Court Opinion

ID: 9690639
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 19:27:40.6619+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:04:10.597744
License: Public Domain

ANDERSON, J.
¶ 18. (concurring). I fully agree with the majority opinion. I write separately to register some added concerns about the practice of routinely shackling or otherwise physically restraining defendants when they appear before a judge or jury.
¶ 19. Before fleshing out these concerns, I wish to stress my understanding of the reasons behind Wauke-sha county's policy of routinely shackling defendants. The violent courtroom incidents that have taken place in Waukesha county, elsewhere in the State, and across the country have served as reminders that trial judges *79often will need to take some sort of action to protect the jury, the courtroom personnel, the spectators, the defendants and the judges themselves. See Lisa Sink, Fight costs Amaro bid for parole, Milwaukee J. Sentinel, August 15, 2000, available at http://www.jsonline.com/ news/wauk/aug00/parolel6081500a.asp (discussing "[o]ne of Waukesha County's most notorious criminals," Filemon Amaro Jr., who shot and killed two sheriffs deputies while appearing before Judge Neal Nettesheim in 1978); Gina Barton, Ex-Deputy shot by defendant sues, Milwaukee J. Sentinel, April 18, 2005, available at http://www.jsonline.com/news/metro/apr05/319429.asp (exploring 2002 incident where the defendant, after being convicted of homicide and armed robbery, leapt into the jury box and gained control of a security officer's gun before being fatally shot by a police detective); Tom Kertscher, Judge calls for talks on whether guns should be banned in court, Milwaukee J. Sentinel, May 29, 2002, available at http://www.jsonline.com/ news/metro/may02/47183.asp (citing several instances of courtroom violence in Milwaukee area history); Atlanta courthouse killer hunted, March 11, 2005, available at http://www.jsonline.com/news/nat/mar05/ 308964.asp (discussing a March 2005 incident at an Atlanta courthouse where a rape suspect overpowered a sheriffs deputy and used her gun to kill a judge, a court reporter and a second sheriffs deputy). Bearing in mind the tragedy that can result if judges do not have the ability to protect themselves and their courtrooms, see Deck v. Missouri, 125 S. Ct. 2007, 2014 (2005), I turn to the problems that accompany the decision to physically restrain defendants on a routine basis.
¶ 20. Courts have recognized the danger to a criminal defendant in being required to appear before a jury in physical restraints. See id. at 2012-13 (discuss*80ing "judicial hostility to shackling"). In particular, courts have found that the appearance of the defendant in restraints would prejudice the jury, causing jurors to believe that the person was dangerous thereby impairing the presumption of innocence. See Illinois v. Allen, 397 U.S. 337, 344 (1970); United States v. Zuber, 118 F.3d 101, 103 (2d Cir. 1997); Duckett v. Godinez, 67 F.3d 734, 747 (9th Cir. 1995).
¶ 21. Thus, in order to comport with due process, courts have held that the presiding judge must engage in a two-step process before approving the use of physical restraints on a defendant in a jury trial. See Zuber, 118 F.3d at 103; Duckett, 67 F.3d at 748. First, a presiding judge must perform an independent evaluation of the need to restrain the party for purposes of maintaining security and order in the courtroom. See Zuber, 118 F.3d at 103; Duckett, 67 F.3d at 748. This independent evaluation may require an evidentiary hearing. See Zuber, 118 F.3d at 103. Second, where restraints are deemed necessary, the presiding judge must take steps to limit their prejudicial effect, including a consideration of less restrictive alternatives. See id.; Duckett, 67 F.3d at 748; Spain v. Rushen, 883 F.2d 712, 721 (9th Cir. 1989). Some courts have held that these requirements apply with equal force in the context of jury sentencing — that is, where juries perform the task of imposing or recommending a particular sentence. See Zuber, 118 F.3d at 103; Duckett, 67 F.3d at 746-47. See also Deck, 125 S. Ct. at 2014-15 (holding "courts cannot routinely place defendants in shackles or other physical restraints visible to the jury during the penalty phase of a capital proceeding"). Courts, however, have declined to extend the rule requiring an independent, judicial evaluation of the need to restrain a party in court to the context of nonjury sentencing *81proceedings. See Zuber, 118 F.3d at 104. This is in part because juror bias constitutes the paramount concern justifying these requirements and we traditionally assume that trial judges, unlike juries, are not prejudiced by impermissible factors. See id.
¶ 22. However, the possibility that jurors will be prejudiced by the presence of physical restraints is not the sole rationale for placing strict limitations on their use in court. Courts have offered numerous reasons for holding that defendants should be in physical restraints only in extraordinary cases. They include:
(1) Physical restraints may cause jury prejudice, reversing the presumption of innocence;
(2) Shackles may impair the defendant's mental faculties;
(3) Physical restraints may impede the communication between the defendant and his [or her] lawyer;
(4) Shackles may detract from the dignity and decorum of the judicial proceedings; and
(5) Physical restraints may be painful to the defendant.
Spain, 883 F.2d at 721 (citation omitted). These concerns, with the exception of the first, are all potentially present when a defendant appears in court before a trial judge. This is especially true in a case such as the one before us here where a defendant is physically or mentally handicapped.
¶ 23. In light of these additional concerns, I suggest that physically restraining a defendant regardless of whether he or she is appearing before a judge or a jury should be the exception, saved only for extraordinary cases, rather than the rule. See Allen, 397 U.S. at 344 (shackles should only be used as a "last resort"). I *82encourage trial judges to exercise discretion in ordering a defendant to be physically restrained not only during a trial, but also during plea taking and sentencing. In the exercise of their discretion, judges should assess the extent of the limitations that would be present if restraints were applied, taking into consideration all of the potential problems listed above, and then weigh the benefits and burdens of restraining against other possible less restrictive alternatives. See Spain, 883 F.2d at 721. An approach such as this, where the particularities of each individual case are assessed, strikes the proper balance between maintaining the safety and security of those in the courtroom and upholding the defendant's constitutional rights.