State v. Ouellette

859 A.2d 907, 271 Conn. 740, 2004 Conn. LEXIS 489, 2004 WL 2471315
CourtSupreme Court of Connecticut
DecidedNovember 16, 2004
DocketSC 16694
StatusPublished
Cited by36 cases

This text of 859 A.2d 907 (State v. Ouellette) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Ouellette, 859 A.2d 907, 271 Conn. 740, 2004 Conn. LEXIS 489, 2004 WL 2471315 (Colo. 2004).

Opinion

Opinion

PALMER, J.

The defendant, Michael Ouellette, was charged with murder in violation of General Statutes § 53a-54a 1 and elected to be tried by a three judge court in accordance with General Statutes § 54-82 (b). 2 Following a trial, the trial court, Leuba, Wollenberg and Wiese, Js., rejected the defendant’s affirmative defense of mental disease or defect; see General Statutes § 53a-13; 3 and his alternative affirmative defense of extreme emotional disturbance; see General Statutes § 53a-54a *743 (a); 4 and found him guilty of murder. 5 On appeal, the defendant claims that: (1) the trial court failed to ensure that his waiver of his right to a jury trial was knowing, voluntary and intelligent as required by the federal and state constitutions; (2) his waiver of a probable cause hearing was constitutionally infirm because the trial court had failed to canvass him adequately with respect to that waiver; (3) his constitutional right to due process was violated by virtue of the trial court’s failure to canvass him in connection with his plea of not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect to ensure that his plea was knowing, voluntary and intelligent; and (4) the trial court improperly denied his motion for a presentence psychiatric examination under General Statutes § 17a-566. 6 We reject these claims and, accordingly, affirm the judgment of the trial court.

The following facts and procedural history are relevant to our resolution of the defendant’s claims. On the *744 evening of June 24, 1999, the defendant, a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, brutally bludgeoned to death Robert Lysz, a Roman Catholic priest, inside St. Matthew’s Church in Bristol. The defendant was discovered the next morning hiding in the church rectory, wearing the victim’s pants and in possession of the victim’s wallet, credit card, and driver’s license. Initially, the defendant told the police that he had killed the victim in self-defense, but subsequently raised the affirmative defense of mental disease or defect and the alternative affirmative defense of extreme emotional disturbance.

After the defendant’s arrest, defense counsel moved, pursuant to General Statutes § 54-56d, 7 for an evaluation *745 of the defendant to determine whether he was competent to stand trial. The trial court granted the motion and, on July 15, 1999, the defendant was examined by a team of mental health professionals from the department of mental health and addiction services (department). Following their examination of the defendant, the members of the evaluation team unanimously concluded that, due to psychiatric impairment, the defendant did not have the capacity either to understand the charges against him or to assist in his own defense but that, with appropriate treatment, there was a substantial probability that the defendant could be restored to competency. The trial court thereafter found that the defendant was not competent to stand trial and remanded him to the custody of the department for treatment designed to restore him to competency.

Over the next nine months, the defendant was evaluated for competency on three separate occasions. On the first two occasions, the members of the evaluation team concluded that, although the defendant was making progress toward competency, he had not yet been restored to competency. On April 20, 2000, however, after a third examination of the defendant, the evaluation team unanimously concluded that he was competent to stand trial. Thereafter, on the basis of the evaluation team’s report and without objection from either party, the trial court found the defendant competent to stand trial. 8

*746 At trial, the defendant did not dispute that he had killed the victim but asserted that, due to his mental illness, he had been incapable of appreciating the wrongfulness of his conduct. Alternatively, the defendant claimed that he had killed the victim while under the influence of extreme emotional disturbance. The trial court found that the state had established beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant had killed the victim with the intent to do so by repeatedly striking the victim on the head with a heavy, four foot long, brass candlestick holder. The trial court also found that, although “at various times over the years the defendant has displayed . . . the symptoms of mental illness,” the defendant nevertheless had failed to establish either of his affirmative defenses, 9 which, the court further *747 concluded, had been contrived by the defendant, after the murder, in an attempt to shirk responsibility for the crime. 10 Additional facts and procedural history will be set forth as necessary.

I

The defendant first claims that the trial court failed to ensure that the defendant’s waiver of his right to a jury trial was knowing, voluntary and intelligent as required by the federal and state constitutions. The defendant’s claim is twofold. First, he contends that his right to a jury trial guaranteed under the sixth amendment to the United States constitution 11 was violated *748 by virtue of the trial court’s failure to canvass him adequately, in light of his history of mental illness, regarding his waiver of a trial by jury. Second, the defendant contends that his rights under article first, § 19, of the Connecticut constitution, as amended by article four of the amendments, 12 were violated because the court did not inform him of certain rights to which he was entitled under the state constitution. 13 We reject both of these contentions. 14

The following additional facts and procedural history are relevant to our resolution of the defendant’s claims. On August 1, 2001, the defendant, through counsel, informed the court that he wished to forgo his right to *749 a jury trial and be tried by a three judge court. At that time, the following colloquy ensued:

“The Court: Good afternoon, Mr. Ouellette.
“The Defendant: Good afternoon, Your Honor.
“[State’s Attorney]: The record should indicate we did have discussions in chambers.
“The Court: Yes, we did.

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Bluebook (online)
859 A.2d 907, 271 Conn. 740, 2004 Conn. LEXIS 489, 2004 WL 2471315, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-ouellette-conn-2004.