MURRAY, J.
Defendant, a medical doctor, was convicted by a jury of his peers of second-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC-II), MCL 750.520c(1)(a) (sexual contact with victim under 13 years of age), third-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC-III), MCL 750.520d(1)(b) (sexual penetration by force or coercion), and six counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC-IV), MCL 750.520e(1)(b) (sexual contact by force or coercion). On appeal, defendant argues that the evidence was insufficient to support his CSC-II conviction, that his sentence to lifetime electronic monitoring violates his state and federal constitutional rights against cruel and/or unusual punishment, unreasonable searches, and double jeopardy, and that the trial court erred in utilizing facts not found by the jury in scoring the sentencing guidelines. For the reasons that follow, we reject each of defendant's arguments, and consequently affirm both his conviction and sentence.
Defendant's CSC-II conviction, the only conviction he challenges on appeal, is based on his improperly touching a 12year-old patient, SB. As a result, we will only recount the material facts presented at trial that are relevant to that conviction.
On March 30, 2010, 12-year-old SB saw defendant for a medical exam. SB testified that while defendant was facing her with his back to the door and was either checking her throat with a tongue depressor, or was just holding the tongue depressor, he "cupped" her right breast for between 1 and 30 seconds with his left hand on the outside of her shirt. Defendant explained to SB that he was checking her breathing.
SB's mother, whom we will refer to as MB, testified that defendant's wife, Dr. Debbie Hallak, was SB's primary care doctor. Dr. Hallak's practice was on one side of the office; the urgent care clinic operated by defendant was on the other side. MB testified that on March 30, 2010, SB, who had irritable bowel syndrome (among other conditions), saw defendant for stomach issues
For his part, defendant denied ever deviating from his policy of having a parent or guardian in the examination room when seeing a child, and specifically denied being alone with SB. Defendant testified that when he was examining SB's throat, he would have had the tongue depressor in one hand and a flashlight in the other; he denied fondling her breast, and denied that MB yelled at him about fondling her daughter's breast. He also denied examining SB with a stethoscope that day.
Dr. Grant Greenberg testified as a prosecution expert witness in family practice and addressed ethical and acceptable practices. Relative to SB, he opined that while it might be appropriate for a parent to leave the examining room so a minor could discuss something in private with the doctor, this would only be done if the parent agreed. According to Dr. Greenberg, it would not be medically ethical or acceptable to touch a patient's breast while examining her throat. Dr. Greenberg additionally noted that touching a patient's breast during this type of examination would be counterproductive given the additional tissue in that area, and that touching the breast while examining the patient's chest with a stethoscope was equally unnecessary, problematic, and unethical.
Dr. Joseph Shufeldt testified as a defense expert in the area of urgent care, family practice in the urgent care setting, and ethical and acceptable medical practices. He agreed that there should be a chaperone with an 11-or 12-year-old minor unless the parent otherwise consents.
Along with this testimony that directly related to the touching of SB, the jury heard testimony from several witnesses who also claimed to have experienced similar treatment from defendant while under his care. Additionally, the jury heard the other victims testify in the cases consolidated with SB's.
After the jury's verdict, the trial court sentenced defendant to prison terms of 57 to 180 months for the CSC-II conviction, 85 to 180 months for the CSC-III conviction involving another victim, and 16 to 24 months for each CSC-IV conviction also involving other victims. The court additionally ordered lifetime electronic monitoring as part of defendant's CSC-II sentence. We now turn to defendant's arguments.
Defendant seeks to overturn his CSC-II conviction on the basis that his state and federal rights to due process of law
In addressing this issue, our task is to determine whether any rational trier of fact could have found that the essential elements of the crime were proved beyond a reasonable doubt. We resolve all conflicting evidence in favor of the prosecution, while acknowledging that circumstantial evidence and reasonable inferences may be sufficient to prove the elements of the crime. People v. Lockett, 295 Mich.App. 165, 180, 814 N.W.2d 295 (2012).
