D.V. v. State

2011 UT App 241, 265 P.3d 803, 2011 WL 3209897
CourtCourt of Appeals of Utah
DecidedJuly 29, 2011
DocketNo. 20090589-CA
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 2011 UT App 241 (D.V. v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Utah primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
D.V. v. State, 2011 UT App 241, 265 P.3d 803, 2011 WL 3209897 (Utah Ct. App. 2011).

Opinions

OPINION

THORNE, Judge:

{1 D.V. appeals from the juvenile court's adjudication finding him in contempt of court. We affirm in part and reverse in part.

BACKGROUND

T2 On May 10, 2006, the juvenile court entered an order placing D.V. in the interim custody of the Division of Child and Family Services (DCFS). On May 10, 2009, D.V. [805]*805ran away from his DCFS placement. The State filed a petition alleging contempt for violating the 2006 order placing D.V. in the custody of DCFS. The allegation was based on only a claim that D.V. had run away from his foster placement.

T3 The juvenile court held a trial on the contempt allegation. The State called two witnesses: Adam Attridge, D.V.'s DCFS caseworker, and Jose Trujillo, D.V.'s counsel- or at Valley Mental Health. D.V.'s DCFS caseworker testified about statements D.V.'s foster mother made to him on the day D.V. did not return to his foster placement. 2 De fense counsel objected on hearsay grounds. The State argued that the testimony was admissible under rule 1101 of the Utah Rules of Evidence. The juvenile court invited defense counsel to respond. Defense counsel declined and the court admitted the hearsay evidence based on rule 1101. Thereafter, D.V.'s counselor testified about statements D.V.'s mother and grandmother had made to him.3

T4 The juvenile court, in its oral ruling, found D.V. in contempt, stating as follows:

In addition to the order from-let me see-May [10]th, I can take judicial notice of the Court's file that on at least six different occasions [D.V.] was present with his guardian ad litem and each and every one of those occasions I reiterated that [D.V.] was in the custody of DCFS.
Additionally, the evidence that [D.V.] called his foster mother, that he also called his grandmother and said that he needed some money and that he needed help is evidence that he knew he wasn't supposed to be on the run and that he wasn't supposed to leave the placement.
So I will find that allegation 388 [contempt] is true....

Following trial on the contempt allegation, the juvenile court ordered D.V. to continue in the custody of DCFS and that D.V. be held in detention pending placement within forty-eight hours. D.V. timely appealed from the juvenile court's contempt order.

ISSUES AND STANDARDS OF REVIEW

T5 D.V. argues that the juvenile court erred by admitting hearsay testimony of statements D.V.'s mother, his grandmother, and his foster mother made to his DCFS caseworker and his counselor. "The question of whether evidence is admissible can be either a question of discretion, which we review for abuse of discretion, or a question of law, which we review for correctness." State v. Bujan, 2006 UT App 322, ¶ 14, 142 P.3d 581 (internal quotation marks omitted). "In this instance, because [D.V. essentially requests this court] to address the meaning of a rule of evidence, there is a question of law and we assess the trial court's ruling for correctness." Id.

16 D.V. also argues that there was insufficient evidence for the juvenile court to find him in contempt of the order placing him in the interim custody of DCFS. "When reviewing a bench trial for sufficiency of the evidence we must sustain the trial court's judgment unless it is against the clear weight of the evidence, or if [we] otherwise reach[ ] [806]*806a definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been made." American Fork City v. Rothe, 2000 UT App 277, ¶4, 12 P.3d 108 (alterations in original) (internal quotation marks omitted). In order to hold D.V. in contempt of court, the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt, that he "knew what was required, had the ability to comply, and intentionally failed or refused to do so." Von Hake v. Thomas, 759 P.2d 1162, 1172 (Utah 1988).

ANALYSIS

I. Hearsay Testimony

17 D.V. first argues that the juvenile court erred by admitting hearsay testimony of statements D.V.'s mother, his grandmother, and his foster mother made to his DCFS caseworker and his counselor. The juvenile court ruled that the evidence was admissible under rule 1101 of the Utah Rules of Evidence, which provides that the rules of evidence are inapplicable in "[clontempt proceedings in which the court may act summarily." Utah R. Evid. 1101(b)(4). On appeal D.V. argues that the rule does not apply because his contempt charge was not subject to summary action, as it was not "committed in the immediate view and presence of the court, or judge at chambers." See Utah Code Ann. § 78B-6-802 (2008) (distinguishing between contempt that may be punished summarily and contempt that requires a hearing). Additionally, because a defendant has the right to confront witnesses in a contempt proceeding where the contempt was committed outside the presence of the court, see Gardiner v. York, 2010 UT App 108, ¶ 44, 233 P.3d 500, cert. denied, 238 P.3d 443 (Utah 2010); see also Burgers v. Maiben, 652 P.2d 1320, 1322 (Utah 1982), D.V. argues that the juvenile court's admission of hearsay evidence violated his rights under the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution, see U.S. Const. amend. VI ("In all erimi-nal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right ... to be confronted with the witnesses against him. ...").

T8 The State argues that D.V.'s claims are not preserved. "Utah courts require specific objections in order to bring all claimed errors to the trial court's attention to give the court an opportunity to correct the errors if appropriate." State v. Johnson, 2006 UT App 3, ¶ 13, 129 P.3d 282 (internal quotation marks omitted); see also In re K.F., 2009 UT 4, ¶62, 201 P.3d 985 ("[In order to preserve an issue for appeall,] the issue must be presented to the trial court in such a way that the trial court has an opportunity to rule on that issue.'" (second alteration in original) (quoting 438 Main St. v. Easy Heat, Inc., 2004 UT 72, ¶ 51, 99 P.3d 801); Pratt v. Nelson, 2007 UT 41, ¶ 15, 164 P.3d 366 ("[A] party may not claim to have preserved an issue for appeal by merely mentioning ... an issue without introducing supporting evidence or relevant legal authority." (omission in original) (internal quotation marks omitted)). At trial, D.V. objected to the testimony of the DCFS caseworker on hearsay grounds. The State conceded that the challenged testimony was hearsay, but argued that it was nevertheless admissible as an exception under rule 1101.4 Before the trial court ruled on the applicability of rule 1101, the court asked D.V.'s counsel, "[(Aluy-thing you want to say about that?" She responded, "No," and did not pursue the matter further.

19 We conclude that D.V.'s challenge to the applicability of rule 1101 was not preserved because the arguments he advances on appeal were not raised below. First, the issue on appeal is not whether the admitted testimony was hearsay but whether the rule 1101 exception applies in a nonsum-mary contempt proceeding. D.V.'s hearsay challenge was not specific enough to preserve his challenge to the applicability of rule 1101, particularly given his failure to make an argument on that issue when specifically invited to do so by the court. See generally Blecha v.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
2011 UT App 241, 265 P.3d 803, 2011 WL 3209897, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/dv-v-state-utahctapp-2011.