Pratt v. State

907 S.W.2d 38, 1995 Tex. App. LEXIS 2293, 1995 WL 464126
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedAugust 2, 1995
DocketNo. 05-93-01738-CV
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 907 S.W.2d 38 (Pratt v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Pratt v. State, 907 S.W.2d 38, 1995 Tex. App. LEXIS 2293, 1995 WL 464126 (Tex. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

OPINION

WHITHAM, Justice (Retired).

Appellant, Deprece Pratt, appeals an order in favor of appellee, the State of Texas, transferring Pratt, a juvenile, to criminal district court to stand trial as an adult. Pratt’s appeal focuses on three phases of the proceedings in the trial court which resulted in the following three trial court orders:

Order dated September 10, 1993, denying commitment of Pratt for care, treatment and training to a residential facility for mentally retarded persons;
Order dated September 13, 1993, finding Pratt fit to proceed;
Order dated September 16, 1993, transferring Pratt to criminal district court to stand trial as an adult.

We group and address Pratt’s fourteen points of error as they pertain to these three trial court orders. Because we find no merit in any of Pratt’s fourteen points of error, we affirm.

BACKGROUND

The State filed a petition for discretionary transfer of Pratt, a juvenile, alleging that he had committed the offenses of capital murder and five aggravated robberies. Pratt’s counsel filed a motion to have Pratt evaluated for mental disease or defect pursuant to the Texas Family Code section 55.04. See Tex. Fam.Code Ann. § 55.04 (Vernon 1986) The State opposed commitment and a jury found that Pratt should not be placed in a long-term residential treatment facility. Subsequently, another jury found Pratt to be competent to stand trial. After a hearing, the trial court granted the State’s petition for discretionary transfer and transferred Pratt to criminal district court to stand trial as an adult.

THE COMMITMENT HEARING

First, we address Pratt’s contentions advancing trial court error in denying him commitment to a residential facility for care, treatment and training of mentally retarded persons. We begin with a summary of the evidence adduced from witnesses called by the respective parties.

COMMITMENT HEARING EVIDENCE

Pratt’s Witnesses. Desiree Gilchrist-Fleming, a staff psychologist for the Dallas County Juvenile Department, testified that she gave Pratt the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) test, which indicated that Pratt was mentally retarded. Gil[41]*41christ-Fleming testified that average intelligence is about 100. Gilchrist-Fleming testified that the Family Code determined that a person was mentally retarded when he scored 62.5 or less since that was 2.5 standard deviations from the mean. Pratt scored a 48, which was considered moderate mental retardation. Gilchrist-Fleming admitted that the subject’s attitude could affect the test results. Gilchrist-Fleming admitted that there was no way to tell if the person taking the test was being deceptive.

Don Gilbert, Executive Director of Dallas County Mental Health and Mental Retardation (DMHMR), testified that DMHMR had a contractual relationship with the Texas Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation (TMHMR) to provide mental treatment to persons in Dallas County. Gilbert was currently involved in developing a program for children diagnosed as mentally retarded with a conduct disorder, like Pratt. There had been a recent placement of a child in the same position as Pratt. DMHMR is not involved in securing the appropriate facility once the child is committed. There were no locked facilities currently available for placement and it would be a community concern if Pratt were placed in an unlocked facility. The trial court required DMHMR to identify a specific placement facility for Pratt prior to his commitment. There was no appropriate placement for Pratt. However, if the child is committed, TMHMR must find a facility for the child in order to comply with the trial court’s commitment order.

Dr. Carol Norton, a psychologist with DMHMR, evaluates persons suspected of being mentally retarded. She tested Pratt as part of the Comprehensive Diagnostic Evaluation (D & E) ordered by the trial court and found his IQ to be 59. Norton referred to IQ tests Pratt had previously taken; all had found Pratt to be mentally retarded except the TONI test conducted by the Texas Youth Commission (TYC). TONI is a nonverbal test used for persons with language disabilities or delays. Norton believed that Pratt needed residential treatment and that Pratt was deficient in his adaptive behavior, meaning the child’s ability to perform daily living tasks. Pratt was not meeting his basic needs.

Norton did not believe that Pratt’s risk of injury to himself or others was solely because he was mentally retarded. Pratt was also diagnosed with conduct disorder (anti-social behavior) due to his long history of truancy and legal problems. Norton prepared an Addendum to the D & E wherein she concluded that Pratt was not a risk to himself or others because of his retardation. The Addendum also indicated, “based on the available reference of previous testing and his reported functioning in the community, it is likely that these scores significantly underestimate his level of independent functioning in the community.” Norton testified that Pratt was able to get around town and that his adaptive behavior score was low because he was not asked to do household chores. Pratt had been referred to juvenile authorities on twelve prior occasions. No facility was currently available which was appropriate for Pratt. Pratt needed structure, programming and living environment training. Pratt was not a risk to himself or others because of his mental retardation.

JoAnn Spencer, an educational specialist with DMHMR, testified that she tested Pratt to determine his educational achievement and scholastic abilities for the D & E. Pratt needed residential treatment. Currently, there was no appropriate facility in which to place Pratt. Pratt’s performance on the test was inconsistent and his methods were so haphazard that the information was invalid. During the test, Pratt was disinterested and behaved childishly. The results were not valid on the Street Survival Skill Questionnaire because Pratt was not answering questions she felt he knew or should have known. Spencer disagreed with the Addendum in that she did not feel that Pratt needed to go to TYC for treatment. (Other evidence showed that since TMHMR did not have an appropriate facility for appellant, TYC’s Gid-dings facility was most capable of providing the structure and supervision Pratt required.)

Mary Skillman, program director for DMHMR, testified that she was Dr. Norton’s supervisor. Skillman did not recall other [42]*42trial courts asking DMHMR to recommend a placement facility as part of the D & E. There were no appropriate facilities for Pratt since he was a security risk.

Janice Bryan, a DMHMR case worker and part of the D & E team, testified that this was the first case she had worked on where the trial court required that a specific facility be named for the placement of the child prior to his commitment. There were no appropriate facilities for Pratt since he needed a locked facility. Similarly situated children had been placed in the past. Bryant testified Pratt needed residential treatment, and recommended that Pratt be placed at TYC’s Giddings facility. She acknowledged that “residential care facility” meant a facility operated by TMHMR.

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907 S.W.2d 38, 1995 Tex. App. LEXIS 2293, 1995 WL 464126, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/pratt-v-state-texapp-1995.