MCL 750.520c(1)(a) establishes the crime of CSC-II and proscribes sexual contact with a person under 13 years of age. "Sexual contact" is statutorily defined to include "the intentional touching of the victim's or actor's intimate parts or the intentional touching of the clothing covering the immediate area of the victim's or actor's intimate parts, if that intentional touching can reasonably be construed as being for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification," MCL 750.520a(q), among other reasons. Defendant does not contest the victim's' age or that there was sufficient evidence of a touching. Instead, as noted above, he argues only that the evidence failed to establish that the touchingwas intended for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification.
"It is a well-established rule that a jury may convict on the uncorroborated evidence of a CSC victim." People v. Lemmon, 456 Mich. 625, 642 n. 22, 576 N.W.2d 129 (1998); see also MCL 750.520h. Moreover, "because it can be difficult to prove a defendant's state of mind on issues such as knowledge and intent, minimal circumstantial evidence will suffice to establish the defendant's state of mind, which can be inferred from all the evidence presented." People v. Kanaan, 278 Mich.App. 594, 622, 751 N.W.2d 57 (2008).
Upon our review of the record, we hold that the evidence was sufficient to
We likewise reject defendant's assertion that upholding his conviction could expose those in the medical field to unwarranted CSC prosecutions for any sort of conduct occurring during a physical examination. First, the facts presented to the jury in defendant's case were not that of a routine medical exam. Defendant did not have a third person present during the examination of a minor, and two witnesses testified as to his "cupping" the minor's breast, and an expert testified that there was no medical reason to do so. Second, we firmly believe that given the objective-screening charging procedures used by the prosecution, a trial court's ability to dismiss cases without factual support (see MCR 6.419), and a jury's keen ability to accurately determine the facts of a case, there are sufficient protections within the system to avoid the concerns raised by defendant.
Defendant also argues that the scoring of the sentencing guidelines relative to his CSC-II conviction violated his constitutional right to a jury trial
For someone convicted of CSC-II where the victim is under the age of 13 and the perpetrator is over the age of 17, lifetime electronic monitoring, which will track defendant's movement and location until his death, is required by statute. MCL 750.520c(2)(b) and MCL 750.520n(1). According to defendant, this "punishment"
"Statutes are presumed to be constitutional, and courts have a duty to construe a statute as constitutional unless its unconstitutionality is clearly apparent." Taylor v. Gate Pharm., 468 Mich. 1, 6, 658 N.W.2d 127 (2003). For his facial challenge to MCL 750.520c(2)(b), defendant has the onerous burden to prove that there is no set of circumstances under which the statute is valid. Bonner v. City of Brighton, 495 Mich. 209, 223, 848 N.W.2d 380 (2014); Keenan v. Dawson, 275 Mich.App. 671, 680, 739 N.W.2d 681 (2007). While the facial-challenge standard is extremely rigorous, an as-applied challenge is less stringent and requires a court to analyze the constitutionality of the statute against a backdrop of the facts developed in the particular case. Keenan, 275 Mich.App. at 680, 739 N.W.2d 681.
A claim based upon the Eighth Amendment Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause can also take two forms. Under an as-applied challenge, a defendant can seek to overturn a sentence that is disproportionate "given all the circumstances in a particular case." Graham v. Florida, 560 U.S. 48, 59, 130 S.Ct. 2011, 176 L.Ed.2d 825 (2010). A defendant can also take a "categorical" approach by asserting that an entire class of sentences is disproportionate based upon the nature of the offense and the characteristics of the offender. Id. at 60, 130 S.Ct. 2011.
MCL 750.520c(2) provides:
Under MCL 750.520n(1), a "person convicted under [MCL 750.520b (first-degree criminal sexual conduct (CSC-I)) I or [MCL 750.520c (CSC-II)] for criminal sexual conduct committed by an individual 17 years old or older against an individual less than 13 years of age shall be sentenced to lifetime electronic monitoring. . . ." Lifetime electronic monitoring involves "a device by which, through global positioning system satellite or other means, an individual's movement and location are tracked and recorded." MCL 791.285(3). The monitoring is to be in accordance with MCL 791.285, which provides that the lifetime electronic monitoring program is to be established by the Department of Corrections (DOC) and outlines what the program is to accomplish. Further, MCL 750.520n(2) makes it a felony, punishable by imprisonment for not more than 2 years or a fine of up to $2,000, or both, if a person being monitored
There is no provision in the statute for any kind of discretion with respect to, review of, or relief from the required monitoring.
