Opinion
J-A13021-17 No. 818 EDA 2016
08-09-2017
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. JAMIE LYNN SILVONEK Appellant
NON-PRECEDENTIAL DECISION - SEE SUPERIOR COURT I.O.P. 65.37
Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence February 11, 2016
In the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County
Criminal Division at No(s): CP-39-CR-0002141-2015 BEFORE: LAZARUS, J., OTT, J. and FITZGERALD, J. MEMORANDUM BY OTT, J.:
Former Justice specially assigned to the Superior Court.
Jamie Lynn Silvonek appeals from the judgment of sentence imposed on February 11, 2016, in the Court of Common Pleas of Lehigh County, following her entry into a negotiated guilty plea to first-degree murder and related charges. Silvonek, a 14-year-old at the time of the crime, and her 20-year-old boyfriend, Caleb Barnes, killed Silvonek's mother, who had attempted to put an end to their relationship. Prior to the guilty plea, Silvonek petitioned the court to have her case decertified so that she could be adjudicated in juvenile court. Following a two-day hearing, the trial court denied Silvonek's motion to transfer. She subsequently entered into the negotiated guilty plea mentioned above and was sentenced to 35 years' incarceration to life, as agreed. In this timely appeal, Silvonek claims the trial court erred in denying her petition to transfer to juvenile court by requiring her to self-incriminate to demonstrate her ability to rehabilitate, misapplying several of the statutory factors, and in basing its determination on bias, prejudice, and/or ill will. After a thorough review of the submissions by the parties, the certified record, and relevant law, we affirm.
Pursuant to statute, murder is exempt from classification as a delinquent act. See 42 Pa.C.S. § 6302, definition of "Delinquent act (2)(i)." Accordingly, pursuant to 42 Pa.C.S. § 6322, a juvenile charged with murder must petition the trial court for transfer to the juvenile system. In order to prevail, the juvenile has the burden to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the transfer will serve the public interest. See 42 Pa.C.S. § 6322. This determination, in turn, is made by the trial court by considering the factors listed in section 6355(a)(4)(iii). Those factors are:
(iii) that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the public interest is served by the transfer of the case for criminal prosecution. In determining whether the public interest can be served, the court shall consider the following factors:
(A) the impact of the offense on the victim or victims;
(B) the impact of the offense on the community;
(C) the threat to the safety of the public or any individual posed by the child;
(D) the nature and circumstances of the offense allegedly committed by the child;
(E) the degree of the child's culpability;
(F) the adequacy and duration of dispositional alternatives available under this chapter and in the adult criminal justice system; and
(G) whether the child is amenable to treatment, supervision or rehabilitation as a juvenile by considering the following factors:
42 Pa.C.S. § 6355(a)(4)(iii).(I) age;
(II) mental capacity;
(III) maturity;
(IV) the degree of criminal sophistication exhibited by the child;
(V) previous records, if any;
(VI) the nature and extent of any prior delinquent history, including the success or failure of any previous attempts by the juvenile court to rehabilitate the child;
(VII) whether the child can be rehabilitated prior to the expiration of the juvenile court jurisdiction;
(VIII) probation or institutional reports, if any;
(IX) any other relevant factors;
Our standard of review is as follows:
Decisions of whether to grant decertification will not be overturned absent a gross abuse of discretion. An abuse of discretion is not merely an error of judgment but involves the misapplication or overriding of the law or the exercise of a manifestly unreasonable judgment passed upon partiality, prejudice or ill will.Commonwealth v. Ruffin , 10 A.3d 336, 338 (Pa. Super. 2010) (citations omitted).
The underlying facts of this matter are particularly important to the disposition of this matter and must be understood to provide the needed context to the trial court's determination and our ruling. The trial court clearly understood this necessity and provided approximately 22 pages detailing the factual underpinnings of this matricide. We rely upon this recitation of the facts and direct the parties to attach a copy of the trial court opinion in the event of further proceedings.
See Trial Court Opinion, 11/19/2015, at 2-24.
Here, we simply note that Silvonek was the instigator and willing participant in the murder of her mother, who was standing in the way of a continuing sexual relationship between Silvonek and her adult boyfriend, Caleb Barnes, a soldier stationed at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Texts from Silvonek to Barnes on the day they killed her mother capture the essence of this. 1) "She needs to go, Caleb. Right now. You don't understand"; 2) "CALEB" "I'M SERIOUS" "She's lying" [about Silvonek's age] "Please do it, I'm going to throw up" "I can't stand her lying to you like this"; 3) "I don't know what her problem is" "She threatened to throw me out of the house. I want her gone."; 4) "I just need to you be able [sic] to come over so we can do whatever necessary, honestly"; 5) "I want her to shut her fucking face and stop being fake. She just God damn lied to you about my age and now she's pulling this shit." See Commonwealth Exhibit 8, 10/29/2015, Texts, 3/14/2015.
