State of Minnesota v. Crystal Ann Olson

Court of Appeals of Minnesota·Decided June 17, 2024·No. a231129·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This opinion is nonprecedential except as provided by Minn.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

A23-1129

State of Minnesota,

Respondent,

vs.

Crystal Ann Olson,

Appellant.

Filed June 17, 2024

Affirmed in part, reversed in part, and remanded Kirk, Judge *

Pipestone County District Court File No. 59-CR-21-317

Keith Ellison, Attorney General, Peter Magnuson, Assistant Attorney General, St. Paul, Minnesota; and

Damain Sandy, Pipestone County Attorney, Pipestone, Minnesota (for respondent)

Cathryn Middlebrook, Chief Appellate Public Defender, Amy Lawler, Assistant Public Defender, St. Paul, Minnesota (for appellant)

Considered and decided by Ross, Presiding Judge; Johnson, Judge; and Kirk, Judge.

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

NONPRECEDENTIAL OPINION

KIRK, Judge Appellant challenges her convictions of fourth-degree assault of a peace officer, arguing that (1) probable cause did not support her arrest; (2) the arresting officers’ violent conduct violated her due-process rights; (3) the state failed to present sufficient evidence to sustain her convictions; and (4) the district court improperly entered adjudications and imposed sentences on her lesser-included offenses. In her pro se supplemental brief, appellant reiterates her counsel’s sufficiency-of-the-evidence argument. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand.

FACTS

In July 2021, law enforcement responded to a report of a woman at a local church who had her shirt pulled over her head, was not wearing any shoes, and who appeared to need assistance. Responding officers arrived to find the woman leaning against a dumpster, mumbling indiscernibly, with her shirt still pulled over her head. After asking if she needed assistance, officers recognized the woman as appellant Crystal Ann Olson. Officers observed that appellant was twitching, sweating profusely, grinding her teeth, and had dilated pupils despite it being a sunny day. Based on their observations and officer J.R.’s training as a certified drug-recognition evaluator, the officers believed that appellant was under the influence of an artificial stimulant. Officers testified that they noticed that appellant had something “balled up” in her hand and asked her to drop it.

Instead, appellant moved the item “towards her mouth like she was going to ingest [it].” Two officers responded by grabbing appellant on either side to prevent her from

ingesting the item. However, appellant broke free from their grip, requiring a third officer to intervene and handcuff her. During the struggle, appellant dropped the item in her hand and officer J.R. placed his boot over it. Officer J.R. testified that, after she was handcuffed, appellant stomped on his foot and kicked him in the shin. After officer J.R. concluded that appellant was not suffering a medical emergency, officers attempted to place her in a squad vehicle to transport her to jail.

However, appellant refused officers’ numerous requests to sit in the squad vehicle.

To resolve the stalemate, officer J.R. entered the backseat and grabbed appellant under her arms while another officer lifted her feet, and the pair forced appellant into the vehicle. Officer J.R. testified that, while he was clearing the backseat, appellant kicked him on his upper thigh through the backseat door. Once officers secured appellant, they learned that the item in her hand was an envelope containing identification papers and cash.

After arriving at the jail, appellant refused several requests to exit the vehicle.

Eventually officer J.R. grabbed the back of appellant’s arm to remove her from the vehicle, at which point appellant arched back into her seat, causing her handcuff to cut officer J.R.’s wrist. Officer J.R. punched appellant once in the arm to free his wrist. Following the skirmish, officer J.R. testified that the only observable injuries appellant had were scratches on her wrist and blood on her leg. Officer J.R. further testified that appellant subsequently kicked, pounded, and headbutted her cell door after being placed in the jail.

Respondent State of Minnesota charged appellant with one count of felony fourth-

degree assault of a peace officer with demonstrable bodily harm under Minn. Stat. § 609.2231, subd. 1(c)(1) (2020) (count I). At the omnibus hearing, the defense moved to

dismiss the charge, arguing that appellant’s arrest lacked probable cause because she was “basically being attacked by the police.” The district court denied appellant’s motion, determining that the facts established by the complaint reasonably showed that officers properly used force to fulfill their duty to provide aid.

The state subsequently amended its complaint to allege five additional counts, including gross-misdemeanor fourth-degree assault of a peace officer under Minn. Stat. § 609.2231, subd. 1(b) (2020) (count III); obstructing legal process under Minn. Stat. § 609.50, subd. 1(2) (2020) (count V); and disorderly conduct under Minn. Stat. § 609.72, subd. 1(3) (2020) (count VI). 1 At trial, the state presented the squad-vehicle video from appellant’s arrest and testimony from the three arresting officers, while the defense presented testimony from appellant and M.Z., the 911 caller. M.Z. testified that he did not see appellant stomp on officer J.R.’s foot and that appellant was not being disruptive or overly aggressive. Appellant testified that she was in a “very extreme manic state” caused by mental illness and that she was simply trying to give officers her identification papers when they seized her. Appellant further testified that the officers caused her numerous injuries and denied her any medical treatment. Based on appellant’s testimony, the district court granted the defense’s request to include a jury instruction on self-defense.

1 The state also added two counts of fourth-degree assault against officer J.W. (counts II

and IV). The district court acquitted appellant of those charges following the state’s casein -chief, and those charges are not at issue here.

The jury found appellant guilty of all four counts. The district court sentenced appellant to concurrent 366-day sentences on counts I and III, stayed for 3 years, and imposed a 30-day jail sentence, with credit for five days. For counts V and VI, the district court adjudicated appellant guilty but did not impose sentences.

This appeal follows.

DECISION

I. The district court did not err by determining that probable cause supported appellant’s warrantless arrest.

Appellant argues that the district court erred by determining that probable cause supported her arrest because (1) officers performed a warrantless seizure that was not justified under the emergency-aid exception when they grabbed appellant to prevent her from potentially ingesting the item in her hand and (2) officers “arrested” her before she committed the underlying assaultive behavior. We are not persuaded.

Appellate courts review a district court’s factual findings for clear error but review its application of the probable-cause standard to those facts de novo. State v. Abdus-Salam, 1 N.W.3d 871, 877-78 (Minn. 2024). Probable cause to arrest exists when a reasonable person, viewing the circumstances objectively, “would entertain an honest and strong suspicion that a specific individual has committed a crime.” State v. Williams, 794 N.W.2d 867, 871 (Minn. 2011) (quotation and emphasis omitted). “[A] district court should deny a motion to dismiss [a] charge for lack of probable cause if it is satisfied that the facts appearing in the record, including reliable hearsay, would preclude the granting of a motion

for a judgment of acquittal if proved at trial.” Abdus-Salam, 1 N.W.3d at 878 (quotation omitted).

A. The officers’ seizure of appellant was justified under the emergency-aid exception.

Both the United States and Minnesota constitutions prohibit unreasonable searches

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State of Minnesota v. Crystal Ann Olson, (Mich. Ct. App. 2024).

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