State Of Washington, V Timothy R. Restorff ( 2015 )

FILED
COURT OF APPEALS
IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STAT MF ASH k 4
DIVISION II
STATE OF WASHINGTON
BY
STATE OF WASHINGTON, No. t 4'
7 Y2 -II
Respondent, UNPUBLISHED OPINION
v.
TIMOTHY R. RESTORFF,
Appellant.
BJORGEN, A.C. J. — A jury returned a verdict finding Timothy Restorff guilty of second
degree assault, with a special verdict finding that he committed his offense while armed with a
deadly weapon. Restorff appeals his conviction and sentence, asserting that the trial court ( 1)
violated his right to counsel by failing to adequately inquire about his complaints regarding
counsel' s performance and (2) miscalculated his offender score by including in its calculation
offenses that had washed out and an Oregon offense that was not comparable to a Washington
offense. Additionally, in his statement of additional grounds for review ( SAG), Restorff raises
issues that are not properly before us because the issues either refer to matters outside the trial
record or require us to reweigh the evidence and evaluate the credibility of witnesses. Because
the trial court did not violate Restorff' s right to counsel and because his SAG arguments are not
properly before us in a direct appeal, we affirm Restorff's conviction. However, because the
sentencing court erred in finding that Restorff' s Oregon conviction of first degree sexual abuse
No. 44857 -2 -II
was factually comparable to the Washington crime of first degree child molestation, we remand
1
for correction of Restorff' s offender score and for resentencing.
FACTS
On January 7, 2013, David Robinson was pumping gas into his car at a Kelso gas station
when Restorff pulled his truck into the station and parked closely behind Robinson' s car.
Robinson asked Restorff to back his truck up so that he could exit the station. Restorff backed
his truck up and then started insulting Robinson. After the two men began arguing, Restorff
grabbed a knife from his dashboard and exited his truck. Robinson backed away when he saw
Restorff approach him with the knife. Restorff kicked and jabbed his knife at Robinson.
Robinson put his hand up to block Restorff and sustained multiple stab wounds to his hand.
When Robinson attempted to call 911 on his cell phone, Restorff knocked the phone out of his
hand and stomped on it. After a witness to the incident approached Restorff and said something
to him, he returned to his truck. Based on this incident, the State charged Restorff with second
degree assault and alleged that Restorff committed the offense while armed with a deadly
weapon.
At a February 12 status hearing, defense counsel requested to continue the omnibus
hearing for one week so that he could discuss a new plea offer with Restorff. Restorff interjected
that he had already discussed the matter with defense counsel and had told counsel that he did
not want to accept the plea offer. Restorff also told the trial court that he believed his counsel
was not acting in his best interest because counsel ( 1) was unable to tell him whether his
previous Oregon conviction of first degree sexual abuse would be comparable to a Washington
1 Because we remand for resentencing, we do not address whether the sentencing court erred by
including in its offender score calculations convictions Restorff argues had washed out.
2
No. 44857 -2 -II
strike offense under the Persistent Offender Accountability Act (POAA) and ( 2) could not obtain
security camera footage that Restorff claimed would prove that he was acting in self -defense
when he stabbed Robinson. The trial court acknowledged Restorff s concerns and continued the
omnibus hearing for one week to allow Restorff time to try to resolve his issues with defense
counsel, stating:
So it sounds like you had desires that more information be found out about prior
convictions and whether they qualify as strike offenses and the like and a little more
time to talk about the plea offers. So maybe it might not be a bad idea to set this
matter over a week so you could take a look at that. So that' s what I' ll do. I' ll set
the matter over to February 19th at 9 o' clock in the morning and we can address
those issues at that time. If you have other concerns, you can address those
concerns at that time also.
Verbatim Report of Proceedings ( VRP) at 3. After the .trial court announced its ruling, Restorff
stated, " I' m not going to talk to this man.... I have nothing further to say to him." RP at 3 - 4.
