In State v. Johal No. 58980-0-II, the WA Court of Appeals held that a person may harass someone by threatening to injure another. Therefore, the victim of Harassment need not be the person who was threatened.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
The Defendant Mr. Johal and his former partner Ms. Rivera dropped off their six-week-old child, SJ, with a friend. Later that night, after an apparent dispute, Rivera walked into a convenience store. Johal later entered the store and dragged Rivera out. Around 2:00 AM, Johal arrived at the friend’s house and insisted on taking SJ home. Johal took the baby to his apartment.
Vancouver police were dispatched to Johal’s apartment. When officers arrived, Rivera exited and they escorted her away. The officers believed that SJ still was inside the apartment. Several officers entered the apartment. Johal was holding SJ, and using profanity he yelled for the officers to leave his apartment. Johal then picked up a hammer, drew his arm back, and said that he was going to kill SJ. Johal eventually put down the hammer, but he then started walking toward the balcony and yelled that he was going to throw SJ off the balcony.
Officers stopped him from getting to the balcony and eventually removed SJ from Johal’s arms. The State charged Johal with Felony Harassment – Death Threats, Felony Violation of a DV No-Contact Order, First Degree Kidnapping, Third Degree Assault, and Attempted First Degree Assault.
At trial, the officers who witnessed the defendant threaten to kill the infant in his arms testified they the victims of Felony Harassment. That is because the defendant’s threats were to coerce or intimidate the officers into leaving the scene.
The trial court found Johal guilty of multiple felonies, including Felony Harassment-death threats. Regarding the Felony Harassment-death threats charge, the court orally found that Johal threatened to kill SJ and that the officers heard the threat and reasonably believed that Johal would use the hammer to kill SJ.
Johal appealed his conviction of Felony Harassment-death threats. He argued that the victim of the harassment must be the person the defendant threatens to injure or kill, and that third parties who are not threatened with injury or death cannot be victims of harassment. He claimed that the person threatened with injury or death – here, SJ – must be placed in reasonable fear that the threat will be carried out to support a Harassment conviction.
COURT’S ANALYSIS & CONCLUSIONS
The WA Court of Appeals began by saying that to sustain a conviction for Felony Harassment, the statute requires that the State prove that the person threatened was placed in reasonable fear that the threat to kill would be carried out. The only question here is who constitutes the “victim” of harassment.
Next, the Court of Appeals reasoned that the Harassment statute states that a person is guilty of harassment if they threaten to cause bodily injury to “the person threatened or to any other person.” (Emphasis added.)
“This language establishes that the harassment victim and the person threatened with bodily injury need not be the same person,” said the Court of Appeals. “In other words, a defendant may harass one person by threatening to injure another person.”
Next, the Court of Appeals stated that here, a rational trier of fact could determine that Johal’s threats to kill SJ were both directed at and an attempt to coerce or intimidate the officers on the scene. He wanted the officers to leave his apartment and to abandon their attempt to arrest him, and threatening to kill SJ was his way of accomplishing that end. Therefore, the officers were the “persons threatened” under the statute.
“We hold that based on the offense as charged, the officers in this case could be victims of harassment under RCW 9A.46.020(1)(b) even though Johal threatened to kill SJ. As a result, the trial court properly addressed under RCW 9A.46.020(1)(b) whether the officers were placed in reasonable feared that the threat to kill SJ would be carried out.” ~WA Court of Appeals.
With that, the Court of Appeals affirmed Johal’s conviction for Felony Harassment – Death Threats.
Please contact my office if you, a friend or family member are charged with a Felony Harassment or any other crime. Hiring an effective and competent defense attorney is the first and best step toward justice.
