In the Matter of the Civil Commitment of: Ingram Oyugi

Court of Appeals of Minnesota·Decided May 6, 2024·No. a231702·Published

Opinion

This opinion is nonprecedential except as provided by Minn. R. Civ. App. P. 136.01, subd. 1(c).

STATE OF MINNESOTA

IN COURT OF APPEALS

A23-1702

In the Matter of the Civil Commitment of: Ingram Oyugi.

Filed May 6, 2024

Affirmed

Smith, Tracy M., Judge

Hennepin County District Court File No. 27-MH-PR-23-632

Thomas Hagler, St. Paul, Minnesota (for appellant Ingram Oyugi)

Mary F. Moriarty, Hennepin County Attorney, Annsara Lovejoy Elasky, Assistant County Attorney, Minneapolis, Minnesota (for respondent Hennepin County Attorney’s Office)

Considered and decided by Smith, Tracy M., Presiding Judge; Bratvold, Judge; and Jesson, Judge. ∗ NONPRECEDENTIAL OPINION

SMITH, TRACY M., Judge After being found incompetent to proceed on various criminal charges, appellant Ingram Oyugi was indeterminately committed as a person with mental illness who is dangerous to the public (MI&D) pursuant to Minnesota Statutes section 253B.18 (2022). Oyugi challenges the indeterminate commitment, arguing that the district court erred by (1) concluding that Oyugi engaged in overt acts capable of causing or attempting to cause

Retired judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals, serving by appointment pursuant to Minn. Const. art. VI, § 10.

serious physical harm to another, (2) concluding that Oyugi was indeterminately committable because he continued to meet the definition of a person who is MI&D and no less restrictive alternative was available, and (3) admitting and considering certain hearsay evidence and expert witness testimony. We affirm.

FACTS

Mental Health and Commitment History Oyugi was first hospitalized for psychiatric concerns in 2019. Between 2019 and 2022, he was hospitalized five times after engaging in behaviors dangerous to himself and others, including erratic driving, physically attacking his sister in 2020, wandering in traffic, and exhibiting symptoms of psychosis. During his hospitalizations, he repeatedly refused to engage meaningfully with staff, acknowledge his mental illness, and take prescribed medications. During this time, civil commitment as a person who poses a risk of harm due to mental illness (MI&H) was pursued but stayed. Underlying Criminal Proceedings On April 11, 2023, and April 21, 2023, two incidents allegedly occurred that led to Oyugi being charged with several criminal offenses.

In the days leading up to the April 11 incident, officers were twice dispatched to Oyugi’s residence—once on April 7 and again on April 9. On April 7, officers observed Oyugi walking around the home with a baseball bat. On April 9, when officers returned to the home, Oyugi, according to their report, “retreated back into the home and armed himself with a bat” when they approached.

On April 11, Oyugi’s mother and sister told Oyugi that they were gathering some belongings so they could leave the residence. According to the women, Oyugi started to yell, pulled a can of bear mace from a pouch on his hip, and sprayed them in the face with the mace. When officers arrived in response to a call, they found the women crawling around in pain on the driveway. The women’s eyes were closed and difficult to open, and their faces were red. The women reported that they were terrified to return home because, every time they did, Oyugi became upset and violent. Oyugi refused to exit the home, and the officers left Oyugi after determining that they would make an attempt to aid at a later point in time. Oyugi was charged with two counts of misdemeanor domestic assault and one count of misdemeanor disorderly conduct related to this incident.

On April 21, officers were called to the home to assist with serving an ex parte order for protection against Oyugi. After attempting to coax Oyugi outside over the phone, officers entered the home and heard him yelling from downstairs. Officers told Oyugi that they had a court order requiring him to leave the residence, and Oyugi sprayed an aerosol substance up the stairwell. Officers were forced to use gas masks to prevent them from being contaminated by the spray as they continued in their efforts to contain Oyugi. Additionally, Oyugi launched two taser probes at an officer, who was struck but not injured. Officers tried to negotiate with Oyugi for several hours.

Oyugi was eventually detained and brought to the hospital. At the hospital, he presented with “grossly psychotic symptoms and violent thoughts.” He was later discharged to the county jail with a prescription for medication. He was charged with one felony count of using tear gas to immobilize, one felony count of fourth-degree assault of

a peace officer, and one gross-misdemeanor count of using tear gas or stun gun on a peace officer in relation to the April 21 incident. Competency and Civil Commitment In May 2023, Oyugi was found incompetent to proceed on all pending criminal charges pursuant to Minnesota Rule of Criminal Procedure 20.01. He was then referred for civil commitment. Respondent Hennepin County filed a petition seeking to civilly commit Oyugi as MI&D for an indeterminate amount of time. The district court appointed Hennepin County Psychological Services to examine Oyugi, draft a report, and provide an opinion. Mallory Jorgenson, Ph.D., LP, was appointed, reviewed Oyugi’s records, and drafted a report.

The initial commitment hearing was held on July 11, 2023. At the initial hearing, the district court received numerous exhibits offered by the county and heard testimony from Dr. Jorgenson, Oyugi’s mother, and Oyugi. On July 20, 2023, the district court filed an order committing Oyugi as MI&D to the Forensic Mental Health Program (FMHP) 1 pursuant to Minnesota Statutes section 253B.18, subdivision 1(a).

In August 2023, a Jarvis hearing was held, during which Oyugi testified. 2 The district court subsequently issued a Jarvis order authorizing the administration of neuroleptic medications without Oyugi’s consent.

1 FMHP was formerly known as the Minnesota Security Hospital.

2 Jarvis refers to Jarvis v. Levine, in which the Minnesota supreme court held that healthcare professionals must obtain court approval before treating a patient with neuroleptic medications without the patient’s consent. 418 N.W.2d 139, 150 (Minn. 1988). A “Jarvis

In September 2023, Meagan McKenna, Psy.D., LP, from the FMHP provided the district court with a 60-day report pursuant to Minnesota Statutes section 253B.18, subdivision 2(a). A hearing was held on September 28, 2023, to determine whether Oyugi continued to be indeterminately committable. See Minn. Stat. § 253B.18, subd. 2(a) (requiring the district court to hold a review hearing “to make a final determination as to whether the patient should remain committed as a person who [is MI&D]”). At the hearing, the court received additional exhibits offered by the county and heard testimony from Dr. McKenna and Oyugi’s mother. On September 29, 2023, the district court issued an order committing Oyugi for an indeterminate period of time pursuant to Minnesota Statutes section 253B.18, subdivision 3.

Oyugi appeals.

DECISION

I. The district court did not err by concluding that Oyugi engaged in overt acts causing or attempting to cause serious physical harm to another.

Oyugi first challenges the district court’s initial commitment determination. He argues that the district court erred by concluding that he engaged in overt acts causing or attempting to cause harm as required by Minnesota Statutes section 253B.02, subdivision 17(2)(i) (2022), because his actions did not rise to the level of “serious physical harm.” We disagree.

hearing” and “Jarvis order” refer to the procedures for court approval for administration of neuroleptic medication without a patient’s consent.

Whether Oyugi’s actions constitute “overt acts causing or attempting to cause serious physical harm” within the meaning of the statute is a question of statutory application that this court reviews de novo. See In re Civ. Commitment of Kropp, 895 N.W.2d 647, 650 (Minn. App. 2017), rev. denied (Minn. June 20, 2017).

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