Defendant first argues that lifetime electronic monitoring violates Const. 1963, art. 1, § 16, which prohibits "cruel or unusual punishment" and U.S. Const. Am. VIII, which prohibits "cruel and unusual punishments." (Emphasis added.) Because of its broader language the Michigan prohibition potentially covers a larger group of punishments. People v. Carp, 496 Mich. 440, 519, 852 N.W.2d 801 (2014). Under both provisions, however, the preliminary question is whether lifetime electronic monitoring constitutes a "punishment." People v. Costner, 309 Mich.App. 220, 232, 870 N.W.2d 582 (2015), citing In re Ayres, 239 Mich.App. 8, 14, 608 N.W.2d 132 (1999).
We first address defendant's as-applied challenge, for if this statute is valid under the facts applicable to defendant then it is certainly capable of being upheld against a facial challenge. See Bonner, 495 Mich. at 223, 848 N.W.2d 380 (recognizing that a facial challenge will fail if any state of facts reasonably can be conceived that would sustain the statute). We also first consider it under the state constitutional prohibition because a statute upheld under our state governing charter's Cruel or Unusual Punishment Clause "necessarily passes muster under the federal constitution." People v. Nunez, 242 Mich.App. 610, 618 n. 2, 619 N.W.2d 550 (2000); see also People v. Benton, 294 Mich.App. 191, 204, 817 N.W.2d 599 (2011).
Defendant cites People v. Cole, 491 Mich. 325, 817 N.W.2d 497 (2012), for the proposition that lifetime electronic monitoring is punishment. There, the Court held that the defendant could withdraw his guilty plea where he was not advised that lifetime electronic monitoring would be part of the sentence, because lifetime electronic monitoring was a direct as opposed to a collateral consequence of the plea. The Court reasoned that lifetime monitoring was intended to be a punishment, and thus part of the sentence itself:
The prosecution argues that the Cole Court's conclusion that mandatory lifetime monitoring is a punishment is obiter dictum because the Court could have reached the same result by simply noting that this was a regulatory scheme. But obiter dictum is a statement that is unnecessary to resolving a case, such as an extraneous statement made as an aside to the dispositive issue in an opinion. See Auto-Owners Ins. Co. v. All Star Lawn Specialists Plus, Inc., 497 Mich. 13, 21 n. 15, 857 N.W.2d 520 (2014). That the Court could have relied on an alternative rationale does not make the Court's chosen rationale obiter dictum. Moreover, although the Court decided the question in the context of answering a different question, it nonetheless clearly concluded that lifetime electronic monitoring under this same statutory provision was intended by the Legislature to be a punishment. While it appears that the statute may have been primarily intended to help ensure that sex offenders would not encounter potential victims (a regulatory function), the Cole Court made it very clear that lifetime electronic monitoring is a punishment.
