People v. Eastman

CourtCalifornia Court of Appeal
DecidedAugust 23, 2018
DocketH044458
StatusPublished

This text of People v. Eastman (People v. Eastman) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Eastman, (Cal. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinion

Filed 8/23/18 CERTIFIED FOR PUBLICATION

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

SIXTH APPELLATE DISTRICT

THE PEOPLE, H044458 (Orange County Plaintiff and Respondent, Super. Ct. No. 13CM02795)

v.

BRIAN JOSEPH EASTMAN,

Defendant and Appellant.

Defendant Brian Joseph Eastman was convicted by guilty plea of six counts of 1 misdemeanor disorderly conduct (Pen. Code, § 647, subd. (j)(2)), and he admitted allegations “pursuant to Penal Code section 290.006” that the six counts had been “committed . . . as a result of sexual compulsion and for purposes of sexual 2 gratification.” Defendant had repeatedly used his cell phone to make “upskirt” videos of women in public places and had concealed a camera in the bathrooms of two residences so that he could videorecord women using the bathrooms. The trial court suspended imposition of sentence and granted him probation. The court also found that defendant

1 Subsequent statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise specified. 2 Section 290.006 provides: “Any person ordered by any court to register pursuant to the Act for any offense not included specifically in subdivision (c) of Section 290, shall so register, if the court finds at the time of conviction or sentencing that the person committed the offense as a result of sexual compulsion or for purposes of sexual gratification. The court shall state on the record the reasons for its findings and the reasons for requiring registration.” (§ 290.006, subd. (a).) had committed the offenses for sexual gratification or compulsion (§ 290.006) and 3 ordered defendant to register as a sex offender under section 290 for the rest of his life. 4 Defendant appealed to the appellate division. He argued that the trial court had failed to exercise its discretion because it erroneously believed that it could not order sex offender registration only for the period of probation rather than for his lifetime. Defendant also contended that the trial court had abused its discretion in ordering registration under section 290.006 because it had failed to consider individualized factors. The appellate division held that the trial court had discretion to impose sex offender registration solely as a condition of probation and remanded the matter for the trial court to exercise that discretion. We transferred the case to this court, and we now reject the appellate division’s holding and affirm the trial court’s order.

I. Background On the evening of March 22, 2013, defendant, who was then 26 years old, followed K.C. around a clothing store and eventually blocked her only exit route, crouched down, and used his cell phone to take pictures “under her skirt.” K.C. felt threatened by defendant’s conduct. She followed defendant into the parking lot, took down his license plate number, and immediately reported the incident to the store manager and then to the police. The police contacted defendant at his residence, and he quickly admitted that he had “ ‘screwed up’ ” and done as K.C. reported. He was arrested, and his cell phone was seized.

3 Section 290 imposes a requirement that a person register as a sex offender “for the rest of his or her life . . . .” (§ 290, subd. (b). 4 After defendant was sentenced by the Orange County Superior Court, his case was transferred to the Santa Clara County Superior Court. His appeal was decided by the Santa Clara County Superior Court Appellate Division.

2 Defendant told the police that he had “specifically targeted women wearing skirts,” pursued them through the store, and used his cell phone to record under their skirts. He “admitted capturing the video, and then editing it into still frames.” Defendant also “acknowledged that the content of the video was sexual, but said that was not his motivation.” He claimed that “he enjoyed the challenge of acquiring the footage . . . .” Defendant “admitted he engaged in this activity for approximately two weeks.” The police found video on defendant’s cell phone of seven women, which had been recorded on March 22, 2013. His cell phone also contained footage of several different women using bathrooms at residences on multiple occasions in 2012 and 2013. Defendant was charged by amended complaint with six counts of disorderly conduct. The amended complaint expressly alleged “pursuant to Penal Code section 290.006” that the six counts had been “committed . . . as a result of sexual compulsion and for purposes of sexual gratification.” Defendant pleaded guilty to all six counts and admitted the section 290.006 allegations. Defendant asked the court not to require sex offender registration. He had begun psychotherapy on March 27, 2013, and was continuing with this therapy at the time of his November 2014 sentencing. His psychotherapist recommended that he continue treatment for another six to nine months. However, her evaluation was based on her conclusion that defendant did not qualify for a diagnosis of voyeurism because she mistakenly believed that “the incident in question [did not] continue for a period of 6 months.” She did not believe that sex offender registration should be required because she thought defendant did not “pose a danger to others or society.” Defendant told the court that his psychotherapist had assured him that he was not a sexual deviant and posed no threat to others. Defendant was also examined by a court-appointed psychiatrist, Dr. Ted R. Greenzang. Defendant misled Greenzang about the duration of his misconduct. He told Greenzang that all of the misconduct occurred during a period of two to three weeks prior

3 to his arrest, and Greenzang erroneously accepted that all of the misconduct occurred 5 during a one month period. Thus, Greenzang, like defendant’s psychotherapist, concluded that the duration of the misconduct did not qualify for a diagnosis of voyeurism, although Greenzang did note that defendant had “obsessive compulsive personality traits.” Based on defendant’s misleading report of limited-duration misconduct, Greenzang also concluded that it was not necessary for defendant to register as a sex offender because defendant did not “pose a danger to others” and was unlikely to engage in similar offenses in the future. Defendant told the probation officer that “he did not make the recordings for sexual stimulation.” He claimed that he engaged in this conduct in response to the “challenge” of “ ‘getting that shot’ ” “without getting caught,” and “the risk and danger added to the thrill.” Defendant asserted that “the videos were never viewed for sexual gratification.” The probation officer deemed defendant’s explanation “rather absurd” and “a blatant attempt to minimize what is viewed as fairly serious behavior.” She was concerned that defendant “has minimized much of his behavior.” The probation officer concluded that it was “plausible” that defendant “has, or at some point will, reoffend” because his conduct was suggestive of “a compulsion.” The probation report recommended that defendant be required to register as a sex offender “pursuant to 290.006 of the Penal Code, at least for the duration of his probation period.” The report suggested that if defendant was successful on probation, “the registration order [could] be terminated upon successful completion of probation.” The prosecutor sought a sentence of three years of probation, one year in jail, “290 registration,” and “sex offender terms of probation.” The prosecution asked the trial

5 While the charged offenses all occurred within a month of defendant’s arrest, the sexually oriented videos on his cell phone dated back nearly a year, thus demonstrating that defendant had engaged in similar conduct throughout that period.

4 court to exercise its discretion under section 290.006 to require defendant to register as a sex offender under section 290.

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Bluebook (online)
People v. Eastman, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-eastman-calctapp-2018.