The following week at the omnibus hearing, Restorff again expressed dissatisfaction with
defense counsel, and the following exchange took place:
Restorff]:I' ve been trying to fire my attorney.
Trial Why is that?
court] :. '
Restorff] : Misleading. In the beginning, he told me I was facing three
strikes. And he tells me he' s going to get the videos —security videos from Safeway
and it' s been two months now, going on, and he telling me there ain' t no videos to
be had.
Trial court]: Well, so, what' s— what' s misleading about that?
Restorff]: Well —and
then he' s writing me and telling me there is no
strikes, and then he' s telling me he can' t tell if there' s a strike from Oregon, and he
can' t —you know, how do I go and make a decision when I' m getting conflicting
information? The first plea bargain I got was 17 to 22. You know—
Trial court] : Okay, then. And it sounds -
Restorff] : — all I—
Trial court]: — like you didn' t take that, so now you' re in a different
position, right?
Restorff]: How can I tell you when I don' t know what I' m —I' m
looking at?
3
No. 44857 -2 -II
RP at 6 -7. The trial court asked the State and defense counsel whether Restorff was facing a
third strike. The State told the trial court it was possible that Restorff s previous Oregon
conviction could be categorized as a strike offense but that it would require " pretty extensive
legal research for either party to know for certain." RP at 7 -8. Defense counsel told the trial .
court he had advised Restorff that his Oregon conviction could count as a strike offense, but that
he could not tell for certain whether the offense would be comparable to a Washington strike
offense because he had " not yet seen anything in the way of court paperwork from Oregon that
would indicate what the status is." RP at 8. Regarding the security video footage, defense
counsel told the trial court that his investigator had sought out the video footage that Restorff
requested, but that the video footage did not exist. The trial court declined Restorff' s request to
dismiss counsel, stating:
Okay. So, Mr. Restorff, it sounds like what' s going on is just that things
aren' breaking the way you want them to. Your attorney' s got an investigator
t
looking for the video that you said exists. It doesn' t. They haven' t got the
paperwork from Oregon to make a good decision on whether or not this is a three -
strike case or not. The fact that he can' t give you pat answers is not a reason for
me to excuse him, and it' s certainly not a reason to consider his performance less
than stellar. So it sounds to me like you better be making up your mind to talk to
defense counsel] because he' s the only one working on your behalf right now.
RP at 10.
At the start of his jury trial, the trial court informed Restorff about his CrR 3. 5 hearing
rights. Restorff told the trial court that he had discussed the matter with defense counsel and that
he was " putting [ his] trust in him, I guess." RP at 14. At the conclusion of his trial, the jury
returned a verdict finding Restorff guilty of second degree assault and returned a special verdict
finding Restorff was armed with a deadly weapon when he committed his offense.
At sentencing, Restorff agreed with the prosecutor' s statement of his criminal history,
that his offender score would include one point for each of his previous burglary convictions, and
4
No. 44857 -2 -II
that only his previous third degree assault conviction had washed out. Restorff also agreed that
he had pled no contest to the Oregon offense of first degree sexual abuse, but stated that he
would not stipulate that his Oregon offense was comparable to a Washington strike offense.
After the trial court confirmed with defense counsel that the remaining issue for sentencing was
only whether Restorff s Oregon offense was comparable to the Washington crime of first degree
child molestation, it continued the sentencing hearing to provide the parties with time to brief the
matter. At the continued sentencing hearing, the trial court stated that it had reviewed the State' s
sentencing memorandum, and it then heard the State' s argument regarding the comparability of
Restorff s Oregon conviction of first degree sexual abuse to the Washington offense of first
degree child molestation. Defense counsel declined to present any counter -argument, stating
only that Restorff would not stipulate to comparability of the offenses.
