Court Opinion

ID: 9691461
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 20:33:55.243399+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:19:20.534138
License: Public Domain

AMUNDSON, Justice
(dissenting).
, [¶ 47.] I dissent.
[¶ 48.] Was the trial court’s decision not justified based on this record? I would hold that it was and there was no abuse of discretion. In re A.D.R., 499 N.W.2d 906, 910 (S.D.1993).
[¶49.] There is no question that Y.C.’s conduct before and after his arrest was less than exemplary. On the other hand, we have a young man who has successfully completed two highly structured programs while under the jurisdiction of the Department of Corrections (DOC). In fact, after completing the Boot Camp program, the discharge report states:
Mr. [C] has been a cooperative and respectful group member. He has demonstrated supportiveness toward group members as well as the ability to confront group members as needed. He has displayed a high level of integrity placing him in a category of respect among his group peers.
I have concerns upon his returning to his home environment. Mr. [C] reported in his latter phase of boot camp that his cousins have recently gotten in trouble with the law and may get deported back to Ukraine, Russia. If that occurs, Mr. [C] expressed a strong desire to return to his father in Russia so he can be with his cousins. It is my recommendation that Mr. [C] return to his mother and siblings in Sioux Falls. That any contact with the cousins should be monitored and supervised until Mr. [C] has proved himself capable of remaining crime free during his probation period. As long as Mr. [C] chooses to utilize the skills and tools he has developed at the Boot Camp, particularly in self-discipline, self-control, and self-esteem, he should be successful in making it on the outside upon returning to his home environment.
SENIOR DRILL INSTRUCTOR NARRATIVE: This cadet is very intelligent as well as logical. He is calm and considerate, and very respectful. He was awarded for his scholastic achievement here at the Boot Camp. He is highly motivated and maintains his bearing at all times. He had three (3) positive counselings and one(l) negative. He should do extremely well at home. Currently he is anxious about either remaining with his mother in the US, or returning to his father who lives in the Ukraine (Russia).
[¶ 50.] What happened after he graduated? He was returned to the same environment where he had first gotten into trouble and was obviously not monitored and supervised as recommended. This is not the first time we have seen this in the juvenile area. In other words, the system often gets them *491through the program and then loses track of them until they violate the law anew.
[¶ 51.] Is there a program in the juvenile system where this young man, who the psychologist testified to as being a victim of cultural shock, who was subject to peers calling him communist, commie or telling him to go back to Russia, and who is a child affected by the dissolution of his parents’ marriage, can be salvaged. The State depicts this individual as a high-risk offender and properly so. On the other hand, the State’s witness stated that such individuals are placed in the Plankinton Training School (prison) and that this juvenile had not been placed at this facility, although it was an option.
[¶ 52.] At the hearing, Y.C. was asked by the court if he desired to say anything and stated:
THE JUVENILE: Sorry to everybody I know I can change. I’ll change.
[¶ 53.] This young man, whose grades at the Boot Camp were: Math 96%, English 93%, Social Studies 81%, Science 85%, and School to Work 93%, certainly appears to be worth saving. Is it in the public’s interest to place this individual in an adult prison and throw away the key? I think not. While the majority emphasizes the public interest in incarceration, the trial court obviously thought that there was a significant public interest in giving this individual a reasonable chance to become a productive member of society. Considering the encouraging reports of Y.C.’s progress during his attendance at some of the state juvenile correctional programs and the possibilities for further rehabilitation, there is substantial evidence to support the trial court’s decision. State v. Harris, 494 N.W.2d 619, 627 (S.D.1993) (citations omitted).
[¶ 54.] It is true that some judges would not have resolved the transfer question in the same manner as the trial court did in this case. However, in applying the abuse of discretion standard to this case, “we do not determine whether we would have made a like decision, only whether a judicial mind, considering the law and the facts, could have reached a similar decision.” State v. Wilkins, 536 N.W.2d 97, 99 (S.D.1995) (citations omitted)., Therefore, based on my review of this record, I conclude that a judicial mind could have decided that a transfer to adult court was not required and such a .decision does not amount to an abuse of discretion.