Silvonek's first argument is that the trial court abused its discretion denying decertification by violating Silvonek's fifth amendment right against self-incrimination. One of the statutory factors for the trial court to consider is amenability to treatment in the juvenile system. Case law demonstrates that a component of that determination can be whether the juvenile takes responsibility for his or her actions. While taking responsibility may be considered, the court cannot require the juvenile to admit to guilt in order to prove he or she has taken responsibility. See Commonwealth v. Brown , 26 A.3d 485 (Pa. Super. 2011). If the court does use the failure to admit guilt to determine the juvenile is not amenable to rehabilitation, the juvenile's fifth amendment right against self-incrimination has been violated. Id. Our review of the certified record shows that while the trial court did consider Silvonek's lack of acceptance of responsibility for her actions, it did not require her to admit her crime. Rather, in its Pa.R.A.P. 1925(a) opinion, the trial court credited forensic psychiatrist, John S. O'Brien, M.D., J.D., who determined, "In [Silvonek's] version, she 'minimize[d] her problems and overlook[ed] personal fault,' by 'continuing to distance herself from any responsibility for the offense.'" Trial Court Opinion, 11/19/2015, at 31-32.
The foregoing was not a statement faulting Silvonek for her failure to admit to her crime. Instead, this comment is part of larger commentary indicating Silvonek, even at her young age, had become an adept liar and emotional manipulator of those around her. In using these traits, she was attempting to avoid responsibility and consequences of her actions. Indeed, the record reflects Silvonek has been described by those around her as a "chameleon", id. at 29, "socially savvy", "a psychological bully", and a "manipulator". Id. at 32. Additionally, the record is replete with instances where Silvonek changed her story and attitude in response to her situation. The video of Silvonek's voluntary interview with the police, immediately after she was taken into custody, is ample demonstration such behavior.
Particularly relevant to this issue, we note: 1) how Silvonek attempted to blame a friend of hers, Witness One, for giving Barnes the idea of killing her parents, and 2) how Silvonek claimed Barnes had forcibly raped her after killing her mother. This court has viewed the interview, as well as all other available video evidence, in its entirety.
In reviewing the entire record, it is clear that the determination that Silvonek avoided responsibility of her actions was not based upon her failure to admit guilt. She did, in fact, admit to certain aspects of her criminal behavior in the police interview. Specifically, she admitted to minimally helping Barnes dispose of her mother's body. Our review of the certified record, in toto, confirms that the trial court's determination that Silvonek's failure to accept responsibility for her actions was not based upon a refusal to admit guilt. Rather, the determination was based upon her actions viewed in their entirety. Silvonek is not entitled to relief in this issue.
Next, Silvonek argues the trial court improperly considered certain of the required factors in denying her motion for decertification. She claims the trial court considered her age and her relationship with co-defendant, Caleb Barnes, as aggravating factors rather than as mitigating factors. Specifically, she claims, "The trial court failed to consider the inherent coerciveness of Jamie Silvonek's relationship with a twenty (20) year old co-defendant when Jamie Silvonek had not reached the age of consent and had just turned fourteen (14) years old." Appellant's Brief at 24. While the certified record does reflect expert testimony was presented to support this theory, specifically the testimony of Dr. Frank Dattilio, Ph.D., and Dr. Steven Berkowitz, M.D., the trial court considered the testimonial evidence of both experts and rejected them. The trial court reasoned that the primary foundation of Dr. Dattilio's opinion was admittedly based upon Silvonek's "unreliable recounting and version of events." Trial Court Opinion at 27. The trial court further stated, regarding Dr. Dattilio's reliance on Silvonek's version of the events:
Indeed, this Court recognizes that [Silvonek] has presented many different versions of the events, as they are constantly changing. Of prime importance, Dr. Dattilio based his opinion on the fact that [Silvonek] did not execute the killing of her mother, was surprised by the killing, and was an unwilling participant in it. However, [Silvonek's] text messages between [her] and the Co-Defendant, the Walmart video (not reviewed by Dr. Dattilio), the Lehigh County Jail letter (not reviewed by Dr. Dattilio prior to preparing his report), as well as her telephone conversation with Co-Defendant in the presence of Witness Number One as recounted in the Preliminary Hearing testimony, undermine this assertion.Id. at 27-28 (footnotes omitted).