The trial court noted that the Oregon offense of first degree sexual abuse was broader
than the Washington offense of first degree child molestation because first degree child
molestation contained two essential elements that first degree sexual abuse did not, ( 1) that the
perpetrator was not married to the victim, and (2) that the perpetrator was at least 36 months
older than the victim. The trial court found that the offenses were comparable based on
information contained within Restorff s Oregon indictment that showed that Restorff was at least
36 months older than his sexual abuse victim and that he was not married to the victim when he
committed the offense. The trial court thus included Restorff' s Oregon conviction when
calculating his offender score at six, and it sentenced Restorff within the standard range based on
that offender score and the addition of his deadly weapon sentence enhancement. Restorff
appeals his conviction and sentence.
5
No. 44857 -2 -II
ANALYSIS
I. RIGHT TO COUNSEL
Restorff first contends that the trial court violated his right to counsel when it refused to
appoint new defense counsel without adequately inquiring into Restorff s conflict with his
appointed counsel. We disagree.
Indigent criminal defendants have a constitutional right to assistance of counsel at public
expense during all critical stages of the criminal proceedings. State v. Devlin, 164 Wn. App. 516,
525, 267 P. 3d 369 ( 2011). The constitutional right to assistance of counsel at public expense does
not, however, provide a criminal defendant with an absolute right to choose any particular
advocate. State v. Stenson, 132 Wn.2d 668, 733, 940 P. 2d 1239 ( 1997).
A criminal defendant who is dissatisfied with appointed counsel must show
good cause to warrant substitution of counsel, such as a conflict of interest, an
irreconcilable conflict, or a complete breakdown in communication between the
attorney and the defendant.
Attorney -client conflicts justify the grant of a
substitution motion only when counsel and defendant are so at odds as to prevent
presentation of an adequate defense. The general loss of confidence or trust alone
is not sufficient to substitute new counsel.
Stenson, 132 Wn.2d at 734 ( citations omitted).
A trial court has discretion to determine whether " an indigent defendant' s dissatisfaction
with his court- appointed counsel is meritorious and justifies the appointment of new counsel."
State v. DeWeese, 117 Wn.2d 369, 376, 816 P. 2d 1 ( 1991). We thus review a trial court' s denial
of a motion to substitute counsel for an abuse of discretion. Stenson, 132 Wn.2d at 733.
In this review, we consider three factors: ( 1) the nature and extent of the alleged conflict,
including " the extent and nature of the breakdown in communication between attorney and client
and the breakdown' s effect on the representation the client actually receives "; ( 2) the adequacy
of the court' s inquiry; and ( 3) the timeliness of the motion and the effect of any substitution on
6
No. 44857 -2 -II
the scheduled proceedings. In re Pers. Restraint ofStenson, 142 Wn.2d 710, 724, 16 P. 3d 12001). Restorff challenges only the second factor, asserting that the trial court abused its
discretion by denying his substitution motion without conducting an adequate inquiry into his
issues with defense counsel. " An adequate inquiry must include a full airing of the concerns .. .
and a meaningful inquiry by the trial court." State v. Cross, 156 Wn.2d 580, 610, 132 P. 3d 802006).
Restorff initially expressed dissatisfaction with his defense counsel at a February 12,
2013 status hearing. Specifically, Restorff stated that defense counsel was not working in his
best interest because counsel could not advise him whether his prior Oregon offense would be
considered a strike offense under the POAA and could not obtain certain video evidence. The
trial court acknowledged Restorff s concerns and set the omnibus hearing over for one week to
allow Restorff and defense counsel time to try to resolve their differences. The following week,
Restorff again raised the same two concerns with his defense counsel. The trial court addressed
each of Restorff' s concerns. Regarding Restorff' s concern about defense counsel' s inability to
determine the comparability of his prior Oregon offense, the trial court noted that defense
counsel had not yet received the necessary paperwork to make a comparability
determination. On his concern about counsel' s inability to secure the video footage he had
requested, the trial court noted that counsel' s investigator had found that the footage did not
exist. Restorff did not again assert, as he did at the February 12 status hearing, that he would
refuse to communicate with his defense counsel, and he did not again raise any concerns with his
counsel' s representation throughout the trial. The trial court' s inquiry into Restorff s complaints
allowed Restorff to fully apprise it of all his concerns with defense counsel' s representation.
