In re the Detention of Sease

357 P.3d 1088, 190 Wash. App. 29
Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided July 14, 2015·No. No. 45512-9-II·Published·Cited by 7 cases

Opinion

Lee, J.

¶1 — Michael Sease was civilly committed under the Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) Act, chapter 71.09 RCW, in 2007. At his show cause hearing in 2013, the trial court concluded that the State had presented prima facie evidence showing Sease still met the definition of an SVP. [32]*32The trial court further concluded that Sease had not established probable cause to believe his condition had so changed that he no longer met the definition of an SVP. Based on the plain language of RCW 71.09.090, and the recent opinion from our Supreme Court In re Personal Restraint of Meirhofer, 182 Wn.2d 632, 343 P.3d 731 (2015), we hold that the State established a prima facie case showing that Sease still met the definition of an SVP, and that Sease failed to present probable cause to believe his mental condition had “so changed” that he no longer met the definition of an SVP. Accordingly, we affirm.

FACTS

1. Background

¶2 Before the offenses for which Michael Sease was civilly committed in 2007, he had several run-ins with law enforcement and mental health professionals. Prior to dropping out of school in the 9th or 10th grade, Sease’s records indicated he was enrolled in special education classes, although Sease denies this. No verified juvenile record exists for Sease, but he reports he was caught stealing beer at the age of 15.

¶3 In 1980, when Sease was 19 or 20 years old, he physically and sexually assaulted a 31-year-old woman. In 1981, Sease was convicted of shoplifting. In 1982, Sease was charged with driving while intoxicated, obstructing a public servant, and a liquor violation. When Sease was about 25 years old, he was admitted to Western State Hospital after being found preparing to jump off a bridge. At that time, Sease was diagnosed with adjustment disorder with mixed emotions and dependent personality traits. In 1986, Sease was charged with simple assault and hit and run, for which he failed to appear. In 1987, Sease was arrested for driving while license suspended, simple assault, no valid operator’s license and failures to appear on previous charges. The same year, he kidnapped and attempted to rape a 15-year-[33]*33old girl and, less than a month later, raped a 19-year-old woman.

¶4 For the 1987 offenses, Sease was convicted of first degree kidnapping and first degree rape. In re Det. of Sease, 149 Wn. App. 66, 70, 201 P.3d 1078, review denied, 166 Wn.2d 1029 (2009). Sease was incarcerated for about 16 years. During his incarceration for these offenses, he received about 250 infractions, 200 of which were major infractions. Clinicians at the Department of Corrections believed his problems in prison were due to a personality disorder.

¶5 In 1990, following a series of self-mutilation incidents, Sease was evaluated by Dr. Thomas Foley. Sease denied committing any sexual offenses and said his self-mutilation was an expression of his anger for being unjustly imprisoned. Dr. Foley made the following diagnosis:

Axis I Deferred
Axis II Antisocial Personality Disorder
Borderline Personality Disorder
Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 269.
¶6 In 1994, Sease was evaluated by Dr. Edward Golden-berg. Dr. Goldenberg made the following diagnosis:
Axis I Paraphilia, Not Otherwise Specified Alcohol Abuse
Axis II Borderline Personality Disorder
Antisocial Personality Disorder
Mild Mental Retardation

CP at 269.

¶7 In 1996, Sease was evaluated by Dr. Barry Grosskopf. At that time, Dr. Grosskopf noted it was Sease’s “sixth psychiatric hospitalization .... He has previously attempted suicide or mutilated himself over 60 times.” CP at 269. Dr. Grosskopf made the following diagnosis:

Axis I Alcohol Dependence
[34]*34Axis II Borderline Personality Disorder with Antisocial Features

¶8 In 2002, Sease was evaluated by Dr. Savio Chan. When Dr. Chan asked Sease about the discrepancies between the contents of his file and his self-reporting, Sease responded, “My life is my business.” CP at 270. Dr. Chan further noted, “It is obvious that truth to him is whatever [is] convenient or advantageous to him,” and Sease showed “no remorse and no concern for his victims.” CP at 270.

¶9 In 2004, Sease was evaluated by Dr. Keri Clark. Dr. Clark concluded that Sease’s personality is “marked by a complex mixture of narcissistic, antisocial, and borderline features.” CP at 270. Dr. Clark noted the “primary areas of concern are the extreme sense of entitlement, acute sensitivity to perceived slights, lack of empathy, and fear that he will be abandoned or ignored.” Dr. Clark made the following diagnosis:

Axis I: No Diagnosis
Axis II: Personality Disorder, Not otherwise Specified, with Narcissistic, Antisocial, and Borderline Features

CP at 271.

f 10 Sease was scheduled to be released in 2005, but the State successfully petitioned the court to commit him as a sexually violent predator, and this court affirmed his commitment. Sease, 149 Wn. App. at 70. Dr. Dennis Doren completed Sease’s initial evaluation for civil commitment in 2005. At that time, Dr. Doren identified Sease as suffering from the following conditions:

Axis I Alcohol Dependence, with physiological dependence, in a controlled environment
Axis II Borderline Personality Disorder
Narcissistic Personality Disorder
[35]*35Antisocial Personality Disorder

CP at 27.

¶11 At the civil commitment trial, Dr. Doren testified that “ ‘[f]or each [personality disorder], what we look at is the pattern of behavior.’ ” Sease, 149 Wn. App. at 71 (first alteration in original). Dr. Doren also testified:

[A]ntisocial personality disorder involves a pattern of “disregard for and violation of the rights of others.” A person with a borderline personality disorder has a pattern of instability in any of four areas: emotions, thinking, interaction with other people, or ability to control impulses. The pattern for narcissistic personality disorder is “that they have disdain for everybody else. Nobody is as good as they are. They are above. They should be treated specially.... Other people are, basically, worthless.”

Sease, 149 Wn. App. at 71 n.6 (second alteration in original) (citation omitted). Dr. Doren further testified:

“[E]ach of [Sease’s] personality disorders caused him serious difficulty in controlling his behavior” and that the antisocial personality disorder and borderline personality disorder “predispose him to commit criminal sexual acts and make him likely to commit a criminal sexual act in the future if not confined.” [Dr.

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In re the Detention of Sease, 357 P.3d 1088, 190 Wash. App. 29 (Wash. Ct. App. 2015).

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