Court Opinion

ID: 9794584
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-31 03:08:15.307916+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T08:18:01.270801
License: Public Domain

CAMERON, Justice,
dissenting.
Because I disagree that a parent is immune from prosecution for unreasonably confining his or her child, I dissent.
I do not dispute a parent or guardian’s right to apply appropriate force on a child in order to maintain discipline and control. This right is not absolute, however, but rather is limited by a standard of reasonableness. The rule of absolute immunity from prosecution for parents who use excessive force on their children was rejected in State v. Hunt, 2 Ariz.App. 6, 406 P.2d 208 (1965), in the context of a charge of assault and battery of a young daughter. The court stated,
The gravamen of the battery charge herein was whether the parents of Tina had used an amount of punishment on Tina in excess of that amount allowed by the law under the circumstances. Corporal punishment of a child by its parent is not prohibited by law in this state but the use of immoderate or excessive physical violence against a child by a parent for *572correction or discipline purposes is an aggravated assault and battery. Id. at 20, 406 P.2d at 222.
The court reasoned, “One cannot expound an inflexible rule which would define what, under all conditions, would be reasonable or excessive force * * and explicitly adopted a test of reasonableness. Id. See also State v. Hunt, 12 Ariz.App. 418, 471 P.2d 303 (1970) (on retrial, Mrs. Hunt was convicted of aggravated assault and battery for using unreasonable force on her child). Like the Court of Appeals in the instant case, I see no reason why the same standard of reasonableness should not apply in determining whether a parent’s confinement of a child falls within the bounds of the parent’s legal authority to exercise control and custody.
The majority cites no authority to support its conclusion that a parent is immune from prosecution for unlawfully confining its child. The majority bases its opinion on the supposed intent of the legislature. The court relies on the words “without legal authority,” which is explicitly stated in the unlawful imprisonment statute, A.R.S. § 13-1301 (incorporated by reference into § 13-1303), and is an implicit requirement of the assault statutes, A.R.S. §§ 13-1203-1206. I do not believe that the legislature intended the “legal authority” of a parent to be construed as absolute. I believe the intent of the legislature is well demonstrated in A.R.S. § 13-403, which adopts a standard of reasonableness in defining the statutory defense of justification for a parent’s use of force on a child:
§ 13-403 Justification; use of physical force
The use of physical force upon another person which would otherwise constitute an offense is justifiable and not criminal under any of the following circumstances:
1. A parent or guardian * * * or other person entrusted with the care and supervision of a minor * * * may use reasonable and appropriate physical force upon the minor * * * when and to the extent reasonably necessary and appropriate to maintain discipline. (Emphasis added.)
It would be strange indeed for the legislature to adopt a standard of reasonableness for parents in maintaining discipline over their'children, and yet to intend that parents have absolute legal authority to confine their children as a means of discipline.
Another problem with a statutory construction which interprets the words “legal authority” in A.R.S. § 13-1301 as granting absolute immunity to parents and guardians from prosecution for unlawful imprisonment is that it would render the specific statutory defense of A.R.S. § 13-1303(B)(2) superfluous. If parents or other persons entitled to legal custody were intended to have absolute immunity from prosecution for unlawful imprisonment through A.R.S. § 13-1301, the legislature would not have needed to create a specific statutory defense for these persons in the situations in which the child is restrained to obtain lawful physical custody.
I agree with the Court of Appeals that a parent is not per se immune from prosecution for unlawful imprisonment, but rather is subject to a standard of reasonableness. Because a parent’s legal authority to confine a child is subject to a standard of reasonableness under the law of Arizona, see State v. Hunt, supra, and A.R.S. § 13-403, supra, the statutory defense of A.R.S. § 13-1303(B)(2) is inapplicable. A jury could reasonably find the defendant’s conduct in locking her child in a storage locker for an extended period fell below the reasonableness standard. I would affirm the conviction.
GORDON, Vice Chief Justice, concurring.
I concur in the dissent.