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TACOMA, Wash. — A Washington appeals court has sided with Steven Powell by ruling that he does not have to reveal his prior sexual history without the promise of immunity from further prosecution.
Powell — the father-in-law of missing West Valley woman Susan Powell, who police believe was killed by her husband Josh Powell but has never been found — was convicted of 12 counts of voyeurism in 2012. When he was released in 2014, one of the conditions of his parole was to complete a sexual deviancy treatment program and follow all of the conditions outlined by the provider.
Powell, however, refused to participate in a psychosexual evaluation which required that he disclose all of his sexual history.
"Powell argued that, without a grant of immunity, his Fifth Amendment rights protected him from disclosing his likely incriminating sexual history. Powell acknowledged that he would be required to provide his sexual history if the state were to grant him immunity," the Washington State Court of Appeals wrote in its decision.
Prosecutors, however, declined to grant immunity, noting that if Powell, 65, were to "admit to any level of horrible criminal activity," a treatment provider would be obligated to report it to law enforcement.
In its decision, the appeals court acknowledged that based on Powell's refusal to comply, "Powell faces a realistic threat of self-incrimination if he is compelled to reveal his sexual history."
However, the appeals court overturned the state court ruling, saying that Powell's Fifth Amendment right was violated.
"We hold that once Powell invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, punishing him for asserting his right to remain silent and compelling him to disclose his sexual history in the course of sexual deviancy treatment imposed as part of his criminal sentence without immunity from future prosecution is a Fifth Amendment violation."
Related:
Steven Powell sentenced to 5 more years in prison
Steven Powell, who has served 30 months in prison for spying on neighbor girls, has been sentenced to an additional five years for possession of child pornography for photos he took through their bathroom window.Powell was sentenced to 40 days in jail for refusing to comply.
Despite Tuesday's small victory from the appellate court, Powell will remain in prison. He was sentenced in August to serve five more years of incarceration after being convicted of possession of child pornography. The charge was dismissed during Powell's original trial, but it was later reinstated after the appeals court ruled the judge had erred in his decision.
Powell was convicted of taking voyeuristic pictures of two young neighbor girls inside their Washington home.
Powell's son, Josh Powell, is believed to have killed his wife, West Valley mother Susan Powell, whose body has never been found. He also killed their two young sons, 7-year-old Charlie and 5-year-old Braden, in 2012 while also committing suicide by torching his rental home.
