People v. Beard

851 N.E.2d 141, 366 Ill. App. 3d 197, 303 Ill. Dec. 243, 2006 Ill. App. LEXIS 389
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedMay 12, 2006
Docket1-04-2157
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 851 N.E.2d 141 (People v. Beard) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People v. Beard, 851 N.E.2d 141, 366 Ill. App. 3d 197, 303 Ill. Dec. 243, 2006 Ill. App. LEXIS 389 (Ill. Ct. App. 2006).

Opinions

PRESIDING JUSTICE GALLAGHER

delivered the opinion of the court:

After a bench trial, defendant Keith Beard was convicted of three counts of aggravated kidnapping for ransom and was sentenced to 30 years in prison. As a result of his conviction for aggravated kidnapping, defendant was required to register as a sex offender, pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration Act (the Registration Act) (730 ILCS 150/1 et seq. (West 2002)) and the Sex Offender and Child Murderer Community Notification Law (the Notification Law) (730 ILCS 152/ 101 et seq. (West 2002)). Defendant appeals, arguing that the Registration Act and Notification Law are unconstitutional as applied to him because his crime did not have a sexual motivation or component. Defendant further contends that section 5 — 4—3 of the Unified Code of Corrections (the Code) (730 ILCS 5/5 — 4—3 (West 2002)), which requires a blood sample for persons convicted of sexual offenses or found sexually dangerous, is unconstitutional as a violation of his fourth amendment right against unreasonable search and seizure. For the reasons stated in this opinion, we uphold the constitutionality of the challenged statutes.

On May 17, 2002, a woman and her two children, ages two and seven at the time, were kidnapped in front of their home by two men. The men drove the woman and her children to the defendant’s residence and parked the car inside the garage. The two men talked to the woman’s husband on her cell phone and demanded money and drugs in exchange for his wife and children. At approximately 11 p.m., defendant went to the garage with the victims and told the woman to sit in the car with her children. Defendant sat outside the car holding a gun. Police apprehended defendant and his accomplices the next day after they took the victims to a pay phone.

The trial court found defendant guilty of three counts of aggravated kidnapping for ransom and two counts of aggravated kidnapping of a child under 13 years of age. Defendant was sentenced to three concurrent 30-year sentences. The court ordered a sample of defendant’s DNA be taken pursuant to section 5 — 4—3 of the Code.

ANALYSIS

Defendant argues that the Registration Act and Notification Law are unconstitutional as applied to him because his crime did not involve any sexual motivation or component and, thus, should not be included as a sex offense. Defendant’s argument is based on due process, right of privacy and equal protection grounds.

The Registration Act and Notification Law “set out a comprehensive scheme providing for the registration and community notification of sex offenders.” People v. Malchow, 193 Ill. 2d 413, 416, 739 N.E.2d 433, 437 (2000). The legislative intent behind the creation of the Registration Act and Notification Law was “to create an additional measure of protection for children from the increasing incidence of sexual assault and child abuse.” Malchow, 193 Ill. 2d at 420, 739 N.E.2d at 438. Section 2(B)(1.5) of the Registration Act classifies aggravated kidnapping as a sex offense when “the victim is a person under 18 years of age, the defendant is not a parent of the victim, and the offense was committed on or after January 1, 1996.” 730 ILCS 150/2(B)(1.5) (West 2002). The offenses of kidnapping, unlawful restraint and aggravated unlawful restraint, or an attempt to commit any one of those offenses, also trigger the requirement that the defendant register as a sex offender. 730 ILCS 150/2(B)(1.5) (West 2002).

Here, defendant was convicted of aggravated kidnapping and was required to “register [as a sex offender] in person and provide accurate information as required by the Department of State Police,” pursuant to section 3(a) of the Registration Act (730 ILCS 150/3(a) (West 2002)). The Notification Law provides that when a person registers as a sex offender, “the offender shall notify the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction with whom the offender registers *** that the offender is a sex offender.” 730 ILCS 152/110 (West 2002). The Notification Law requires the Illinois State Police to maintain a “Statewide Sex Offender Database” to identify sex offenders and make the information available to the people specified in the Notification Law. 730 ILCS 152/115(a) (West 2002).

I. Due Process

Defendant asserts that the Registration Act and Notification Law infringe on his fundamental rights to procedural and substantive due process protections. Specifically, defendant claims that his fundamental liberty interests in maintaining a living and rearing his children are being abridged unnecessarily and arbitrarily. Defendant - further contends that his right to procedural due process is violated because he is automatically labeled a sex offender based on the commission of a crime (aggravated kidnapping) without notice or opportunity to challenge that characterization.

Procedural due process requires that a person in danger of serious loss of life, liberty or property be given notice of the case against him and opportunity to meet it. Mathews v. Eldridge, 424 U.S. 319, 348, 47 L. Ed. 2d 18, 41, 96 S. Ct. 893, 909 (1976). Substantive due process bars the government from arbitrarily exercising its power without the reasonable justification of serving a legitimate interest. Daniels v. Williams, 474 U.S. 327, 331, 88 L. Ed. 2d 662, 668, 106 S. Ct. 662, 665 (1986).

When confronted with a claim that a statute violates constitutional guarantees of due process, the court must first determine the nature of the right upon which the statute allegedly infringes. People v. Cornelius, 213 Ill. 2d 178, 203, 821 N.E.2d 288, 304 (2004). Where the right infringed upon is a constitutionally protected fundamental right, the statute is subject to strict scrutiny analysis. Cornelius, 213 Ill. 2d at 204, 821 N.E.2d at 304. The rational basis test is used to determine the validity of a statute challenged on due process grounds where the statute does not affect a fundamental right. Cornelius, 213 Ill. 2d at 203, 821 N.E.2d at 304. To satisfy the rational basis test, a statute must only bear a rational relationship to the purpose the legislature sought to accomplish in enacting the statute. Cornelius, 213 Ill. 2d at 203-04, 821 N.E.2d at 304.

We also note the well-settled axiom that statutes are presumed constitutional and the burden of establishing a statute’s invalidity falls on the party that is challenging the statute. In re J.W., 204 Ill. 2d 50, 62, 787 N.E.2d 747, 755 (2003). Courts have a duty to construe a statute in a manner that upholds its validity and constitutionality if that can be reasonably done (Malchow, 193 Ill.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
851 N.E.2d 141, 366 Ill. App. 3d 197, 303 Ill. Dec. 243, 2006 Ill. App. LEXIS 389, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-v-beard-illappct-2006.