Marinette County v. A. M. N.

CourtCourt of Appeals of Wisconsin
DecidedAugust 29, 2023
Docket2022AP001395
StatusUnpublished

This text of Marinette County v. A. M. N. (Marinette County v. A. M. N.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Wisconsin primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Marinette County v. A. M. N., (Wis. Ct. App. 2023).

Opinion

COURT OF APPEALS DECISION NOTICE DATED AND FILED This opinion is subject to further editing. If published, the official version will appear in the bound volume of the Official Reports. August 29, 2023 A party may file with the Supreme Court a Samuel A. Christensen petition to review an adverse decision by the Clerk of Court of Appeals Court of Appeals. See WIS. STAT. § 808.10 and RULE 809.62.

Appeal No. 2022AP1395 Cir. Ct. No. 2022ME31

STATE OF WISCONSIN IN COURT OF APPEALS DISTRICT III

IN THE MATTER OF THE MENTAL COMMITMENT OF A. M. N.:

MARINETTE COUNTY,

PETITIONER-RESPONDENT,

V.

A. M. N.,

RESPONDENT-APPELLANT.

APPEAL from orders of the circuit court for Marinette County: JANE M. SEQUIN, Judge. Order affirmed; order reversed.

¶1 GILL, J.1 Alex2 appeals a WIS. STAT. ch. 51 commitment order and an associated order allowing for the involuntary administration of medication.

1 This appeal is decided by one judge pursuant to WIS. STAT. § 752.31(2)(d) (2021-22). All references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to the 2021-22 version unless otherwise noted. No. 2022AP1395

Alex argues that the circuit court erroneously exercised its discretion by admitting and relying on hearsay evidence regarding the dangerousness element, and that such error is not harmless. Additionally, Alex contends that there was insufficient evidence to support the involuntary medication order because Alex did not receive the required reasonable explanation of the advantages, disadvantages, and alternatives to the proposed medications, as required by WIS. STAT. § 51.61(1)(g)4.

¶2 We assume without deciding that the circuit court erroneously exercised its discretion when it admitted hearsay evidence and subsequently relied, in part, on the hearsay evidence in its findings. Regardless, we conclude that such error was harmless because the court also relied on properly admitted evidence in its findings and that evidence was sufficient to meet the dangerous standard. Therefore, we affirm the commitment order. However, we conclude that the County failed to show that Alex was provided with the explanation required by WIS. STAT. § 51.61(1)(g)4. In doing so, we assume without deciding that Alex’s challenge to the involuntary medication order is moot, but we conclude that Alex’s appeal presents an “exceptional or compelling circumstance[]” warranting review. Therefore, we reverse the involuntary medication order.

BACKGROUND

¶3 In April 2022, Alex was exhibiting “extremely paranoid” behavior and reportedly “cutting wires on different appliances” in the home where he lived with his grandparents. He was thereafter detained under WIS. STAT. § 51.15.

2 For ease of reading, we refer to the appellant and his family members in this confidential appeal using pseudonyms, rather than their initials.

2 No. 2022AP1395

¶4 In May 2022, at a final hearing, Dr. Michele Andrade, Dr. Kevin Miller, Deputy David Oginski, and Alex all testified. Oginski testified regarding his contact with Alex’s grandfather, Dwayne, and Alex at their home in April 2022. According to Oginski, Dwayne informed Oginski that he was awoken by a loud bang in the basement, which is where Alex’s bedroom was located. Dwayne also informed Oginski that “they had previous problems the last couple nights” because Alex had “manipulat[ed] the furnace, water heater, freezer, [and] various electrical appliances down in the basement” by “cutting wires.” Alex’s lawyer objected to this testimony on hearsay grounds. After counsel explained that she was “not offering this [testimony] for the truth of the matter,” the circuit court overruled the objection and allowed the testimony, noting that “it’s just for background.”

¶5 After Deputy Oginski further testified about Dwayne’s concerns regarding Alex, Alex’s lawyer renewed his hearsay objection. Again, the circuit court overruled the objection, stating that the challenged testimony was “only allowed for the purpose of laying background.” The County then asked Oginski if cutting wires was dangerous, to which Alex’s lawyer objected, on grounds of lack of qualification. Oginski stated that “based on [his] training and experience[, he] believe[d] these are things that should not be manipulated or cut by somebody who is not a trained, qualified technician.” Oginski further stated that while he did not see who cut the wires, he personally observed that the wires “were cut and manipulated” on the water heater, the furnace, the freezer, and a control panel.

¶6 Doctor Miller testified next. He explained that Alex “elected to remain silent,” so his examination was based on “collateral information.” The County then asked Miller to give a “brief summary” of Alex’s history, “leading up to this incident,” to which Miller responded:

3 No. 2022AP1395

What I understood is that he has previously been treated for psychosis with a diagnosis of schizophrenia and that he was living with his grandparents and that it appeared as though his grandmother was the main one that helped him. She went out of town. He stopped taking medications after she went out of town, and his mental status deteriorated. He started to work on—

At that point, Alex’s lawyer objected, asserting a hearsay objection. The County responded that the testimony “can be used because [Miller is] an expert and he can use collateral information to base his opinions that he’s going to state today.” The circuit court agreed and overruled the objection. Miller then testified that the “information” indicated that Alex had stopped taking his medications as prescribed, that his mental status had “deteriorated,” that he believed Alex’s diagnosis to be schizophrenia “based on the history and documentation,” that the records showed that Alex’s “mental status [had] deteriorated,” and that Alex was doing unnecessary electrical work in his grandparents’ home.

¶7 Doctor Miller noted that it is “a fairly common problem in people with psychosis that they start to believe there’s something wrong with the mechanical systems of the home.” Explaining further, Miller testified that people who experience psychosis often “start doing electrical work or damaging property in the home” because they “believe there’s something wrong” or “something nefarious going on.” According to Miller, this behavior can lead to individuals “electrocuting themselves or causing fires in the home,” which endangers themselves and others.

¶8 Doctor Miller testified he believed that the applicable dangerousness standard for Alex “was the third standard,” under WIS. STAT. § 51.20(1)(a)2.c., and he opined that Alex presented “a significant risk of harm to others and himself.” Miller reasoned that this risk was, in part, because Alex was cutting the

4 No. 2022AP1395

wires “in a dangerous way,” “such as grabbing bare wires with his hands.” Miller also expressed concern that Alex was unqualified to do such work, and that this behavior “didn’t just happen once; it happened multiple times” while Dwayne was home.

¶9 Regarding medication, Dr. Miller testified that the records indicated that Alex “had stopped taking his medications as prescribed.” Miller opined that Alex was incompetent to refuse medications because he was “not able to understand the risks, benefits, and alternatives to medications.”

¶10 Doctor Miller further testified that “[t]he nurse practitioner tried at least twice” to explain the advantages, disadvantages, and alternatives of the medications to Alex. Alex’s lawyer objected, and the circuit court overruled the objection, explaining that Miller had reviewed the records from the nurse practitioner.

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Bluebook (online)
Marinette County v. A. M. N., Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/marinette-county-v-a-m-n-wisctapp-2023.