7
No. 44857 -2 -II
Further, the trial court addressed each of the two concerns raised by Restorff, questioned
the State and defense counsel about those concerns, determined that Restorff s concerns were
unfounded, and denied his motion to substitute counsel. Accordingly, the record shows that the
trial court conducted an adequate inquiry into Restorff s concerns with his appointed counsel.
Cross, 156 Wn.2d at 610. In addition, the record does not demonstrate that Restorff had an
irreconcilable conflict or complete breakdown in communication with his defense counsel to
justify the grant of his substitution motion. The record shows that, by the start of trial, Restorff
and his defense counsel had worked out their differences and were actively communicating with
each other. At best, Restorff s stated concerns showed his general loss of confidence in defense
counsel, which alone is insufficient to warrant the substitution of counsel. Stenson, 132 Wn.2d
at 734. For these reasons, the trial court did not abuse its discretion by denying Restorff s
substitution motion.
II. OFFENDER SCORE CALCULATION
Next, Restorff asserts that the trial court erred at sentencing by including in its offender
score calculation ( 1) an Oregon conviction for first degree sexual abuse that the trial court found
comparable to the Washington offense of first degree child molestation and ( 2) convictions that
Restorff contends had washed out. We agree that the trial court erred by finding Restorff s
Oregon conviction of first degree sexual abuse comparable to the Washington offense of first
degree child molestation and, thus, remand for resentencing.
A defendant may challenge an offender score calculation for the first time on appeal.
State v. Arndt, 179 Wn. App. 373, 388 n. 9, 320 P. 3d 104 ( 2014). We review de novo a trial
court' s calculation of a defendant' s offender score. State v. Wilson, 113 Wn. App. 122, 136, 52
P. 3d 545 ( 2002). At sentencing, the State bears the burden of proving by a preponderance of the
8
No. 44857 -2 -II
evidence the existence of the defendant' s prior convictions. State v. Ammons, 105 Wn.2d 175,
186, 713 P. 2d 719 ( 1986). The State does not meet this burden with "[ b] are assertions,
unsupported by evidence." State v. Hunley, 175 Wn.2d 901, 910, 287 P. 3d 584 ( 2012).
However, a trial court may rely on a defendant' s stipulation or acknowledgement of prior
convictions without further proof. State v. Roy, 147 Wn. App. 309, 316, 195 P. 3d 967 ( 2008). A
defendant' s mere failure to object to State assertions of criminal history at sentencing does not
result in an acknowledgment," rather, "[ t]here must be some affirmative acknowledgment of the
facts and information alleged at sentencing in order to relieve the State of its evidentiary
obligations." Hunley, 175 Wn.2d at 912
Restorff contends that the State failed to prove that his prior Oregon offense of first
degree sexual abuse was comparable to the Washington crime of first degree child molestation
and, therefore, the trial court erred by including that offense in its offender score calculation.
Following our recent decision in Arndt, 179 Wn. App. 373, we agree and remand for
resentencing consistent with this opinion.
We review de novo a trial court' s classification of out -of -state crimes. State v.
Labarbera, 128 Wn. App. 343, 348, 115 P. 3d 1038 ( 2005). " When prior out-of-state convictions
are used to increase an offender score, the State must prove the conviction would be a
comparable] felony under Washington law." Labarbera, 128 Wn. App. at 348; Former RCW
9. 94A. 525( 3) ( 2011). An out -of -state conviction may not be used to increase the defendant' s
offender score unless the State proves it is equivalent to a felony in Washington. State v.
Weiand, 66 Wn. App. 29, 31 -32, 831 P. 2d 749 ( 1992).