Dr. Berkowitz opined that due to Adolescent Brain Development, Silvonek exhibited poor judgment and should not be held to the same legal standard as an adult. He further testified that Silvonek suffered from a non-verbal learning disability. However, the trial court noted that although Dr. Berkowitz interviewed Silvonek while she was in the Lehigh County Jail and reviewed the battery of diagnostic assessments performed by Dr. Dattilio, he did not review Silvonek's school records, the Walmart video, the approximately 6,000 text messages between Silvonek and Barnes, the psychiatric report of Dr. John F. Campion, M.D., the sexual assault report of Dr. Debra Jenssen, M.D., the social media sites used by Silvonek, and without having interviewed any of Silvonek's teachers.
The Walmart video is closed circuit video from the Walmart store Silvonek and Barnes visited to buy cleaning supplies after they had killed Silvonek's mother and left her in the Silvonek vehicle in the driveway. The video shows, in part, Silvonek and Barnes walking arm in arm; Silvonek pulling on Barnes' arm, directing him down a specific aisle; and Silvonek carrying a bottle of what appears to be bleach, swinging it as if it were a sand pail at the beach. The Lehigh County Jail letter was a note Silvonek attempted to send to Barnes regarding her decertification hearing in which she asks him to take the blame for her, claiming that if the situation was reversed, she would "be on the stand at that hearing, taking the fall for you." Trial Court Opinion. 11/16/2015, at 28, fn. 14. In the letter, she further claims "...the only hope of us ever being together is if I get sent back to Juvenile Court. After 7 years I can move to wherever you are, and we can be together." Id. Finally, Witness One is the friend referred to earlier to whom Silvonek tried to shift blame. The phone call was one between Silvonek and Barnes, in the presence of Witness One, in which Silvonek suggested Barnes kill her mother.
Dr. Campion was Silvonek's therapist prior to the murder.
This report was generated after Silvonek, during her police interview, accused Barnes of having forcibly raped her.
In light of the above, we see no abuse of discretion by the trial court in rejecting these expert opinions. Rather, the trial court found the testimony of John S. O'Brien, M.D., J.D., to have been credible. The trial court noted that Dr. O'Brien had both interviewed Silvonek and thoroughly reviewed the records:
Although the trial court did note that Dr. Dattilio testified that if, contrary to his belief, Silvonek did plot, encourage, and participate in the murder of her mother, then then it would not be in the public interest to decertify. Trial Court Opinion, 11/16/2015, at 30, fn. 15. As the trial court determined Silvonek was the instigator and a willing participant in the killing, the trial court accepted this aspect of Dr. Dattilio's testimony.
[Dr. O'Brien] found that [Silvonek] "seamlessly adjust[ed]" her story and provided multiple versions of what took place on the evening of March 14, 2015 and early morning hours of March 15, 2015. In [Silvonek's] version, she "minimize[d] her problems and overlook[ed] personal fault," by "continuing to distance herself from any responsibility for the offense." [Silvonek] was found to be "a good liar and had successfully lied on multiple occasions in order to get what she wanted." She was seen by others in the community as being "socially savvy," "a psychological bully" and a "manipulator." Overall, [Silvonek] presented herself differently to different people in order to achieve her end goal. Indeed, during the course of her therapy with Dr. John Campion, [Silvonek] ironically was seen as having "a significant improvement in her symptoms" at a time when "her actual performance and participation in school activities deteriorated" and her relationship with her parents was contentious.
Dr. O'Brien found [Silvonek] to be "a highly intelligent and manipulative young woman" who was not a "fearful or emotionally overpowered passive participant in the pre-planned, premeditated murder of her mother." Dr. O'Brien concluded that [Silvonek] was "an individual who could size up her audience and behave in a manner that was consistent with their interests and
their receptiveness to her self-serving and ingratiating representation of herself."Id. at 31-32 (citations to the record omitted).
The trial court accepted Dr. O'Brien's expert testimony that Silvonek was a manipulator, not manipulated. As noted, we have reviewed the video evidence, read the expert reports and testimony, and reviewed the text messages between Silvonek and Barnes and we find no abuse of discretion in this determination. Accordingly, Silvonek is not entitled to relief on this issue.
