.Ed.2d 310] (J.D.B.), the court required consideration of youth outside the sentencing context. It held a juvenile‘s age must be considered in determining whether he or she was in custody for purposes of Miranda v. Arizona (1966) 384 U.S. 436 [16 L.Ed.2d 694]. “It is beyond dispute that children will often feel bound to submit to police questioning when an adult in the same circumstances would feel free to leave. Seeing no reason for police officers or courts to blind themselves to that commonsense reality, we hold that a child‘s age properly informs the Miranda custody analysis.” (J.D.B., at pp. 264-265.)
In Miller v. Alabama (2012) 567 U.S. 460 [183 L.Ed.2d 407], the court considered mandatory sentences of life without the possibility of parole for juveniles. It held “mandatory life without parole for those under the age of 18 at the time of their crimes violates the Eighth Amendment‘s prohibition on ‘cruel and unusual punishments’ ” because it “runs afoul of our cases’ requirement of individualized sentencing for defendants facing the most serious penalties.” (Id. at p. 465.) The court again relied on the three significant differences between children and adults, stating ”Roper and Graham establish that children are constitutionally different from adults for purposes of sentencing.” (Id. at p. 471.)
J.C. argues the recognition that children are different from adults, and that such differences must be considered when determining the harshness of sentencing, must apply equally to sex offender registration for juveniles. He
To the extent J.C. is using the “children are different” analysis to determine whether mandatory lifetime sex offender registration for juveniles is punishment, his argument is circular. He appears to recognize that he cannot use the so-called Miller factors, applicable to harsh sentencing that is indisputably punishment, to establish that juvenile sex offender registration is punishment. But unless he first establishes that registration is punishment, this line of cases does not even arguably apply to him. Roper, Graham, and Miller rely on the significant differences between children and adults in imposing the harshest punishments. “At the core of Miller‘s rationale is the proposition—articulated in Roper, amplified in Graham, and further elaborated in Miller itself—that constitutionally significant differences between children and adults ‘diminish the penological justifications for imposing the harshest sentences on juvenile offenders.’ [Citation.] The high court said in plain terms that because of ‘children‘s diminished culpability and heightened capacity for change, we think appropriate occasions for sentencing juveniles to this harshest possible penalty will be uncommon.’ [Citation.] ‘That is especially so because of the great difficulty . . . of distinguishing at this early age between “the juvenile offender whose crime reflects unfortunate yet transient immaturity, and the rare juvenile offender whose crime reflects irreparable corruption.” [Citations.]’ [Citation.]” (People v. Gutierrez (2014) 58 Cal.4th 1354, 1379.) That children are less culpable and more capable of change than adults is relevant in determining whether the harshest punishment is appropriate, but it does not establish that sex offender registration is punishment, let alone that it is one of the harshest.
Moreover, the distinctive “attributes of youth” (Miller v. Alabama, supra, 567 U.S. 461) of the particular minor are considered by the juvenile court long before the point where mandatory lifetime sex offender registration is reached. Indeed, recognition that “children are different” is the underpinning of the juvenile court system. The juvenile court system‘s primary purpose is different than that of adult criminal law. (In re Charles C. (1991) 232 Cal.App.3d 952, 960.)
The purpose of
“When determining the proper disposition for a minor who has been found to be a delinquent, the court must consider (1) the minor‘s age, (2) the circumstances and gravity of the offense, and (3) the minor‘s previous delinquent history. [Citations.] Additionally, there must be evidence in the record demonstrating both a probable benefit to the minor by a [DJF] commitment and the inappropriateness or ineffectiveness of less restrictive alternatives. [Citation.] In fact, no ward of the juvenile court shall be committed to the DJF unless the judge of the court is fully satisfied that the mental and physical condition and qualifications of the ward are such as to render it probable he will be benefited by the reformatory educational discipline or other treatment provided by DJF. [Citations.]”10 (In re Joseph H. (2015) 237 Cal.App.4th 517, 542.)