A foreign conviction is equivalent to a Washington offense if there is either legal or
factual comparability. In re Pers. Restraint of Lavery, 154 Wn.2d 249, 255 -58, 111 P. 3d 837No. 44857 -2 -II
2005). A foreign offense is legally comparable if "the elements of the foreign offense are
substantially similar to the elements of the Washington offense." State v. Thiefault, 160 Wn.2d
409, 415, 158 P. 3d 580 ( 2007). If the elements of the two statutes are not identical or if the
foreign statute is broader than the Washington definition of the particular crime, the trial court
must then determine whether the offense is factually comparable. State v. Morley, 134 Wn.2d
588, 606, 952 P. 2d 167 ( 1998).
A conviction is factually comparable where the defendant's conduct would have violated
a comparable Washington statute. Lavery, 154 Wn.2d at 255. The State bears the burden of
providing sufficient evidence to prove the comparability of prior out -of s- tate convictions by a
preponderance of the evidence. State v. Ross, 152 Wn.2d 220, 230, 95 P. 3d 1225 ( 2004). " In
making its factual comparison, the sentencing court may rely on facts in the foreign record that
are admitted, stipulated to, or proved beyond a reasonable doubt." Thiefault, 160 Wn.2d at 415.
Restorff pled no contest2 to first degree sexual abuse in Oregon under former ORS
163. 425 ( 1983). Former ORS 163. 425 provided in relevant part:
A person commits the crime of sexual abuse in the first degree when that person:
a) Subjects another person to sexual contact; and
A) The victim is less than 12 years of age.
When Restorff committed his first degree sexual abuse offense in Oregon, the Washington crime
of first degree child molestation was defined in relevant part as follows:
A person is guilty of child molestation in the first degree when the person has sexual
contact with another who is less than twelve years old and not married to the
perpetrator and the perpetrator is at least thirty -six months older than the victim.
2
A no contest guilty plea in Oregon is similar to an Alford guilty plea in Washington. Compare
OREGON REVISED STATUTES 135. 335, 135. 395 with In re Pers. Restraint of Cross, 178 Wn.2d
519, 525 -28, 309 P. 3d 1186 ( 2013), petition for cert. filed December 17, 2014 ( discussing
requirements for entering an Alford plea in Washington) ( citing North Carolina v. Alford, 400
U. S. 25, 38, 91 S. Ct. 160, 27 L. Ed. 2d 162 ( 1970)).
10
No. 44857 -2 -II
Former RCW 9A.44. 083 ( 1990).
The trial court correctly determined that Washington' s crime of first degree child
molestation contained two essential elements that the Oregon crime of first degree sexual abuse
did not: ( 1) that the victim was not married to the perpetrator and ( 2) that the perpetrator was at
least 36 months older than the victim. Therefore, the trial court was required to find the crimes
factually comparable before it could include the Oregon offense in its offender score calculation.
Morley, 134 Wn.2d at 606.
In finding that Restorff was at least 36 months older than the victim when committing his
Oregon offense of first degree sexual abuse, the trial court relied on Restorff s criminal
indictment, which contained a heading listing his date of birth as June 10, 1961. Restorff argues
that the trial court' s reliance on the printed date of his birth in the heading of his indictment
violated his jury trial right under Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U. S. 466, 120 S. Ct. 2348, 147 L.
Ed. 2d 435 ( 2000), because he did not admit to having that date of birth and because a jury did
not find beyond a reasonable doubt that it was his date of birth. Assuming that Restorff is
correct in this contention, his no- contest plea agreement nonetheless provided a sufficient
admission from which the trial court could find that he was at least 36 months older than the
victim when he committed his offense.
In his no- contest plea agreement, Restorff admitted that he was " 30 years of age" when
submitting his plea on April 15, 1992. Ex. 1, at 2. Accordingly, Restorff' s admission showed
that he was at least 36 months older than the victim, who was under 12 years old at the time of
the offense, when he committed first degree sexual abuse on or between June 13, 1991 and July
2, 1991.
