Morrow v. State

2014 Ark. 510, 452 S.W.3d 90, 2014 Ark. LEXIS 650
CourtSupreme Court of Arkansas
DecidedDecember 11, 2014
DocketCR-14-412
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 2014 Ark. 510 (Morrow v. State) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Arkansas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Morrow v. State, 2014 Ark. 510, 452 S.W.3d 90, 2014 Ark. LEXIS 650 (Ark. 2014).

Opinion

KAREN R. BAKER, Associate Justice

| )On October 15, 2012, appellant, Richard Morrow, entered a negotiated plea of guilty to second-degree sexual assault in the Sharp County Circuit Court, with an offense date of February 5, 2012. Morrow was sentenced to ten years’ probation and subject to the sex-offender-registration requirements in Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-901 et seq. (Supp. 2013). On August 12, 2013, the State filed a felony information in the Independence County Circuit Court against Morrow alleging that Morrow had committed a Class C felony for failure to comply with registration and reporting requirements as required by Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-904.

During Morrow’s November 22, 2013 bench trial, the following facts regarding the felony information were elicited. Lieutenant Michael Mundy with the Independence County Sheriffs Department testified that he supervises all registered sex offenders in Independence 12County. These individuals are required to register at the sheriffs office with Mundy or his secretary. Mundy further testified that all of the files are electronic and maintained through two databases. He further testified that the registrants confirm the accuracy, similar to an electronic credit-card-signature form, and confirmation of the information provided; i.e, phone, address, work place, email, and then sign the forms. Mundy testified that in the summer of 2013, Morrow came to the sheriffs office and met with the secretary who normally handles the registrations and changed his address to 3545 Dennis Circle. Mundy testified that he contacted Morrow’s parole officer, Christa Houston, to see what address she had for Morrow. In addition, Mundy testified that the 3545 Dennis Circle address Morrow provided was not an address he was able to locate in Independence County.

Houston, a parole officer with the Arkansas Department of Community Correction in Independence County, testified that she began supervising Morrow’s probation when Morrow moved to Independence County in February 2013. Prior to that, Morrow resided in Sharp County, and from October 2012 to early February 2013 his probation was supervised in Sharp County. Houston testified that since Morrow was placed on probation in October 2012, he had eight address changes. She testified that five of those address changes had occurred during her supervision. Houston testified that all files are kept and monitored electronically. Houston further testified that she ensures all registrants have registered with the sheriffs office, that the addresses with both probation and the sheriffs offices are the same, and that the addresses are accurate.

With regard to the alleged violation, Houston testified that on July 29, 2013, Morrow ]swas released from jail for a misdemeanor theft-of-property charge but failed to report to her upon release, which he was required to do. Houston testified that on August 6, 2013, Morrow reported to her that his address was 3545 Dennis Circle. Houston testified that she could not find the 3545 Dennis Circle address and checked on a similar address at 3545 Dennie Circle, where the resident confirmed that Morrow had spent the night there the previous evening but did not reside there. Houston further testified that on August 7, 2013, Morrow reported to her again and Morrow was arrested on that day for a probation violation and was placed on a three-day probation hold. On August 13, 2013, Morrow was arrested on an outstanding warrant for the failure to report and comply with the sex-offender statutory-registration requirements.

At the close of the evidence, Morrow moved to dismiss the charges. The circuit court requested briefs from the parties. On December 12, 2013, after the parties filed their respective briefs, in a written letter order, the circuit court denied Morrow’s motion to dismiss and found Morrow guilty of the offense of failure to comply with the registration and reporting requirements of Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-904. On December 16, 2013, Morrow filed a motion for reconsideration. The state responded, and Morrow replied. On January 15, 2014, the circuit court conducted a hearing on the motion for reconsideration and denied the motion, found Morrow guilty of violating of Ark. Code Ann. § 12-12-904, and sentenced Morrow to four years’ probation and 180 days in the county jail.

From that order, Morrow appealed to the court of appeals, and on October 23, 2014, Morrow filed a motion to transfer his appeal to this court. On October 30, 2014, we granted 14Morrow’s motion. On appeal, Morrow presents two points: (1) the circuit court erred in denying Morrow’s motion to dismiss because the State failed to prove any culpable-mental-state element of the offense, and Adkins v. State, 371 Ark. 159, 264 S.W.3d 523 (2007) should be overruled because there is no clear legislative intent to do away with any culpable-mental-state requirement in the sex-offender-registration requirements, and (2) the circuit court erred in denying Morrow’s motion to dismiss because the State failed to introduce any evidence of what address Morrow had registered with the local law enforcement agency responsible for monitoring sex-offender registration.

Standard, of Review

“A motion to dismiss at a bench trial and a motion for a directed verdict at a jury trial are challenges to the sufficiency of the evidence. When a defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence that led to a conviction, the evidence is viewed in the light most favorable to the State.” Stewart v. State, 362 Ark. 400, 403, 208 S.W.3d 768, 770 (2005) (internal citations omitted). “In reviewing a challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence, this court determines whether the verdict is supported by substantial evidence, direct or circumstantial. Substantial evidence is evidence forceful enough to compel a conclusion one way or the other beyond suspicion or conjecture. This court views the evidence in the light most favorable to the verdict, and only evidence supporting the verdict will be considered.” Thornton v. State, 2014 Ark. 157, at 4-5, 433 S.W.3d 216, 219 (internal citations omitted).

Points on Appeal

For his first point on appeal, Morrow asserts two separate but related issues. First, IsMorrow contends that Adkins v. State, 371 Ark. 159, 264 S.W.3d 523, should be overruled because there is no clear legislative intent to do away with any culpable-mental-state requirement in the sex-offender-registration requirements. 1

Morrow asserts the circuit court erred in denying his motion to dismiss and that we should overturn Adkins because there is no clear legislative intent to do away with any mental-state requirement in the sex-offender-registration statutes. Further, citing to Lambert v. California, 355 U.S. 225, 78 S.Ct. 240, 2 L.Ed.2d 228 (1957), Morrow contends that Adkins violates due-process | nrequirements because our interpretation in Adkins disposed of the necessary due-process requirement that the State prove that the offender had knowledge of the duty to register but also that the offender knowingly failed to comply with those registration requirements.

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Related

Wilson v. State
2016 Ark. App. 164 (Court of Appeals of Arkansas, 2016)
Dowdy v. State
2015 Ark. 35 (Supreme Court of Arkansas, 2015)

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Bluebook (online)
2014 Ark. 510, 452 S.W.3d 90, 2014 Ark. LEXIS 650, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/morrow-v-state-ark-2014.