State v. Pierce

794 A.2d 1123, 69 Conn. App. 516, 2002 Conn. App. LEXIS 224
Connecticut Appellate Court·Decided May 7, 2002·No. AC 19692·Published·Cited by 16 cases

Opinion

[518] Opinion

DUPONT, J.

The defendant, Jeffrey Pierce, appeals from the judgment of conviction, rendered after a jury trial, of kidnapping in the second degree in violation of General Statutes § 53a-941 and burglary in the first degree in violation of General Statutes § 53a-101 (a) (l).2 He was sentenced to a total effective term of thirty years imprisonment, execution suspended after twenty-five years and five years probation. The defendant was ordered to register as a sexual offender pursuant to General Statutes § 54-254 (a).3

The defendant claims that the court improperly (1) found that the evidence was sufficient to prove that the defendant had committed the offense of kidnapping in the second degree for a sexual purpose within the meaning of § 54-254 (a), (2) instructed the jury concerning reasonable doubt, (3) marshaled the evidence in its charge by referring to an element of the crime while discussing the evidence that was presented during trial and (4) denied the defendant’s motion to suppress his confession to the police. We affirm the defendant’s conviction and reverse the judgment only to the extent that the trial court ordered the defendant to register as a [519] sexual offender without a hearing to determine whether the offense was committed for a sexual purpose.

The jury reasonably could have found the following facts. OnAugust 11,1998, the victim drove her Plymouth Voyager minivan to the Shaw’s Supermarket in Newington to purchase groceries. The victim was alone and spent approximately one-half hour inside the store. The victim then returned to her vehicle, loaded her groceries and got in the driver’s seat. The defendant was hiding in the backseat of the vehicle4 and, upon the victim’s entry into the vehicle, placed a knife to her side. The knife’s blade was five to six inches in length and was beveled.

The defendant told the victim to “do as I say and you will not be hurt.” The defendant ordered the victim to drive to Glastonbury and gave her specific directions to follow. The defendant directed the victim to a park on a dirt road in East Hartford. The road was blocked by a gate and the victim stopped the vehicle. The defendant ordered the victim to accompany him into a wooded area. The victim refused and told the defendant that she did “not feel like getting harmed or raped by [the defendant].” The defendant stated that he did not intend to harm the victim, but he did not want the victim to see which way he would be going in the wooded area to aid in his escape. The victim suggested that she would look away while the defendant fled into the wooded area. The defendant “seemed satisfied with that,” and the victim did not turn around until she was certain that the defendant was gone.

The victim then drove to the Newington police department and reported the incident. The victim described [520] the man who perpetrated the crime as having shoulder length, dirty blond hair and wearing a baseball cap, blue jeans and a shirt. A detective prepared a composite sketch drawing based on the victim’s description. Thereafter, flyers were printed based on the composite sketch drawing. The flyers were shown to members of the Newington police department, including Officer Jeannine M. Candéis and her partner, Officer Timothy A. Walsh, who both recognized the sketch as depicting the defendant. They then went to a motel in Newington, where they believed the defendant was currently living.

The officers interviewed the defendant and he gave them a full statement in which he confessed. He signed the statement, and his version of the events matched that given by the victim. The defendant also gave the officers a baseball cap that he had been wearing during the event, and the officers took a picture of the defendant wearing the hat. The next day, the victim returned to the Newington police department and was shown a photographic lineup consisting of eight photographs, including the defendant. The victim recognized the defendant and pointed him out as the man that she had described three days earlier. Additional facts will be set forth where necessary to address the issues on appeal.

I

The defendant first claims that the court abused its discretion when it required him to register as a sex offender pursuant to § 54-254 (a).

Before reaching this issue as originally briefed by the parties, we address the supplementary issues we raised after oral arguments in this court. We requested that the parties file simultaneous supplemental briefs addressing the following issues:

“Is § 54-254 (a) a sentence enhancement statute?
[521] “A. If it is a sentence enhancement statute, what is the proper procedure to be followed? See Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466, 120 S. Ct. 2348, 147 L. Ed. 2d 435 (2000).
“B. If it is not a sentence enhancement statute, must the court hold an evidentiary hearing before finding that the defendant has committed a felony for a sexual purpose, and what is the standard of proof to be applied at the hearing?”

The state claims in its supplemental brief that the supplemental issues are “unpreserved and [therefore have been] waived” by the defendant because they were not raised at trial and were not originally briefed. The state further asserts that it “does not concede review-ability of the supplemental issues or consent to their consideration by this court.” We would not have asked for supplemental briefs had we believed the issues were not reviewable, nor do we need the consent of the parties to review issues we deem relevant.

The case of State v. Velasco, 253 Conn. 210, 751 A.2d 800 (2000), is relevant to the state’s position that the supplemental issues should not be reviewed. In Velasco, the defendant did not object at trial to the court’s determination, as opposed to a determination by the jury, that he had used a firearm in the commission of the underlying felony with which he had been charged. Id., 218 n.9. In the present case, the defendant did not object to the court’s application of § 54-254 (a) or claim that it was a sentence enhancement statute or seek a separate evidentiary hearing. The Velasco court determined that because its analysis was based on statutory construction, and raises questions in the public interest and of justice between the parties, the case could be reviewed under the plain error doctrine; Practice Book § 60-5; even if it was not reviewable under the precepts of [522] State v. Golding, 213 Conn. 233, 239-40, 567 A.2d 823 (1989). See State v. Velasco, supra, 218-19 n.9.

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State v. Pierce, 794 A.2d 1123, 69 Conn. App. 516, 2002 Conn. App. LEXIS 224 (Colo. Ct. App. 2002).

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