State v. Thiel
State v. Thiel
Opinion of the Court
¶ 1. Dennis R. Thiel spent more than a decade committed as a sexually violent person. In 2009,
BACKGROUND
¶ 2. Thiel was convicted in 1993 of sexually assaulting a child and sent to prison for four years. Shortly before his release from prison, the State moved to have Thiel committed as a sexually violent person under Wis. Stat. § 980.01(7) (2009-10).
¶ 3. In 2009, Thiel petitioned the circuit court for supervised release. The court found that the five factors for supervised release under Wis. Stat. § 980.08(4)(eg) were met and ordered DHS to submit a plan for Thiel's supervised release as required by § 980.08(4)(cm). DHS submitted a plan with forty-eight rules for Thiel to
¶ 4. Rule 13 states that Thiel "shall abide by all rules of any detention, treatment or correctional facility in which [Thiel] may be confined." Thiel objected to this rule on the grounds that Wis. Stat. ch. 980 is a civil rather than a criminal commitment, and therefore he cannot be held in a county jail. The State responded that Wis. Stat. § 980.08(7)(a) and (b) allow DHS to detain a sex offender on supervised release when the sex offender violates the terms of his supervised release or presents a threat to the safety of others. DHS has seventy-two hours after detaining a sex offender to decide whether to file a petition to revoke supervised release. Sec. 980.08(7)(c). The State argued that the county jail was the most appropriate place to quickly detain Thiel in the event that he violated the terms of his supervised release or presented a safety threat to others. The circuit court agreed with the State and ruled that the difference between Thiel being held in jail versus a treatment facility was insignificant and that the jail option made more logistical sense.
¶ 5. Rule 16 provides that Thiel "shall submit to the polygraph (lie detector) examination process as directed by DHS in accordance with Wisconsin Statutes [§] 51.375(2)." Thiel objected to Rule 16 as he was concerned that he would have to take the lie detector test at the Sand Ridge treatment facility, which is over two hours away from Thiel's home. Thiel requested that the test be given at his home so he would not miss time at work. The court inquired of the State as to why the lie detector test had to be taken at Sand Ridge and not the local sheriffs department. The State replied that it contracts with a polygraph expert at Sand Ridge. The circuit court found Rule 16 was reasonable.
¶ 6. The standard of review of a circuit court's approval of a supervised release plan under Wis. Stat. § 980.08(4)(g) has not previously been articulated. We agree with both the State and Thiel that the proper standard of review is the erroneous exercise of discretion standard. The objectives of Wis. Stat. ch. 980 are treatment of the offender and protection of the public. See State v. Burris, 2004 WI 91, ¶¶ 35-36, 273 Wis. 2d 294, 682 N.W.2d 812. Our supreme court has stated that circuit courts and DHS are entitled to "reasonable latitude" in trying to achieve these two objectives. Id. Also, this court has held that circuit courts have wide discretion in imposing the conditions of probation or extended supervision, and that we review such conditions under the erroneous exercise of discretion standard to determine if the circuit court's decision served the twin objectives of rehabilitation of the offender and protection of the public. State v. Stewart, 2006 WI App 67, ¶ 11, 291 Wis. 2d 480, 713 N.W.2d 165. A circuit court properly exercises its discretion if it relies on relevant facts in the record and applies a proper legal standard to reach a reasonable decision. State v. Edmunds, 2008 WI App 33, ¶ 8, 308 Wis. 2d 374, 746 N.W.2d 590.
DISCUSSION
Ripeness
¶ 7. The State argues that Thiel's claims are not ripe for review because no circumstances have arisen where Rules 13 and 16 were sought to be enforced. The two fundamental considerations in a ripeness analysis are "the fitness of the issues for judicial decision and the hardship to the parties of withholding court consider
¶ 8. Regarding the second consideration, assuming arguendo that the restraints are unlawful, Thiel would be forced to subject himself to an illegal action before he could challenge the rules. A party need not wait for actual harm to occur for a claim to be ripe. Nebraska Public Power Dist. v. MidAmerican Energy Co., 234 F.3d 1032, 1038 (8th Cir. 2000). As Thiel is required to comply with the rules of his supervised release plan, he has a right to challenge those rules.
Rule 13
¶ 9. Rule 13 of the supervised release plan states that Thiel "shall abide by all rules of any detention, treatment or correctional facility in which [Thiel] may be confined." Thiel argues that this rule unlawfully gives DHS the power to hold him in a county jail or a
¶ 10. Wisconsin Stat. § 980.08(7)(a) and (b) provide that if a person on supervised release has violated any condition or rule of a supervised release plan, or if DHS believes a person on supervised release poses a threat to the safety of others, DHS may detain the person. Section 980.08(7)(c) expressly provides that detention may be "in a jail or a [mental health] facility described under s. 980.065." Section 980.08(7) thus expressly gives DHS the authority to place a person on supervised release in jail in the event a rules violation occurs. While Rule 13 does not give DHS the power to detain Thiel in prison solely for a rules violation, it does require Thiel to abide by all rules of the prison should he find himself detained there for other reasons (e.g., pending proceedings involving revocation of extended supervision or parole).
Rule 16
¶ 11. Rule 16 provides that Thiel "shall submit to the polygraph (lie detector) examination process as directed by DHS in accordance with Wisconsin Statutes [§] 51.375(2)." Thiel objects to the fact that the lie detector testing may be performed at the Sand Ridge treatment facility, which is over two hours away from his home. He argues that this arrangement violates Wis. Stat. § 980.08(6m), which provides that after an order for supervised release is approved, DHS "shall arrange
¶ 12. We see no erroneous exercise of discretion on the part of the circuit court. Wisconsin Stat. § 51.375(2) permits DHS to administer lie detector tests to sex offenders placed in the community. The use of lie detector tests to treat sex offenders does not violate due process. Wilson v. Watters, 348 F. Supp. 2d 1031, 1036 (WD. Wis. 2004). Wisconsin Admin. Code § DHS 98.31(2)(a) (Feb. 2012) provides that a DHS agent must provide notice to a sex offender before administering a lie detector test. The notice must include the "[d]ate, time, and location of the scheduled test." Sec. DHS 98.31(2)(b). Where the test will occur is a discretionary decision for DHS to make and for a court to approve. The reason DHS requested that the lie detector test be given at Sand Ridge instead of a location closer to Thiel's home is because the State's polygraph expert is located at Sand Ridge. As the circuit court's decision to approve this course of action was a reasoned and reasonable determination, we affirm its discretionary decision.
CONCLUSION
¶ 13. We hold that the circuit court appropriately exercised its discretion in approving Thiel's supervised release plan.
Order affirmed.
All references to the Wisconsin Statutes are to the 2009-10 version unless otherwise noted.
The Department of Health and Family Services (DHFS) was renamed the Department of Health Services (DHS) on July 1, 2008. State of Wisconsin Blue Book 417 (2011-12 ed.) For ease of reference, we will exclusively use DHS in this opinion.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- State of Wisconsin, Petitioner-Respondent v. Dennis R. Thiel
- Cited By
- 5 cases
- Status
- Published