"In deciding if punishment is cruel or unusual, this Court looks to the gravity of the offense and the harshness of the penalty, comparing the punishment to the penalty imposed for other crimes in this state, as well as the penalty imposed for the same crime in other states." People v. Brown, 294 Mich.App. 377, 390, 811 N.W.2d 531 (2011); see also People v. Bosca, 310 Mich.App. 1, 56, 871 N.W.2d 307 (2015). However, the "dominant test" is the proportionality question, which is "whether the punishment is so excessive that it is completely unsuitable to the crime." People v. Coles, 417 Mich. 523, 530, 339 N.W.2d 440 (1983),
The goal of rehabilitation is also a consideration. Dipiazza, 286 Mich. App. at 154, 778 N.W.2d 264, citing People v. Launsburry, 217 Mich.App. 358, 363, 551 N.W.2d 460 (1996). If the punishment "thwarts the rehabilitative potential of the individual offender and does not contribute toward society's efforts to deter others from engaging in similar prohibited behavior," it may be deemed excessive. Coles, 417 Mich. at 530, 339 N.W.2d 440, citing Lorentzen, 387 Mich. at 180, 194 N.W.2d 827. However, the "need to prevent the
Likewise, under a federal as-applied challenge, a limited proportionality comparison also comes into play, as the court must first compare "the gravity of the offense and the severity of the sentence." Graham, 560 U.S. at 60, 130 S.Ct. 2011. This "narrow proportionality principle" does not require strict proportionality, but only prohibits "extreme sentences that are grossly disproportionate to the crime." Id. at 59-60, 130 S.Ct. 2011 (quotation marks and citation omitted). Because of that, and the significant deference given to legislative sentencing, it will be the rare case that meets this initial threshold test. See United States v. Young, 766 F.3d 621, 625 (C.A.6, 2014); United States v. Cobler, 748 F.3d 570, 575 (C.A.4, 2014); United States v. Reingold, 731 F.3d 204, 211 (C.A.2, 2013). Indeed, the United States Supreme Court has only found one law that met this stringent test—a South Dakota law that provided for life in prison without parole for a recidivist defendant who passed bad checks. Solem v. Helm, 463 U.S. 277, 279-284, 103 S.Ct. 3001, 77 L.Ed.2d 637 (1983). And if a case does not meet that initial, narrow proportionality test, we can go no further. See Cobler, 748 F.3d at 575.
Turning now to the case before us, we first recognize that lifetime electronic monitoring for those convicted of CSC-II against a victim less than 13 years old
Many states have imposed the penalty of lifetime electronic monitoring for various CSC cases. And while some of those states have imposed the requirement for a lesser amount of time, at least 11 (including Michigan) have mandated lifetime monitoring for defendants convicted of the most serious CSC offenses or CSC with a minor.
For these same reasons, defendant cannot succeed on his facial challenge under the state constitution, Bonner, 495 Mich. at 223, 848 N.W.2d 380, nor can he prevail on his federal constitutional claim, Nunez, 242 Mich.App. at 618 n. 2, 619 N.W.2d 550. And even if defendant's federal claim were not essentially subsumed within the stricter state constitutional provision, our analysis reveals that lifetime electronic monitoring is not an "extreme sentence[ ]" that is "grossly disproportionate to the crime." Graham, 560 U.S. at 60, 130 S.Ct. 2011 (quotation marks and citation omitted). Lifetime electronic monitoring for an individual 17 or older who is convicted of CSC against an individual 13 or younger is not the least bit comparable to the only crime and punishment found to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court under this test. That part of defendant's sentence therefore does not violate defendant's state or federal rights against cruel and/or unusual punishment.
Defendant cites United States v. Jones, 565 ___ U.S. ___, 132 S.Ct. 945, 181 L.Ed.2d 911 (2012), for the proposition that electronic monitoring violates the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. U.S. Const. Am. IV provides:
Though neither party has brought the decision to our attention, whether placing the monitor on defendant constitutes a search for purposes of the Fourth Amendment was just recently resolved by the United States Supreme Court in Grady v. North Carolina, 575 U.S. ___, 135 S.Ct. 1368, 191 L.Ed.2d 459 (2015). There, the Court held that a Fourth Amendment search occurred through operation of a North Carolina law that required recidivist sex offenders to wear a satellite-based monitoring device. Id. at ___, 135 S.Ct. at 1369-1370. On the basis of Grady, we must hold that the placement of an electronic monitoring device to monitor defendant's movement constitutes a search for purposes of the Fourth Amendment. But, as the Grady Court also noted, that conclusion does not end the Fourth Amendment inquiry, as the Fourth Amendment only precludes unreasonable searches. Id. at ___, 135 S.Ct. at 1371. Whether a search is unreasonable is a question of law. Sitz v. Dep't of State Police, 443 Mich. 744, 765, 506 N.W.2d 209 (1993), citing People v. Case, 220 Mich. 379, 389, 190 N.W. 289 (1922). Accord United States v. Wagers, 452 F.3d 534, 537 (C.A.6, 2006), and United States v. Taylor, 592 F.3d 1104, 1107 (C.A.10, 2010). For the following reasons, we hold that lifetime electronic monitoring for a defendant 17 years or older convicted of CSC-II involving a minor under 13 is not unreasonable.
