People v. Cutsinger

542 N.E.2d 414, 186 Ill. App. 3d 219, 134 Ill. Dec. 235, 1989 Ill. App. LEXIS 1084
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedJuly 19, 1989
Docket2-88-1262
StatusPublished
Cited by21 cases

This text of 542 N.E.2d 414 (People v. Cutsinger) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Cutsinger, 542 N.E.2d 414, 186 Ill. App. 3d 219, 134 Ill. Dec. 235, 1989 Ill. App. LEXIS 1084 (Ill. Ct. App. 1989).

Opinion

JUSTICE LINDBERG

delivered the opinion of the court:

Respondent, Charles Cutsinger, appeals from an order of the circuit court of Winnebago County finding respondent to be a person subject to involuntary admission (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91V2, pars. 1 — 119, 3 — 809) and hospitalizing him in the Department of Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, par. 3 — 700 et seq.). Respondent contends on appeal that the trial court erred in finding him to be a person subject to involuntary admission. We agree and reverse.

The Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Code (the Code) provides:

“ ‘Person subject to involuntary admission’ or ‘subject to involuntary admission’ means:
(1) A person who is mentally ill and who because of his illness is reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself or another in the near future; or
(2) A person who is mentally ill and who because of his illness is unable to provide for his basic physical needs so as to guard himself from serious harm.” (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, par. 1 — 119.)

On October 18, 1988, Irene Hulick filed a petition for the involuntary admission of respondent. She alleged that respondent was mentally ill and because of his illness was both “reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself *** or another in the near future” and “unable to provide for his *** basic physical needs so as to guard himself *** from serious harm.” Certificates from clinical social worker Karl W. Noltemeier and psychiatrist Grace M. Thundiyil were also filed on October 18, 1988. The certificates indicated that both were of the opinion that respondent was mentally ill and that because of his illness he was “reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself *** or another in the near future” but did not indicate that either was of the opinion that because of his illness respondent was “unable to provide for his *** basic physical needs so as to guard himself *** from serious harm.”

On October 20, 1988, the court appointed psychiatrist Warren C. Lewis to examine respondent. Dr. Lewis’ certificate, filed October 24, 1988, indicated Dr. Lewis was of the opinion that respondent was mentally ill and that because of his illness he was “reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself or another in the near future” but did not indicate that Dr. Lewis was of the opinion that because of respondent’s illness he was “unable to provide for his *** basic physical needs so as to guard himself *** from serious harm.”

A hearing on the petition was held on October 24, 1988. Five witnesses testified: Jacelyn Baney and Lynn Lawrence, who are two of respondent’s children; Gloria Sarver, who was a technician at Singer Mental Health Center (Singer); Irene Hulick, who was a mental health specialist at Singer; and Dr. Warren C. Lewis, who was a psychiatrist.

At the conclusion of this hearing, the court found:

“I am persuaded by Dr. Lewis’ testimony as to the fact that Mr. Cutsinger is a person who is mentally ill.
I place emphasis and a great deal of weight on these three specific instances of threatening and insultive behavior and also the several references to other episodes of threatening behavior.
I am also very troubled and worried about Mr. Cutsinger’s suicide attempt, which would have been successful if it hadn’t been for the arrival of his daughter.
I think all these things accumulate to show by clear and convincing evidence that Mr. Cutsinger is a person who, because of his illness, is reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself or another in the near future, and I will find that he is subject to involuntary admission.”

The court entered a written order finding respondent subject to involuntary admission and ordering him hospitalized. It is from this order that respondent has appealed.

The issue raised by respondent is that the evidence was insufficient to support the court’s finding that respondent was subject to involuntary admission. This will, of course, necessitate a review of the relevant evidence. That review, however, may be limited by a recognition of two questions that are not issues on appeal and of the rules governing a sufficiency of the evidence claim on appeal of an order finding a person subject to involuntary admission.

The first question that is not an issue is whether respondent was mentally ill. (See Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, par. 1 — 119.) It was undisputed in the trial court and is undisputed on appeal that respondent was mentally ill, having bipolar disorder.

The second question that is not an issue is whether respondent “because of his illness [was] unable to provide for his physical needs so as to guard himself from serious harm.” (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, par. 1 — 119(2).) This was alleged in Hulick’s petition and was testified to by Dr. Lewis at the hearing.

However, neither the certificates filed with the petition nor Dr. Lewis’s certificate filed the day of the hearing indicated that Noltemeier, Thundiyil, or Lewis was of the opinion that respondent “because of his *** illness [was] unable to provide for his *** basic physical needs so as to guard himself *** from serious harm.” (See Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, pars. 3 — 702, 3 — 703 (regarding examination of a respondent separately by a psychiatrist, and a physician or clinical psychologist or qualified examiner and regarding the filing of certificates by such persons in support of a petition for involuntary admission).) Moreover, the trial court did not find respondent was “unable to provide for his basic physical needs so as to guard himself from serious harm” (Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, par. 1 — 119(2)), but rather premised its finding that respondent was subject to involuntary admission upon his being a person “who because of his illness is reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself or another in the near future” (see Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, par. 1 — 119(1)).

We note that, on this record, the State does not argue that respondent was subject to involuntary admission because it was proven that respondent was unable to care for his basic physical needs but instead argues that the evidence established that respondent was reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself or another in the near future. (See In re Cochran (1985), 139 Ill. App. 3d 198, 199-200, 487 N.E.2d 389, 390; Ill. Rev. Stat. 1987, ch. 91½, par. 1 — 119.) Thus, the propriety of the trial court’s finding that respondent was subject to involuntary admission depends upon whether the evidence was sufficient to establish that either (1) because of respondent’s illness, he was reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon himself in the near fixture, or (2) because of respondent’s illness, he was reasonably expected to inflict serious physical harm upon another in the near future. (See Ill.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

People v. Vazquez
2021 IL App (2d) 190373-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2021)
People v. Thompson
2020 IL App (2d) 190743-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2020)
In re Lillie M.
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2007
People v. Lillie M.
875 N.E.2d 157 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2007)
In re Tyrone S.
Appellate Court of Illinois, 2003
People v. Tyrone S.
791 N.E.2d 157 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2003)
In Re Nancy M.
739 N.E.2d 607 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2000)
People v. Elizabeth L.
736 N.E.2d 1189 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2000)
In Re EL
736 N.E.2d 1189 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2000)
In Re Bert W.
730 N.E.2d 591 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2000)
People v. Schumaker
633 N.E.2d 169 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1994)
People v. Slaughter
625 N.E.2d 832 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1993)
People v. Friberg
617 N.E.2d 1327 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1993)
People v. Houlihan
596 N.E.2d 189 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1992)
People v. Rasgaitis
584 N.E.2d 451 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1991)
People v. Long
561 N.E.2d 290 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1990)
People v. Click
554 N.E.2d 494 (Appellate Court of Illinois, 1990)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
542 N.E.2d 414, 186 Ill. App. 3d 219, 134 Ill. Dec. 235, 1989 Ill. App. LEXIS 1084, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-cutsinger-illappct-1989.