State v. Hagen

679 N.W.2d 739, 2004 Minn. App. LEXIS 575, 2004 WL 1153003
CourtCourt of Appeals of Minnesota
DecidedMay 25, 2004
DocketC0-02-1318
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 679 N.W.2d 739 (State v. Hagen) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Minnesota primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Hagen, 679 N.W.2d 739, 2004 Minn. App. LEXIS 575, 2004 WL 1153003 (Mich. Ct. App. 2004).

Opinion

OPINION

ROBERT H. SCHUMACHER, Judge.

The supreme court has remanded the appeal of Charles Conrad Hagen from his sentence for first-degree criminal sexual conduct for reconsideration in light of the court’s opinion in Taylor v. State, 670 N.W.2d 584 (Minn.2003). This court ordered supplemental briefing, in which Ha-gen argues that the less-than-double upward departure in this case was an abuse of discretion. We affirm.

FACTS

Hagen pleaded guilty in March 2002 to first-degree criminal sexual conduct committed against 13-year-old J.N., an autistic girl who lived in the house in which Hagen rented an apartment. The complaint charged a single count under Minn. Stat. § 609.342, subd. 1(g), which requires that the offender engaged in sexual penetration with a victim under the age of 16 with whom he had a “significant relationship.”

The plea agreement, as outlined in the Rule 15 plea petition, provided that Hagen would plead guilty to the offense as charged and be able to “argue down[ward] departure based on amenability to probation.” In the guilty-plea hearing, Hagen admitted that he sexually penetrated J.N. Hagen testified that his attorney had discussed with him the “significant relationship” element, which was based on his living in the same residence as the victim.

At sentencing, the district court characterized this case as “one of the more horrendous cases of child sexual abuse that I have seen.” The district court sentenced Hagen to 216 months, an upward departure from the presumptive sentence of 144 months. In support of the departure, the court stated:

The basis for that departure is that you entered the victim’s zone of privacy, that being that this took place in her home, and outside of the home for that matter; that it created great psychological and emotional trauma to the victim in this case; and, most importantly, that this child was particularly vulnerable due to her many disabilities.

The court concluded that these factors, along with “the deception that [Hagen] engaged in,” supported the departure.

ISSUE

Was the upward departure an abuse of discretion under Taylor v. State 670 N.W.2d 584 (Minn.2003)?

ANALYSIS

The decision to depart from the presumptive sentence rests within the discretion of the district court and will not be disturbed absent a clear abuse of discretion. State v. Givens, 544 N.W.2d 774, 776 (Minn.1996). But the sentencing court has no discretion to depart unless aggravating or mitigating factors are present. State v. Spain, 590 N.W.2d 85, 88 (Minn.1999).

The supreme court in Taylor reduced a less-than-double upward departure for first-degree criminal sexual conduct to the presumptive 144-month sentence. 670 N.W.2d at 585. The court first- rejected the three aggravating circumstances cited by the district court in that case: (1) “multiple incidents of abuse”; (2) abuse of the defendant’s position of trust; and (3) vulnerability of the victim due to age. Id. at *741 588-89. The first factor was rejected because the complaint charged only a single incident of sexual abuse, and the supreme court concluded it would be unfair to use “prior uncharged sex offenses” to depart. Id. at 588. The last two factors were rejected because they were “facts [that] were already taken into account by the legislature in determining the degree of seriousness of the offense.” Id. at 589. Finally, the supreme court noted the many changes in the laws relating to sex offenders, including increases in presumptive and mandatory sentences, and implementation of “risk management tools.” Id. at 589-90. In a general comment on appellate sentence review, the court concluded:

It is within this framework of risk management tools not in place at the time of our prior decisions that district courts now exercise discretion in sentencing and that we discharge our responsibility under Minn.Stat. § 244.11 in reviewing upward durational sentencing departures.

Id. at 590.

The district court here cited the violation of the victim’s zone of privacy, the psychological trauma suffered by the victim, and the victim’s vulnerability due to multiple disabilities as aggravating factors. None of these factors depends on facts not charged in the complaint or admitted by Hagen. Nevertheless, Hagen argues that these factors do not support the departure.

We agree that violation of the zone of privacy is not an aggravating factor in this case. Hagen lived in the same residence as J.N. A victim’s bedroom may constitute a zone of privacy even if the victim lives in the same house as the defendant. State v. Griffith, 480 N.W.2d 347, 351 (Minn.App.1992), revieiu denied (Minn. Mar. 19, 1992). But in this case, according to the complaint, the offense occurred in Hagen’s basement living quarters, not in the victim’s bedroom. Hagen’s basement apartment is not part of the victim’s zone of privacy. ■

Hagen also argues that the victim’s trauma is typical of this type of offense and therefore cannot be used as a basis for departure. See State v. Cermak, 344 N.W.2d 833, 839 (Minn.1984). A sexual assault victim’s psychological and emotional trauma may support a less-than-double upward departure. State v. Allen, 482 N.W.2d 228, 233 (Minn.App.1992), review denied (Minn. Apr. 13, 1992). In Cermak, the supreme court stated in dictum that it is “arguable” that “there is always psychological injury inflicted on the victim” in a first-degree criminal sexual conduct case involving a victim under the age of 13. 344 N.W.2d at 840. But Hagen cites no case reversing a departure based on this dictum.

Hagen also argues that he did not exploit J.N.’s vulnerability due to autism or the other disabilities implied in the district court’s reference to “many disabilities.” But the victim-impact statement from J.N.’s mother states that Hagen had known the family since J.N. was five, and knew the family’s struggles in dealing with J.N.’s autism, ADHD, behavior disorders, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. It is clear that Hagen knew of J.N.’s disabilities, and it can be inferred that he induced her “consent” to sexual relations by exploiting those disabilities.

Thus, the record supports the district court’s reliance on the victim’s psychological trauma and her vulnerability due to her disabilities. Hagen argues, however, that these factors were already considered by the legislature in determining the seriousness of the offense, just as the abuse of a position of authority was held to have been legislatively considered in Taylor.

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Related

State v. Hagen
690 N.W.2d 155 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 2004)

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679 N.W.2d 739, 2004 Minn. App. LEXIS 575, 2004 WL 1153003, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-hagen-minnctapp-2004.