The reasonableness of a search "depends upon all of the circumstances surrounding the search or seizure and the nature of the search or seizure itself." United States v. Montoya de Hernandez, 473 U.S. 531, 537, 105 S.Ct. 3304, 87 L.Ed.2d 381 (1985) (citation omitted). "`"The applicable test in determining the reasonableness of an intrusion is to balance the need to search, in the public interest, for evidence of criminal activity against invasion of the individual's privacy."'" People v. Chowdhury, 285 Mich.App. 509, 516, 775 N.W.2d 845 (2009), quoting People v. Wilkens, 267 Mich.App. 728, 733, 705 N.W.2d 728 (2005).
Turning first to the public interest, it is evident that in enacting this monitoring provision, the Legislature was seeking to provide a way in which to both punish and deter convicted child sex offenders and to protect society from a group known well for a high recidivism rate. As the Court pointed out in Samson v. California, 547 U.S. 843, 853, 126 S.Ct. 2193, 165 L.Ed.2d 250 (2006), "this Court has repeatedly acknowledged that a State's interests in reducing recidivism and thereby promoting reintegration and positive citizenship among probationers and parolees warrant
Having examined the public interest in this type of monitoring, we now balance that interest against the invasion of defendant's privacy interest. We begin by recognizing that parolees and probationers have a lower expectation of privacy, even in the comfort of their own homes, than does the average law-abiding citizen. Samson, 547 U.S. at 848-852, 126 S.Ct. 2193, citing Hudson v. Palmer, 468 U.S. 517, 530, 104 S.Ct. 3194, 82 L.Ed.2d 393 (1984). The monitoring does not prohibit defendant from traveling, working, or otherwise enjoying the ability to legally move about as he wishes. Instead, the monitoring device simply records where he has traveled to ensure that he is complying with the terms of his probation and state law. MCL 791.285(1) and (3). And although this monitoring lasts a lifetime, the Legislature presumably provided shorter prison sentences for these CSC-II convictions because of the availability of lifetime monitoring. In that regard we also cannot forget that minor victims of CSC-II are often harmed for life. See Mozie, 752 F.3d at 1289 ("Sexual crimes against minors cause substantial and long-lasting harm . . . ."), Kennedy v. Louisiana, 554 U.S. 407, 467-468, 128 S.Ct. 2641, 171 L.Ed.2d 525 (2008) (Alito, J., dissenting) (discussing the long-term developmental problems sexually abused children can experience), and People v. Huddleston, 212 Ill.2d 107, 135, 287 Ill.Dec. 560, 816 N.E.2d 322 (2004) ("The child's life may be forever altered by residual problems associated with the event."). Though it may certainly be that such monitoring of a law abiding citizen would be unreasonable, on balance the strong public interest in the benefit of monitoring those convicted of CSC-II against a child under the age of 13 out-weighs any minimal impact on defendant's reduced privacy interest.
Finally, defendant argues that the punishment of lifetime electronic monitoring, and concomitant cost, violates the state and federal Double Jeopardy Clauses. Article 1, § 15 of our Constitution provides, in pertinent part, that "[n]o person shall be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy," Const. 1963, art. 1, § 15, whereas the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution provides, in
See also People v. Dewald, 267 Mich.App. 365, 385, 705 N.W.2d 167 (2005) (holding in the case of a defendant sentenced to prison and ordered to pay restitution that "MCL 780.766(2) requires a court to order restitution `in addition to or in lieu of any other penalty authorized by law or in addition to any other penalty required by law'" and that the order of restitution did not violate double jeopardy), overruled in part on other grounds by People v. Melton, 271 Mich.App. 590, 722 N.W.2d 698 (2006) (special panel to resolve conflict).
Because the Legislature intended that both defendant's prison sentence and the requirement of lifetime monitoring be sanctions for the crime, there was no double jeopardy violation.
Affirmed.
BOONSTRA, P.J., and SAAD, J., concurred with MURRAY, J.