Opinion ID: 883993
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: issues

Text: Did the District Court err in failing to find that Collier was unable to appreciate the criminality of her conduct? Collier claims that she was unable to appreciate the criminality of her conduct due to mental disease or defect and that the District Court erred in not sentencing her accordingly. She maintains that based on her mental condition, she should have been placed in a specialized institution rather than a prison. This Court held in State v. Byers (1993), 261 Mont. 17, 861 P.2d 860, that a defendant's mental disease or defect may be evaluated at three different stages of the legal proceedings: before trial, pursuant to § 46-14-103, MCA; during trial, pursuant to § 46-14-102, MCA; and during sentencing, pursuant to § 46-14-311, MCA. We said in Byers that the sentencing judge may consider whether at the time of the commission of the offense the defendant was suffering from a mental disease or defect that rendered him unable to appreciate the criminality of his behavior or to conform his behavior to the requirements of the law. Section 46-14-311, MCA. The sentencing judge must then determine whether the mental disease or defect is such that defendant should be confined to a specialized institution. Byers, 861 P.2d at 866. A determination of the existence of mental disease or defect rests within the discretion of the sentencing judge. State v. Watson (1984), 211 Mont. 401, 416, 686 P.2d 879, 888-89 (citing State v. Doney (1981), 194 Mont. 22, 35, 636 P.2d 1377, 1385). Here the District Court considered several different evaluations of Collier's mental condition. The first psychological evaluation was completed on December 2, 1993, by Dr. John Mendenhall of Psychiatric Associates of Great Falls. In his report, Dr. Mendenhall states that Collier is perfectly aware of the charges against her and their significance and she is aware of the nature of the crime of which she is accused. She is aware of the consequences of such a crime in the hypothetical sense and she emphatically states that she believes she is competent to stand trial. I see no reason to disagree with her. A second psychological evaluation was completed on May 17, 1994, by Dr. John Van Hassel, a psychologist with Montana State Hospital. Dr. Van Hassel stated in his report that Collier does not appear to indicate any significant mental illness. A third psychological evaluation was completed on June 2, 1994, by Dr. Robert Caldwell, staff psychiatrist at Montana State Hospital. In his report, Dr. Caldwell states that Collier is competent and fit to proceed with the matter of the charges against her. He further states that, in his opinion, at the time of the alleged offense, Ms. Collier did not suffer from a mental disorder that would have impaired her ability to form the intent to commit [the] offense which has been charged. A fourth and final psychological evaluation was completed on October 19, 1994, at Collier's request, by Dr. Susan Sachsenmaier, a licensed clinical psychologist. In her report, Dr. Sachsenmaier states: There is no doubt that Ms. Collier was suffering from diminished capacity due to her mental illness at the time of the alleged crime.... The impossibility of the situation, as she experienced it, led to feelings of desperation and downfall, and the belief that she could no longer survive without escape from Evan. Operating on a deficit of psychological resources, she resorted to a fantasized means of escaping from the situation. She then had the misfortune to be maliciously manipulated by others who held themselves out as her friends, and promised to make real her fantasy of causing him to disappear, but had as their sole object the exploitation of an obviously gullible and naive person. In addition to providing the court with a written evaluation, Dr. Sachsenmaier testified on Collier's behalf at her sentencing hearing. Contrary to Collier's assertions, Dr. Sachsenmaier's report does not irrefutably establish Collier's mental incapacity at the time the crime was committed or that Collier suffered from diminished capacity or mental disease or defect. Three prior evaluations of Collier's mental condition are in agreement that although Collier does exhibit some form of mental disorder, the mental disorder was not so severe as to impair her ability to form the mental state necessary to commit the offense for which she was charged. After reviewing Dr. Sachsenmaier's testimony at the hearing, and the four written evaluations, the District Court determined that Collier's mental capacity at the time of the commission of the charged offense was sufficient to permit her to understand the criminality of her conduct and to conform her behavior to the requirements of the law. Finding that Collier did not suffer from a mental disease or defect, the District Court sentenced her in accordance with § 46-14-312(1), MCA and Title 46, Chapter 18. Accordingly, while there was some conflict in the evidence, that conflict was resolved by the trial court against Collier. We conclude that the record does support the District Court's determination as to Collier's mental capacity, and, therefore, we hold that the District Court did not abuse its discretion in sentencing Collier to prison rather than to a specialized institution.