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Introducing the 'Dangerous Quadriplegic' Doctrine

By Bruce Carton

From the same profession that brought you the "fertile octogenarian" rule centuries ago comes a new one: the "dangerous quadriplegic" doctrine. Via Lowering the Bar, today I came across Martinez v. Board of Parole Hearings (PDF), an opinion issued yesterday by the Court of Appeal of the State of California, Third Appellate District. Martinez was a violent felon serving time in prison. Three years into his 157-year sentence, Martinez was knifed by a fellow inmate, rendering him a complete quadriplegic. Due to his physical condition, Martinez asked the Board of Parole Hearings to recommend that his sentence be "recalled and that he be granted a compassionate release from custody" under California law. BPH denied Martinez's request, however, finding among other things that despite his physical condition, "some evidence" (mainly his violent past and some verbal threats) showed that Martinez could be a threat to public safety if released from prison. The Court essentially ruled that such a threat was conceivable, but that the case had to be "returned to BPH because it did not explicitly articulate" the facts on which it based this factual finding. The best part of the opinion comes when the majority and the dissenting judge square...

Full post as published by Legal Blog Watch on April 07, 2010 (boomark / email).