State v. Parrish

2013 NMCA 066, 4 N.M. 183
CourtNew Mexico Supreme Court
DecidedApril 24, 2013
DocketNo. 34,081; Docket No. 31,701
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2013 NMCA 066 (State v. Parrish) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New Mexico 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. Parrish, 2013 NMCA 066, 4 N.M. 183 (N.M. 2013).

Opinion

OPINION

ZAMORA, Judge.

Defendant Alexis Parrish appeals his conviction for failure to register as a sex offender in violation of NMSA 1978, Section 29-11 A-4 (2005). The sole issue on appeal is whether the New Mexico Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), NMSA 1978, §§ 29-11A-1 to -10 (1995, as amended through 2007), requires a registered sex offender to renew his registration upon his release from custody of the corrections department on unrelated charges if he returns to his previously registered residence. We hold that the plain meaning of Section 29-11 A-4(B) required Defendant to “register with the county sheriff no later than ten days after being released from the custody of the corrections department^]” Accordingly, we affirm Defendant’s conviction for failure to register as a sex offender.

BACKGROUND

The relevant facts are undisputed. Defendant is a convicted sex offender and was properly registered in San Juan County on February 17, 2011. Subsequently, Defendant was incarcerated in the Department of Corrections CentralNewMexico Correctional Facility (CNMCF), in Valencia County, on another matter. On August 2, 2011, one day before his release from CNMCF, Defendant received a copy of the New Mexico Corrections Department Notice to Register form, which stated:

Pursuant to [Section] 29-11 A-4, a convicted sex offender is required to register with the Sheriff’s Office in the County where he/she will reside. Registration must take place no later than ten (10) days after being released from the custody of the Corrections Department^ or registration must take place no later than ten (10) days after being placed on probation or parole. Registration requirements are summarized more specifically below.
Willful or knowing failure to comply or willfully or knowingly providing false information is a Fourth Degree Felony Offense.

Defendant initialed each of the requirements set forth in the notice and signed the last page acknowledging that a corrections department official or employee had explained the notice to him, he had read the notice, and he was given a copy of the notice. A copy of the signed notice was also sent to the San Juan County Sheriffs Office.

Defendant was released from CNMCF on August 3, 2011, and he returned to his registered address in San Juan County. However, he did not renew his registration with the county sheriff within ten days of his release. On August 30, 2011, a deputy from the San Juan County Sheriffs Office called the telephone number that was previously provided by Defendant. A female answered and advised that she did not know Defendant and that the telephone number was for another residence.

Defendant was charged with failure to register as a sex offender, contrary to Section 29-11 A-4. Defense counsel filed a motion to dismiss the charge and argued that Defendant was not required to register upon release from the corrections department because he had registered prior to being incarcerated on the new offense, which was not a sex offense, and he returned to his properly registered residence upon release. The State filed a response and argued that Defendant was required to renew his registration, pursuant to the mandate of Section 29-11 A-4(B), because Defendant was a sex offender, a resident of New Mexico, and was released from the custody of the corrections department. During the hearing on Defendant’s motion to dismiss, the district court asked the parties if Defendant had to register when he was incarcerated at CNMCF. The prosecutor informed the district court that the corrections department registered Defendant while he was an inmate at CNMCF. The district court found that Defendant was living in San Juan County, changed his residence to Valencia County, and then changed his residence again when he returned to San Juan County. Therefore, the district court denied Defendant’s motion to dismiss and concluded that Defendant was required to register upon his release from CNMCF.

Defendant entered into a conditional plea agreement, wherein he pled guilty to “[fjailure to comply with requirements of SORNA § 29-11 A-4.” Defendant “reserve[d] the right to appeal on the issue of whether SORNA requires a registered sex offender to register upon a subsequent release from incarceration, when the offender’s registration is otherwise current.”

DISCUSSION

We must determine whether SORNA requires a registered sex offender to register upon release from custody when he returns to a properly registered residence. “Statutory interpretation is an issue of law, which we review de novo.” State v. Duhon, 2005-NMCA-120, ¶ 10, 138 N.M. 466, 122 P.3d 50. Our primary goal when interpreting a statute is to give effect to the Legislature’s intent, which is determined by looking at the plain language used in the statute, as well as the purpose of the underlying statute. State v. Johnson, 2001-NMSC-001, ¶ 6, 130 N.M. 6, 15 P.3d 1233; State v. Torres, 2006-NMCA-106, ¶ 8, 140 N.M. 230, 141 P.3d 1284. “When the words used are plain and unambiguous, we give a statute its literal reading, unless that reading would lead to an injustice, absurdity, or contradiction.” Id.

I. SORNA

The Legislature found that “sex offenders pose a significant risk of recidivism[,j” and “the efforts of law enforcement agencies to protect their communities from sex offenders are impaired by the lack of information available concerning convicted sex offenders who live within the agencies’ jurisdictions.” Section 29-11A-2(A). The explicit purpose of SORNA “is to assist law enforcement agencies’ efforts to protect their communities” by requiring sex offenders who reside, work, or attend school in New Mexico, to register with the county sheriff. Section 29-11 A-2(B)(1 )-(2); see also State v. Hall, 2013-NMSC-001, ¶¶ 10-17, 294 P.3d 1235 (discussing the purpose and history of SORNA); State v. Druktenis, 2004-NMCA-032, ¶¶ 17-24, 135 N.M. 223, 86 P.3d 1050 (same). “The [Ljegislature enacted SORNA to protect communities through the registration of and dissemination of information about sex offenders.” State v. Williams, 2006-NMCA-092, ¶ 6, 140 N.M. 194, 141 P.3d 538. The legislative history and intent of SORNA suggests a broad application. Hall, 2013-NMSC-001, ¶16 (“In the seventeen-year history of SORNA, the Legislature has continually amended the law to make it more expansive — ’that is, to register more people for more offenses, to make information more accessible to the public, and to increase penalties for failing to comply. In this way, the Legislature has demonstrated its preference for a broad registry law that provides more, rather than less, protection for the community.”).

Section 29-11A-4 sets forth SORNA’s registration requirements. See generally § 29-11A-4; see also § 29-11A-3(C) (defining “registration requirement” as “any requirement set forth in Section 29-11A-4”). The State argues that the plain and unambiguous language of Section 29-11A-4(B) required Defendant to register as a sex offender with the county sheriff no later then ten days after he was released from CNMCF. Section 29-11 A-4(B) provides in pertinent part:

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Related

State v. Parrish
2013 NMCA 66 (New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2013)

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Bluebook (online)
2013 NMCA 066, 4 N.M. 183, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-parrish-nm-2013.