State v. Meech

400 N.W.2d 166, 1987 Minn. App. LEXIS 4036
CourtCourt of Appeals of Minnesota
DecidedFebruary 3, 1987
DocketC9-86-1094
StatusPublished
Cited by6 cases

This text of 400 N.W.2d 166 (State v. Meech) 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. Meech, 400 N.W.2d 166, 1987 Minn. App. LEXIS 4036 (Mich. Ct. App. 1987).

Opinion

OPINION

LANSING, Judge.

William Howard Meech was convicted of criminal sexual conduct in the third degree, Minn.Stat. § 609.344(c) and criminal sexual conduct in the fourth degree, Minn.Stat. § 609.345(c) (1984). He challenges the sufficiency of evidence, a pretrial ruling permitting the use of a prior conviction for impeachment, and the length of his sentence. We affirm.

FACTS

J.H., the complainant in this case, lived with her boyfriend in West Concord, Minnesota. In the early afternoon of October 11,1985, she was home watching television. J.H. had taken special education classes when she was in school and described herself as “slow.” She had been up late the night before and was still in her nightgown when Meech knocked on her door. She knew Meech because her boyfriend was a first cousin to Meech’s wife. Meech asked for coffee and then went to use the bathroom.

Meech returned from the bathroom with his zipper open and his penis showing. J.H. hinted that Meech should pull up his zipper. Meech sat down next to J.H. on the couch, still exposed. On the couch, Meech tried to put J.H.’s hand on his penis, but she resisted. He then told her to “shut up” and he pushed up her nightgown and got on top of her. While holding her hands down, he engaged in sexual intercourse with J.H. Later that evening J.H. told her boyfriend about the incident, and the police were called.

At trial Richard Kubitza, an insurance agent who lived near J.H.’s home, testified that about 1:00 p.m. that day he saw Meech get out of his truck a block from J.H.’s home. Kubitza stated that he saw Meech enter J.H.’s home. About 30-45 minutes later, he observed Meech’s truck still parked in the same place.

Meech did not testify. He called three alibi witnesses — his sister-in-law, a friend, and his wife — who claimed Meech was not at J.H.’s home at the time she said she was raped. The jury convicted Meech of criminal sexual conduct in the third and fourth degree. The trial court vacated the fourth-degree conviction pursuant to Minn.Stat. § 609.04.

ISSUES

1. Was the evidence sufficient to sustain appellant’s conviction for criminal sexual conduct in the third degree?

2. Did the trial court abuse its discretion in ruling that a prior conviction was admissible for impeachment and thereby deprive appellant of his right to testify?

3. Did consecutive sentencing unfairly exaggerate the criminality of appellant’s conduct?

4. Did the trial court err in sentencing appellant on his current offense before executing a prior stayed sentence?

ANALYSIS

I

We have reviewed the record and conclude there was ample evidence for the *168 jury to convict. Contrary to Meech’s assertion that there was no evidence placing him at the scene, the testimony of both Kubitza and J.H. placed him at J.H.’s home around 1:00 p.m. Further, there was sufficient evidence to show the sexual assault was accomplished through force or coercion. Force is defined as

the infliction, attempted infliction, or threatened infliction by the actor of bodily harm or commission or threat of any other crime by the actor against the complainant or another, which causes the complainant to reasonably believe that the actor has the present ability to execute the threat and also causes the complainant to submit.

Minn.Stat. § 609.341, subd. 3 (1984). Coercion is defined as

words or circumstances that cause the complainant reasonably to fear that the actor will inflict bodily harm upon, or hold in confinement, the complainant or another.

Minn.Stat. § 609.341, subd. 14 (1984).

J.H. attempted to stop Meech, but she was fearful and overpowered by his words and actions in pushing up her nightgown and holding her hands down. This is sufficient for conviction under Minn.Stat. § 609.344(c). See also State v. Middleton, 386 N.W.2d 226 (Minn.1986) (coercion element in Minn.Stat. § 609.345(c) met when actor coerces complainant by causing fear while accomplishing sexual contact).

II

The trial court’s decision allowing evidence of a prior conviction for impeachment will not be reversed absent a clear abuse of discretion. State v. Graham, 371 N.W.2d 204, 209 (Minn.1985). Under the factors outlined in State v. Jones, 271 N.W.2d 534, 538 (Minn.1978), we find no abuse of discretion in the trial court’s ruling that Meech’s 1984 conviction for intra-familial sexual abuse in the second degree was admissible if Meech testified.

Meech contends the trial court’s ruling had a “chilling effect” which compelled his decision not to testify. However, the record discloses there were other factors involved in his decision not to testify; the court’s ruling did not directly prevent Meech from testifying. Graham, 371 N.W.2d at 209. We also note that the “chilling” argument has been consistently rejected when raised in other cases. See State v. Kvale, 302 N.W.2d 650, 653 (Minn.1981); State v. Gravley, 359 N.W.2d 681, 683 (Minn.Ct.App.1984). We find no error in the court’s decision on this issue.

III

Meech challenges the imposition of consecutive sentences for his current conviction and a prior second-degree intrafami-lial sexual abuse conviction in which the sentence had been stayed and then imposed at the sentencing for his current conviction. Meech concedes that consecutive sentencing is allowed in this case without a departure. Minnesota Sentencing Guidelines II. F.l. We see no abuse of discretion. State v. Crapser, 378 N.W.2d 110, 112 (Minn.Ct.App.1985). The trial court carefully considered the availability of treatment programs and the serious nature of the crimes in sentencing consecutively. The sentence is fair and does not unfairly exaggerate the criminality of his conduct.

IV

The trial court imposed a 41-month sentence for Meech’s third-degree criminal sexual conduct conviction based on a severity level VII offense and a criminal history score of 2. After the court imposed sentence, Meech requested that his 1984 conviction for intrafamilial sexual abuse in the second degree, for which he had received a stay of imposition, be executed. The trial court ordered that Meech serve 21 months for that conviction (severity level VI, criminal history 0) and that it be served consecutively. Meech received credit of ten months for time served, resulting in a total sentence of 52 months.

On appeal Meech claims the court should have imposed sentence on the stayed intra-familial sexual abuse conviction first and *169 then sentenced consecutively on the current offense.

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Related

State v. Gamez
494 N.W.2d 84 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1992)
State v. Isaacson
409 N.W.2d 291 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1987)
State v. Kasper
405 N.W.2d 540 (Court of Appeals of Minnesota, 1987)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
400 N.W.2d 166, 1987 Minn. App. LEXIS 4036, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-meech-minnctapp-1987.