Thus, at every step of his various placements--from his mother‘s home, to Martin‘s Achievement Place, to Lakeside Academy, and finally to DJF (the placement that triggered the registration requirement)--the court has considered J.C.‘s “attributes of youth.” Unlike adults, juveniles are not required to register simply because they committed certain crimes. J.C. has failed to show that because “children are different,” juvenile sex offender registration is punishment.
Because J.C. has failed to establish that juvenile sex offender registration is punishment, his claim that registration is cruel and unusual punishment must fail.
II
Failure to Use Age-Appropriate Risk Assessment Tool
A. Background
After the juvenile court committed J.C. to DJF, a representative of DJF wrote the court about compliance with
The juvenile court ordered Dr. Weber to administer the risk assessment tool JSORRAT-II, an actuarial measure of risk for juvenile sexual offense recidivism.11 J.C. scored an 11 on the JSORRAT-II which placed him in the category of a moderate to high risk to reoffend. His risk factors were based on the length of his sexual offending history, the number of victims, that he was on probation, his sex offender treatment failure, his placement in special education, and the number of educational discipline problems. The court found JSORRAT-II to be the appropriate risk assessment tool, even though J.C. was now 18. The court ordered DJF to continue processing J.C.
B. Analysis
J.C. contends the juvenile court erred by committing him to DJF without first ordering a risk assessment, as required by
As to the first error--committing J.C. to DJF without obtaining a risk assessment--the juvenile court corrected the error by obtaining a risk assessment and then ordering DJF to proceed with the placement. Thus, we focus on the second alleged error--use of an inappropriate risk assessment tool.
The selection of the appropriate risk assessment tool for sex offenders is entrusted to the SARATSO Review Committee. (
While we do not question the People‘s analysis of the appropriateness of DJF placement, the People ignore the other proper uses of a risk assessment. As J.C. details, the California SARATSO Review and Training Committee has set forth the four main uses for risk assessment scores: (1) sentencing; (2) by law enforcement in making a decision whether a registered sex offender poses a current risk to the public such that public notification is appropriate; (3) to determine whether a registered sex offender must be supervised on a high risk case load while on probation or parole; and (4) in determining placement in a sex offender treatment program.12 (Cal. SARATSO Review and Training Committees, Sex Offender Risk Assessment in California (Jan. 3, 2017) p. 5.)
Because J.C.‘s risk assessment score may be used subsequent to his commitment to DJF, the score should be determined by using the proper age-appropriate risk assessment tool to ensure that it is as accurate as possible. Accordingly, we reverse and remand the dispositional order to provide for J.C.‘s assessment using the age-appropriate risk assessment tool.
III
Maximum Term of Confinement
“A ward committed to the Division of Juvenile Facilities may not be held in physical confinement for a period of time in excess of the maximum period of imprisonment that could be imposed upon an adult convicted of the offense or offenses that brought or continued the minor under the jurisdiction of the juvenile court.” (
In 2010, the Legislature enacted the Chelsea King Child Predator Prevention Act of 2010. (Stats. 2010, ch. 219, § 1.) One
J.C. contends increasing his maximum term of confinement from 8 to 10 years violated the ex post facto clause of both the state and federal constitutions. The People concede the error and agree the dispositional order should be modified to show a maximum term of confinement of eight years. We agree with the parties and direct the juvenile court to correct the error on remand.
DISPOSITION
The dispositional order is reversed and the matter is remanded to the juvenile court with directions to request the age-appropriate SARATSO risk assessment for J.C. Upon receipt of the results of the risk assessment test, the court shall hold a new disposition hearing and enter a new dispositional order as it deems appropriate. The new dispositional order shall state the maximum term of confinement is eight years.
/s/
Duarte, J.
We concur:
/s/
Butz, Acting P. J.
/s/
Renner, J.