Opinion ID: 2359432
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: State v. Tessin

Text: The Committee alleges that Judge Benoit committed judicial misconduct in his handling of the Tessin case in three respects: imposition of bail pending hearing in a civil case and imprisonment for failure to provide that bail; imposition of bail to assure payment of a civil fine; and imprisonment to satisfy a civil fine under circumstances denying the jailed individual his right to due process of law. On the evidence before us, we find the following facts. The defendant, Mark R. Tessin, appeared before Judge Benoit in District Court (Skowhegan) on June 6, 1983, following his arrest on the charge of operating a motor vehicle while under the influence (OUI). Prior to Tessin's appearance before the judge, the State through an assistant district attorney elected to charge Tessin with only civil OUI, that is, a civil traffic infraction for which no jail sentence may be imposed. [6] At his appearance on June 6, Tessin requested that further proceedings on the civil complaint be postponed to give him time to consult with a lawyer. Judge Benoit agreed and put off Tessin's next appearance for two days, until June 8. Judge Benoit had before him on June 6 various documents relating to the Tessin case, all of which plainly stated that Tessin was charged with only a civil traffic infraction, not with criminal OUI. The chief distinction between a civil and a criminal violation of the law is that, except in the case of civil commitment for contempt, when the contemnor carries the key of his prison in his pocket, [7] there can be no incarceration in a civil case. That distinction is basic to our system of justice. Another basic concept is that bail exists in a criminal case for the purpose of allowing a defendant to remain out of jail until the next proceeding in his case, while at the same time providing assurance, in the form of money or a bond, that he will reappear in court for that proceeding. The reasons for bail are not applicable in the case of a civil traffic infraction, because there is no imprisonment from which to set the defendant temporarily free. Accordingly, there is no authority in the law to impose bail in a civil case. Since Tessin was from Michigan, Judge Benoit feared that he would use the two-day period between June 6 and June 8 to leave the state, thereby escaping all consequences for his alleged drunken driving. Therefore, Judge Benoit imposed $300 bail, notwithstanding the foregoing undisputed and fundamental principles of law. Tessin was unable to make the bail, and so he was jailed on June 6 pending his answer to the civil complaint two days later. On June 8 Tessin was brought from the Somerset County jail to the courthouse, where he admitted the civil traffic infraction. Judge Benoit ordered him to pay a $350 fine within one month and suspended his right to drive in Maine for 45 days. To prevent Tessin from leaving Maine without paying his civil fine, Judge Benoit again unable to meet. Judge Benoit again ordered him to jail for his failure to furnish bail, but following some discussion Tessin agreed to the judge's suggestion that he instead serve off the fine in jail at $10 per day. Tessin was not represented by counsel, nor was he informed of any right to counsel. He proceeded to serve 35 days in the Somerset County jail. Would a reasonably prudent, competent judge in all the circumstances have considered Judge Benoit's actions in this case to be obviously and seriously wrong? The answer must be that he undoubtedly would. Judge Benoit in this civil case sent Tessin off to jail for 35 days without respecting any of the safeguards required by our state and federal constitutions. The most basic right of citizens of this country is to be at liberty in society. That right is so essential to our way of life that it may only be taken away by the courts following carefully prescribed procedures. Judge Benoit deprived Tessin of his fundamental right of liberty in a civil case where the judge knew or plainly ought to have known he had no authority whatever to incarcerate. Judge Benoit argues that his actions were justified by Tessin's agreement to the terms of his incarceration. What that argument ignores is that Tessin had no choice but to accept. Tessin knew that he was going to go to jail for failure to provide bail. In that situation, his only reasonable choice was to agree that his time in jail should be credited against the civil fine. When he fixed bail on June 8, the judge knew from two days earlier that Tessin would not be able to furnish bail. That clearly improper use of bail as a weapon of the State in a civil matter, rather than as a mechanism to secure a defendant's liberty, thus had the effect of directly imposing a 35-day jail sentence for a civil traffic infraction. This was an outrageous result. There was, furthermore, no authority for allowing a defendant to serve off his civil fine in jail. [8] Any reasonably prudent and competent judge would think that the jailing of Tessin in this civil case was obviously and seriously wrong because it flagrantly denied him his constitutional rights. Judge Benoit's actions in the Tessin case violated Canon 3 A(1) of the Code of Judicial Conduct.