In re Interest of S.C.

S.C. was convicted of sexual assault of a child. The mental health board subsequently found S.C. to be a dangerous sex offender under the Sex Offender Commitment Act (SOCA) and ordered him to undergo secure inpatient treatment. The district court affirmed. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) S.C.'s due process rights were not violated when the State did not allow him to undergo sex offender treatment while still incarcerated, as obtaining treatment was not necessary to affect S.C.'s release from prison, no statutory language existed to create a substantive right to treatment, and SOCA was civil and nonpunitive in nature; and (2) The State presented clear and convincing evidence that S.C. was a dangerous sex offender and that secure inpatient treatment was the least restrictive alternative. View "In re Interest of S.C." on Justia Law