State v. Snapp

82 P.3d 252, 119 Wash. App. 614
Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided January 6, 2004·No. 27520-1-II, 28670-0-II·Published·Cited by 32 cases

Opinion

82 P.3d 252 (2004)
119 Wash.App. 614

STATE of Washington, Respondent,
v.
Danny Lawrence SNAPP, Appellant.

Nos. 27520-1-II, 28670-0-II.

Court of Appeals of Washington, Division 2.

January 6, 2004.

*254 Lisa Elizabeth Tabbut, Longview, WA, for Appellant.

Matthew W. Butler, Cowlitz County Prosecutors Office, Jill Marie Johanson, Susan Irene Baur, Hall of Jstc, Kelso, WA, for Respondent.

*253 QUINN-BRINTNALL, A.C.J.

A jury convicted Danny L. Snapp of violating a court order prohibiting him from having contact with his wife, Tonya. RCW 10.99.040. The order was one of a series of no-contact orders entered following domestic violence incidents between the Snapps.

Snapp appeals this conviction claiming that (1) the no-contact order was invalid because it was entered when he was arrested for driving while intoxicated, a non-domestic violence offense; (2) the information failed to allege that the order was valid, the specific portion of the order he violated, or that the violation was willful; (3) the jury instructions failed to require that the jury find the no-contact order was valid beyond a reasonable doubt; and (4) the trial court improperly amended the sentence. We affirm.

FACTS

On September 14, 2000, Snapp was charged with four crimes of domestic violence against his wife, Tonya. Initially, an emergency no-contact order prohibited Snapp from contacting Tonya. A pretrial no-contact order replaced this emergency order on September 15, 2000. Tonya completed a domestic violence victim's class and asked the court to terminate the order on September 28, 2000. The court granted Tonya's request.

On November 6, 2000, the Cowlitz County Sheriff was called to a domestic dispute at the Snapp residence. While officers were on the way to the residence, Tonya told the dispatcher that Snapp had left in his vehicle. The officers waited at the Snapp residence, but when Snapp returned, he saw a deputy sheriff and sped away.

The officers eventually captured Snapp and, finding him intoxicated, cited him for driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI). Because Snapp's arrest occurred in the course of a domestic violence investigation, the court again ordered that Snapp have no contact with Tonya and reissued a pretrial no-contact order on November 7, 2000.

On February 8, 2001, the State charged Snapp with felony violation of the November 7 no-contact order, RCW 26.50.110,[1] and interfering with reporting domestic violence, *255 RCW 9A.36.150.[2] The State alleged that Snapp kicked and hit Tonya on February 6, 2001. A jury convicted Snapp of felony violation of a no-contact order.[3] The court initially sentenced Snapp to serve only six months in the county jail, but it amended the sentence on March 14, 2002, and included the requirement that Snapp attend a batterer's treatment class and have no contact with Tonya until allowed by the treatment provider. Snapp appeals, contesting the sufficiency of the State's proof of the validity of the no-contact order, as well as the authority of the court to amend the sentence.

ANALYSIS

TRIAL COURT'S AUTHORITY TO ISSUE NO-CONTACT ORDER

Snapp challenges the trial court's authority to issue a no-contact order when the crime charged is driving while intoxicated. Our review of the record indicates that at the time the court issued the order, Snapp had pending fourth degree assault, domestic violence charges under Cause No. 64116. The court had initially entered a no-contact order in that case but had withdrawn it at Tonya's request on September 28, 2000. On November 7, 2000, following Snapp's DUI arrest, the court reissued its order in Cause No. 64116 prohibiting any further contact with Tonya.

The court had authority to issue the no-contact order under RCW 10.99.040(2)(a), which provides, in pertinent part, that:

Because of the likelihood of repeated violence directed at those who have been victims of domestic violence in the past, when any person charged with or arrested for a crime involving domestic violence is released from custody before arraignment or trial on bail or personal recognizance, the court authorizing the release may prohibit that person from having any contact with the victim

(Emphasis added.) Snapp argues that no-contact orders may be issued only at "arrest, release or arraignment" (Br. of Appellant at 23) and that CrR 3.2 does not authorize the issuance of a no-contact order. We disagree.

CrR 3.2(k)(1)[4] provides that the court ordering the release of an accused on any condition specified in this rule may at any time on change of circumstances, new information, or showing of good cause amend its order to impose additional or different conditions for release. See also State v. Rodman, 94 Wash.App. 930, 935, 973 P.2d 1095 (1999) (rejecting argument that no-contact orders are inoperative until a defendant's release). CrR 3.2 allows the court to amend its order anytime circumstances change, it receives new information, or good cause requires. Here, the trial court had authority to reissue the no-contact order in Cause No. 64116 on November 7, 2000. The order was valid in this respect.

SUFFICIENCY OF THE INFORMATION

Snapp argues that the information charging him was defective because it did not include what he considers three essential elements: the existence of a valid order, a willful violation, and an allegation of a violation of a specific restraint provision.[5] A *256 charging document must include all essential elements of a crime, statutory or otherwise, "to afford notice to an accused of the nature and cause of the accusation against him." State v. Kjorsvik, 117 Wash.2d 93, 97, 812 P.2d 86 (1991). The notice requirements purpose is to allow the defendant to prepare an adequate defense to the charges. Kjorsvik, 117 Wash.2d at 101-02, 812 P.2d 86. The time at which the defendant challenges the charging document controls the standard of review for determining the charging documents validity. State v. Borrero, 147 Wash.2d 353, 360, 58 P.3d 245 (2002). If the challenge is made before the verdict, the language must be construed strictly. Borrero, 147 Wash.2d at 360, 58 P.3d 245. If it is made after the verdict, the language is construed liberally in favor of validity. Borrero, 147 Wash.2d at 360, 58 P.3d 245.

Snapp claims that because his counsel objected to the information before trial in his "Demand for Discovery and Objection to Charging Document," objected again orally at trial, and objected before the verdict, we mu

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State v. Snapp, 82 P.3d 252, 119 Wash. App. 614 (Wash. Ct. App. 2004).

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