11'
No. 44857 -2 -II
Turning to the question of marital status, Restorff is correct that nothing in the plea
documents show his admission to being unmarried to the victim when he committed his offense.
The State argues that, because the minimum age at which a person may marry in Oregon is 17
years old, Restorff could not have been married to his victim when he committed his offense as a
matter of law. We rejected a similar claim in Arndt, where we held that the State failed to prove
the factual comparability between the defendant' s Oregon crime of third degree rape and the
Washington crime of third degree child rape. Arndt, 179 Wn. App. at 388. In so holding, we
rejected the State' s argument that the trial court could infer that the defendant and the third
degree rape victim were unmarried because the victim was below the minimum age of marriage
in Oregon. In rejecting this argument, we recognized that it was not impossible for the defendant
and the victim to have been married outside of Oregon, stating:
The State' s arguments do not show that it was impossible for Arndt and the victim
to have been married.... [ I] n California there is no minimum age for marriage
with a court order and written parental consent, Cal. Fam. Code 302, while in
Washington, a superior court judge may waive the age requirements on a showing
of necessity. RCW 26. 04. 010( 2).
Arndt, 179 Wn. App. at 389,. n.10.
As in Arndt, the State here did not present any evidence about Restorff s and the victim' s
marital status, an element of Washington' s crime of first degree child molestation. As in Arndt,
the fact that the victim was below the minimum age of marriage in Oregon does not prove that
Restorff and the victim were unmarried at the time of the Oregon offense. Accordingly, the trial
court erred by including that conviction in its calculation of Restorff s offender score, and we
12
No. 44857 -2 -II
remand for resentencing. 3 Because the sentencing court must recalculate Restorff s offender
score when resentencing him on remand, and because Restorff will not be bound by his prior
offender score agreement,4 we do not address his claim that the sentencing court erred by
including prior offenses in its offender score calculation that Restorff contends had washed out.
II. SAG
In his SAG, Restorff first appears to argue that his counsel was ineffective for failing to ( 1)
obtain certain video evidence, ( 2) hire an investigator, ( 3) request a bail reduction hearing, and ( 4)
spend any time preparing a defense. All of these arguments refer to matters that are outside the
record on appeal. Accordingly, we cannot address these arguments in Restorff s direct appeal.
State v. McFarland, 127 Wn.2d 322, 338, 899 P. 2d 1251 ( 1995).
Restorff also argues in his SAG that Robinson attacked him at the gas station and, thus, he
acted in defense when
self - he stabbed Robinson. The nature of this argument is unclear, but it
appears that Restorff is asking our court to reevaluate the persuasiveness of evidence and the
credibility of his testimony in support of his self -defense claim. However, we defer to the jury on
issues of witness credibility and the persuasiveness of evidence. State v. Snider, 70 Wn.2d 326,
327, 422 P. 2d 816 ( 1967). Accordingly, we do not further address this argument.
3 Whether the State may have another opportunity to introduce evidence to show the factual
comparability of Restorff s Oregon offense to a Washington crime or whether it must rely on the
record established at the prior sentencing hearing is controlled by RCW 9. 94A. 530( 2). See State
v. Jones, Wn.2d , 338 P. 3d 278 ( 2014).
4
See State v. Reinhart, 77 Wn. App. 454, 458 -59, 891 P. 2d 735 ( 1995) ( interpreting former
RCW 9. 94A. 360( 6)( a), recodified as RCW 9. 94A. 525( 5)( a)( 1)) to require " current sentencing
court" to determine whether defendant' s multiple prior offenses encompassed the same criminal
conduct).
13
No. 44857 -2 -II
We affirm Restorff' s conviction, but remand for correction of his offender score and for
resentencing consistent with this opinion.
A majority of the panel having determined that this opinion will not be printed in the
Washington Appellate Reports, but will be filed for public record in accordance with RCW
2. 06. 040, it is so ordered.
ALC, 1
We concur:
aoteltsdoo,
W iRSWICK, 7.
14