Fitzgerald v. State

805 N.E.2d 857, 2004 Ind. App. LEXIS 574, 2004 WL 728846
CourtIndiana Court of Appeals
DecidedApril 6, 2004
Docket28A01-0306-CR-199
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 805 N.E.2d 857 (Fitzgerald v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Fitzgerald v. State, 805 N.E.2d 857, 2004 Ind. App. LEXIS 574, 2004 WL 728846 (Ind. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinions

OPINION

SULLIVAN, Judge.

Following a jury trial, Patrick Fitzgerald was found guilty of Sexual Misconduct With a Minor, a Class B felony.1 He [861]*861presents three issues for our review, all of which are related to sentencing:

I. Whether the trial court erred in its assessment of aggravating and mitigating factors;
II. Whether the sentence is inappropriate; and |
III. Whether some imposed conditions of probation are unconstitutional.

We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.

Fitzgerald had known A.V. for her entire life. He was a friend of her father. Over the years, A.V. would accompany her father when he would visit Fitzgerald and other friends at Fitzgerald's place of employment and at the volunteer fire department where Fitzgerald was the Assistant Chief. During the summer of 2000, A.V., who was fourteen years old and a freshman in high school, moved into her father's home on a full-time basis.2 Over time, Fitzgerald and AV. began to talk frequently and a "romantic relationship" started in September of 2000. Over the next year, the relationship became sexual and A.V. and Fitzgerald would have sex on a weekly basis. Because A.V.'s father was a truck driver who left for work between 83 and 5 a.m., A.V. and Fitzgerald were able to hide their relationship.3 Nonetheless, AV's father became suspicious of A.V. and Fitzgerald and confronted them. They both denied that there was any sort of relationship between them.

In September or October of 2001, A.V. became pregnant. She told only Fitzgerald, and she did not seek medical care. It was not until April 2002, when a school guidance counselor asked A.V. if she was pregnant, that she informed anyone other than Fitzgerald of her pregnancy. At that time, she sought medical care and delivered a baby girl on June 12, 2002. As a consequence, Fitzgerald was charged with the present offense and was convicted.

The trial court sentenced Fitzgerald to ten years in the Department of Correction, and suspended three years of the sentence on the grounds that Fitzgerald commit no violation of law and that he be placed on supervised probation until April 3, 2018. In entering its sentencing order, the trial court identified several aggravating and mitigating cireumstances and determined that they balanced, making the presumptive sentence appropriate. The trial court also stated that any sentence less than ten years would depreciate the serious of the crime.

L

Aggravating and Mitigating Factors

Fitzgerald contends that the trial court erred in relying upon two aggravating circumstances in sentencing. Specifically, Fitzgerald challenges the following findings:

"1. There is a risk that this offense may be repeated. Defendant has made clear repeatedly that he disagreed with the law, and that he has no regret in his actions. The Defendant has stated repeatedly that he knew the crime was wrong, but he continued to repeat it.
* ote ok
5. The victim now has an infant for whom she is responsible. The Defen[862]*862dant's actions have caused her to incur child care obligations that may have impeded opportunities or goals that young women may pursue." Appendix at 164-65.

Fitzgerald further contends that the trial court abused its discretion by failing to find the statutory mitigating cireumstance that this offense was the result of cireum-stances unlikely to recur. See Ind.Code § 35-38-1-7.1(c)(2) (Burns Code Ed. Supp. 2008).

Sentencing decisions lie within the discretion of the trial court. Jackson v. State, 728 N.E.2d 147, 154 (Ind.2000). When a trial court imposes a presumptive sentence, we presume that the trial court considered the proper factors in making the sentencing determination. Id. However, when a court identifies aggravating or mitigating cireumstances, it is obligated to include a statement of its reasons for selecting the sentence imposed. Id. The statement of reasons must contain three elements: (1) identification of all significant aggravating and mitigating cireum-stances; (2) the specific facts and reasons that lead the court to find the existence of each such cireumstance; and (8) reflection of an evaluation and balancing of the mitigating and aggravating circumstances in fixing the sentence. Id. The trial court is responsible for determining the appropriate weight to give aggravating and mitigating cireumstances. Powell v. State, 751 N.E.2d 311, 315 (Ind.Ct.App.2001).

A trial court is not obligated to find a cireumstance to be mitigating simply because it is offered by a defendant as a mitigating circumstance. Highbaugh v. State, 773 N.E.2d 247, 252 (Ind.2002). Additionally, a trial court is not obligated to weigh or credit the mitigating factor the same as the defendant requests. Id. Upon appeal, a defendant must show that the proffered mitigating cireumstance is both significant and clearly supported by the record. Id.

Fitzgerald's claim regarding the aggravator that - Fitzgerald's actions caused A.V. to incur child care obligations that may have impeded opportunities or goals that young women may pursue is persuasive. In its oral sentencing statement, the trial court stated, "I don't know what goals she may have set for herself, but for what occurred here I don't know what her plans might have been. I don't know how much easier if at all it might have been, but now she has to think not only of herself but a very small child. For someone of such tender age the Court can only conclude that that is a factor that I have to consider an aggravation." Tr. at 825-26. AV. testified that her goal was to become a firefighter and that she planned to accomplish that goal by attending school at V.U.4 In her victim impact statement included in the pre-sentence investigation report, she denied having any adverse effects due to the offense committed by Fitzgerald.

The State argues that the trial court was entitled to not give much eredit to A.V.'s statement because of her age and the belief that she may not understand the true costs and rewards of having a child. While it may be true that AV. has not fully experienced the difficulties that are inherent with raising a child, there is no indication from the evidence that having a child has negatively impacted A.V.'s ability to pursue her goals. Further, A.V.'s testimony indicates that she will be able to accomplish her goals. Consequently, the [863]*863aggravating cireumstance that the offense may have impeded A.V 's ability to pursue her goals is not supported by the evidence.

Turning to the other aggravating cireumstance challenged, that there is a risk that Fitzgerald would repeat the offense, we begin by noting the trial court's reasoning for why it believed that the offense could recur. That is that Fitzgerald repeatedly made clear that he disagreed with the law, that he had no regret for his actions, and that he knew the crime was wrong but continued to repeat it.

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Bluebook (online)
805 N.E.2d 857, 2004 Ind. App. LEXIS 574, 2004 WL 728846, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fitzgerald-v-state-indctapp-2004.