The last factor Silvonek claims the trial court erred in analyzing was the determination that juvenile dispositional alternatives were inadequate to address both society's and Silvonek's needs and that Silvonek was an unlikely candidate to be rehabilitated prior to the expiration of the juvenile court jurisdiction. Here, the trial court considered the evidence that the two programs available to Silvonek had never treated anyone for more than 2½ years, making it likely that Silvonek would be released from such program well before her 21st birthday. Given the extreme nature of the crime, including her willing participation in it, as well as Silvonek's general lack of amenability for rehabilitation, the trial court reasoned:
The claim relates to the factors at 42 Pa.C.S. § 6355 (F) and (G)(vii). --------
As such, this Court finds that the juvenile system is inadequate to supervise, treat or rehabilitate [Silvonek]. This Court recognizes that juvenile court jurisdiction ends at the age of twenty-one (21) regardless of whether or not [Silvonek]
continues to pose a threat to society. However, it is more likely than not that [Silvonek] would be released long before she attains the age of twenty-one (21) years old, as the treatment facilities are designed with a shorter duration of treatment in mind. A period of approximately two and a half (2½) years is woefully inadequate to expect that [Silvonek] would respond to treatment or rehabilitation after committing matricide.Trial Court Opinion, at 35-36.
In contrast, within the adult system, a state correctional institution is available to [Silvonek] that would suit her needs. Specifically, SCI Muncy is a state correctional institution housing youthful female offenders younger than eighteen (18) years old, and young adult female offenders between the ages of eighteen (18) and twenty-one (21). The juvenile programing within the adult correctional system offered at SCI Muncy mirrors the programming for juvenile offenders offered at both North Central Secure Treatment Unit and Adelphoi Village. William Franz, the Correction Classification Program Manager and SCI Muncy, explained that the youthful offender and young adult prisoners are separated from the general prison population. The Youthful Offender Program offers a great deal of programs designed to be therapeutic in nature. The prisoners in this program meet with their counselors and psychologists daily, and overall there is [a] great deal of interaction with the staff. In this program, the prisoner would receive an education and be offered programs run by area Universities. Under the Young Adult Offender Program, the prisoner undergoes a five (5) phase program, each phase lasting eight (8) weeks. A young adult prisoner would have the opportunity to participate in a myriad of programs which focus on, inter alia, positive relationships, coping skills, decision making and positive self-esteem. Mr. Franz indicated that the programs in SCI Muncy are similar to those offered at North Central Secure Treatment Unit in Danville, Pennsylvania. However, M. Franz noted that it is less chaotic at SCI Muncy because they have more options available to them to deal with rule breakers. Consequently, he believed SCI Muncy to be a placement that is more conducive to treatment.
This rationale belies Silvonek's claims that the trial court based its decision simply on the belief that as a juvenile offender Silvonek would be released in two and one-half years. Contrary to Silvonek's claims, we believe the trial court engaged in a thoughtful analysis of this issue before determining that Silvonek would be more appropriately served by the adult correctional facilities.
Finally, Silvonek argues the trial court abused its discretion by basing its determination on partiality, prejudice or ill will. Essentially, Silvonek argues, "The lower court found [Silvonek] effectively guilty of all alleged charges before a trial even commenced. Such findings clearly demonstrate partiality, prejudice or ill will towards Juvenile Jamie Silvonek." Appellant' s Brief at 29.
We note that Silvonek has cited Commonwealth v Brown , 26 A.3d 485 (Pa. Super. 2011) favorably throughout her brief. As discussed above, we have found Brown inapplicable under the facts of this case regarding Silvonek's self-incrimination claim. However, the Brown decision also states:
Consistent with our discussion above permitting a psychiatrist to presume a juvenile's guilt in determining amenability to treatment, we conclude that for purposes of analyzing the factors in § 6355(a)(4)(iii), a trial court may (but need not) assume that the juvenile is guilty and committed the alleged acts constituting the offense.Commonwealth v. Brown , 26 A.3d at 508.
Case law specifically permits the trial court to presume the juvenile's guilt when considering decertification. Accordingly, this argument is unavailing.
Our review of this matter convinces us that this is an extraordinary case. Jamie Lynn Silvonek was still a young teenager when she conspired with her 20 year old boyfriend to murder her mother in order to continue their relationship. Nonetheless, the trial court carefully considered the totality of the evidence and applied the facts to the statutory factors listed at 42 Pa.C.S. § 6355(a)(4)(iii). In doing so, the trial court determined, despite her age, Silvonek was not amenable to rehabilitation in the juvenile system and that the adult system would be better able to provide her with the help she requires. Accordingly, the trial court found that Silvonek had not carried her burden to prove that a transfer to the juvenile system would serve the public interest. Our comprehensive review of the certified record in this matter confirms that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Silvonek's motion to transfer to juvenile court.
Judgment of sentence affirmed. Judgment Entered. /s/_________
Joseph D. Seletyn, Esq.
Prothonotary Date: 8/9/2017
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