Minnesota Session Laws - 1985, Regular Session

  

                         Laws of Minnesota 1985 

                        CHAPTER 297-H.F.No. 1227 
           An act relating to crimes; providing that a 
          psychotherapist who engages in sexual contact or 
          penetration with a patient under certain circumstances 
          is guilty of criminal sexual conduct; limiting 
          admissibility of a patient's personal or medical 
          history; amending Minnesota Statutes 1984, sections 
          609.341, by adding subdivisions; 609.344; 609.345; and 
          609.347, by adding a subdivision.  
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
    Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.341, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read:  
    Subd. 16.  "Patient" means a person who seeks or obtains 
psychotherapeutic services.  
    Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.341, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read:  
    Subd. 17.  "Psychotherapist" means a physician, 
psychologist, nurse, chemical dependency counselor, social 
worker, clergy, or other person, whether or not licensed by the 
state, who performs or purports to perform psychotherapy.  
    Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.341, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read:  
    Subd. 18.  "Psychotherapy" means the professional 
treatment, assessment, or counseling of a mental or emotional 
illness, symptom, or condition.  
    Sec. 4.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.341, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 19.  "Emotionally dependent" means that the nature of 
the patient's or former patient's emotional condition and the 
nature of the treatment provided by the psychotherapist are such 
that the psychotherapist knows or has reason to know that the 
patient or former patient is unable to withhold consent to 
sexual contact or sexual penetration by the psychotherapist. 
    Sec. 5.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.341, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
    Subd. 20.  "Therapeutic deception" means a representation 
by a psychotherapist that sexual contact or sexual penetration 
by the psychotherapist is consistent with or part of the 
patient's treatment. 
    Sec. 6.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.344, is 
amended to read: 
    609.344 [CRIMINAL SEXUAL CONDUCT IN THE THIRD DEGREE.] 
    A person is guilty of criminal sexual conduct in the third 
degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 
ten years, or to payment of a fine of not more than $20,000, or 
both, if he engages in sexual penetration with another person 
and any of the following circumstances exists:  
    (a) The complainant is under 13 years of age and the actor 
is no more than 36 months older than the complainant.  Neither 
mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the act by 
the complainant shall be a defense; or 
    (b) The complainant is at least 13 but less than 16 years 
of age and the actor is more than 24 months older than the 
complainant.  In any such case it shall be an affirmative 
defense, which must be proved by a preponderance of the 
evidence, that the actor believes the complainant to be 16 years 
of age or older.  If the actor in such a case is no more than 48 
months but more than 24 months older than the complainant, he 
may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than five years.  
Consent by the complainant is not a defense; or 
    (c) The actor uses force or coercion to accomplish the 
penetration; or 
    (d) The actor knows or has reason to know that the 
complainant is mentally defective, mentally incapacitated, or 
physically helpless; or 
    (e) The complainant is at least 16 but less than 18 years 
of age and the actor is more than 48 months older than the 
complainant and in a position of authority over the complainant, 
and uses this authority to cause the complainant to submit. 
Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the 
act by the complainant is a defense; 
    (h) The actor is a psychotherapist and the complainant is a 
patient of the psychotherapist and the sexual penetration 
occurred during the psychotherapy session.  Consent by the 
complainant is not a defense; 
    (i) The actor is a psychotherapist and the complainant is a 
patient or former patient of the psychotherapist and the patient 
or former patient is emotionally dependent upon the 
psychotherapist; or 
    (j) The actor is a psychotherapist and the complainant is a 
patient or former patient and the sexual penetration occurred by 
means of therapeutic deception.  Consent by the complainant is 
not a defense. 
    Sec. 7.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.345, is 
amended to read: 
    609.345 [CRIMINAL SEXUAL CONDUCT IN THE FOURTH DEGREE.] 
    A person is guilty of criminal sexual conduct in the fourth 
degree and may be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than 
five years, or to payment of a fine of not more than $10,000, or 
both, if he engages in sexual contact with another person and if 
any of the following circumstances exists: 
    (a) The complainant is under 13 years of age and the actor 
is no more than 36 months older than the complainant.  Neither 
mistake as to the complainant's age or consent to the act by the 
complainant is a defense.  In a prosecution under this clause, 
the state is not required to prove that the sexual contact was 
coerced; or 
    (b) The complainant is at least 13 but less than 16 years 
of age and the actor is more than 48 months older than the 
complainant or in a position of authority over the complainant 
and uses this authority to cause the complainant to submit.  In 
any such case, it shall be an affirmative defense which must be 
proved by a preponderance of the evidence that the actor 
believes the complainant to be 16 years of age or older; or 
    (c) The actor uses force or coercion to accomplish the 
sexual contact; or 
    (d) The actor knows or has reason to know that the 
complainant is mentally defective, mentally incapacitated, or 
physically helpless; or 
    (e) The complainant is at least 16 but less than 18 years 
of age and the actor is more than 48 months older than the 
complainant and in a position of authority over the complainant, 
and uses this authority to cause the complainant to submit. 
Neither mistake as to the complainant's age nor consent to the 
act by the complainant is a defense; 
    (h) The actor is a psychotherapist and the complainant is a 
patient of the psychotherapist and the sexual contact occurred 
during the psychotherapy session.  Consent by the complainant is 
not a defense; 
    (i) The actor is a psychotherapist and the complainant is a 
patient or former patient of the psychotherapist and the patient 
or former patient is emotionally dependent upon the 
psychotherapist; or 
    (j) The actor is a psychotherapist and the complainant is a 
patient or former patient and the sexual contact occurred by 
means of therapeutic deception.  Consent by the complainant is 
not a defense.  
    Sec. 8.  Minnesota Statutes 1984, section 609.347, is 
amended by adding a subdivision to read:  
    Subd. 6.  (a) In a prosecution under sections 609.342 to 
609.346 involving a psychotherapist and patient, evidence of the 
patient's personal or medical history is not admissible except 
when:  
    (1) the defendent requests a hearing prior to trial and 
makes an offer of proof of the relevancy of the history; and 
    (2) the court finds that the history is relevant and that 
the probative value of the history outweighs its prejudicial 
value.  
    (b) The court shall allow the admission only of specific 
information or examples of conduct of the complainant that are 
determined by the court to be relevant.  The court's order shall 
detail the information or conduct that is admissible and no 
other evidence of the history may be introduced. 
    (c) Violation of the terms of the order is grounds for 
mistrial but does not prevent the retrial of the defendant.  
    Sec. 9.  [EFFECTIVE DATE.] 
    Sections 1 to 8 are effective August 1, 1985, and apply to 
crimes committed on or after that date. 
    Approved June 4, 1985