State v. Evans

298 P.3d 724, 177 Wash. 2d 186
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedApril 11, 2013
DocketNo. 86772-1
StatusPublished
Cited by170 cases

This text of 298 P.3d 724 (State v. Evans) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Evans, 298 P.3d 724, 177 Wash. 2d 186 (Wash. 2013).

Opinions

González, J.

¶1 — Petitioner Derrick Robert Evans stole a business check from the small business where he worked, made the check out to himself for $500, then forged a signature on the check and cashed it. Evans was charged with identity theft and convicted after a bench trial. See RCW 9.35.020(1) (“No person may knowingly obtain, possess, use, or transfer a means of identification or financial information of another person, living or dead, with the intent to commit... any crime.”); see also RCW 9.35.005(4) (citing RCW 9A.04.110); RCW 9A.04.110(17) (defining “person” to include “any natural person and, where relevant, a corporation”). Evans now challenges his conviction on the ground that RCW 9.35.020 (the identity theft statute) criminalizes theft of a natural person’s identity but does not criminalize theft of a corporate identity — or, in the alternative, that the statute is unconstitutionally vague.

¶2 We reject Evans’s arguments and affirm the Court of Appeals. The plain language and legislative history of the identity theft statute demonstrate that theft of a corporate identity is a crime. The identity theft statute provided fair warning to Evans and other persons and contains suffi[191]*191ciently objective standards for purposes of enforcement. We thus affirm Evans’s conviction.

I. FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

¶3 In October 2009, Evans stole a business check from his employer, a small company called Allube Inc., which was engaged in the business of automobile maintenance and repair in Grays Harbor County, Washington. Evans forged a name on the stolen check and cashed it for $500. He was charged with second degree identity theft in violation of RCW 9.35.020(3). Evans was convicted after a bench trial and sentenced to 6 months in jail, followed by 12 months of community custody.

¶4 Evans appealed, arguing that the identity theft statute either does not proscribe theft of a corporate identity or is unconstitutionally vague. The Court of Appeals upheld Evans’s conviction in a published opinion, holding that RCW 9.35.020 proscribes theft of a corporate identity, provides fair warning that theft of a corporate identity is a crime, and establishes sufficient standards for enforcement. State v. Evans, 164 Wn. App. 629, 265 P.3d 179 (2011). We granted discretionary review.

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW

¶5 Issues of statutory construction and constitutionality are questions of law subject to de novo review. State v. Bradshaw, 152 Wn.2d 528, 531, 98 P.3d 1190 (2004).

III. ANALYSIS

¶6 We reject Evans’s arguments. First, the plain language and legislative history of the identity theft statute establish that the statute protects both individual and corporate identities. The legislature intended to protect small businesses and other corporations as well as natural persons from the substantial harms caused by identity [192]*192theft, whether in the form of stolen checks, fraudulent loans, or the myriad other ways identity theft can occur.

¶7 Second, as a matter of due process, the identity theft statute is not unconstitutionally vague. The statute provides fair warning to Evans and others that theft of a corporate identity can be punished as a crime. The mere fact that a term or phrase requires interpretation is not sufficient to render a criminal statute void for vagueness. Further, application of the statute to theft of corporate identities is not inherently subjective. The relevant standards are clear and workable, and there is no substantial risk of arbitrary enforcement. We affirm Evans’s conviction for these reasons.

1. Statutory Interpretation

¶8 We must determine, according to our established principles of statutory interpretation, whether the identity theft statute is intended to protect corporations from theft of the corporate identity. The purpose of statutory interpretation is “to determine and give effect to the intent of the legislature.” State v. Sweany, 174 Wn.2d 909, 914, 281 P.3d 305 (2012); State v. J.P., 149 Wn.2d 444, 450, 69 P.3d 318 (2003); In re Pers. Restraint of Williams, 121 Wn.2d 655, 663, 853 P.2d 444 (1993).

¶9 When possible, we derive legislative intent solely from the plain language enacted by the legislature, considering the text of the provision in question, the context of the statute in which the provision is found, related provisions, and the statutory scheme as a whole. State v. Ervin, 169 Wn.2d 815, 820, 239 P.3d 354 (2010); Dep’t of Ecology v. Campbell & Gwinn, LLC, 146 Wn.2d 1, 9-10, 43 P.3d 4 (2002). Plain language that is not ambiguous does not require construction. State v. Delgado, 148 Wn.2d 723, 727, 63 P.3d 792 (2003); State v. Wilson, 125 Wn.2d 212, 217, 883 P.2d 320 (1994).

¶10 If more than one interpretation of the plain language is reasonable, the statute is ambiguous and we must [193]*193then engage in statutory construction. City of Seattle v. Winebrenner, 167 Wn.2d 451, 456, 219 P.3d 686 (2009); State v. Jacobs, 154 Wn.2d 596, 600-01, 115 P.3d 281 (2005). We may then look to legislative history for assistance in discerning legislative intent. Ervin, 169 Wn.2d at 820; State v. Bash, 130 Wn.2d 594, 601, 925 P.2d 978 (1996).

¶11 If a penal statute is ambiguous and thus subject to statutory construction, it will be “strictly construed” in favor of the defendant. State v. Hornaday, 105 Wn.2d 120, 127, 713 P.2d 71 (1986); Wilson, 125 Wn.2d at 216-17; Jacobs, 154 Wn.2d at 601. This means that we will interpret an ambiguous penal statute adversely to the defendant only if statutory construction “clearly establishes” that the legislature intended such an interpretation. Winebrenner, 167 Wn.2d at 462. Otherwise, if the indications of legislative intent are “insufficient to clarify the ambiguity,” we will then interpret the statute in favor of the defendant. In re Post Sentencing Review of Charles, 135 Wn.2d 239, 250 & n.4, 252-53, 955 P.2d 798 (1998). This is known as “the rule of lenity.” Id. at 250 n.4; Jacobs, 154 Wn.2d at 601. Requiring a relatively greater degree of confidence when resolving ambiguities within penal statutes against criminal defendants helps further the separation of powers doctrine and guarantees that the legislature has independently prohibited particular conduct prior to any criminal law enforcement. See United States v. Bass, 404 U.S. 336, 348-49, 92 S. Ct. 515, 30 L. Ed. 2d 488 (1971); United States v. Wiltberger, 18 U.S. (5 Wheat) 76, 95, 5 L. Ed. 37 (1820); cf.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
298 P.3d 724, 177 Wash. 2d 186, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-evans-wash-2013.