State v. Pollard

908 N.E.2d 1145, 2009 Ind. LEXIS 511, 2009 WL 1883731
CourtIndiana Supreme Court
DecidedJune 30, 2009
Docket05S02-0906-CR-305
StatusPublished
Cited by61 cases

This text of 908 N.E.2d 1145 (State v. Pollard) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Indiana 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. Pollard, 908 N.E.2d 1145, 2009 Ind. LEXIS 511, 2009 WL 1883731 (Ind. 2009).

Opinions

RUCKER, Justice.

The question presented is whether a section of the Indiana Sex Offender Registration Act that we refer to as the "resi-deney restriction statute" constitutes retroactive punishment forbidden by the Ex Post Facto Clause contained in the Indiana Constitution. In this case the answer is yes.

Facts and Procedural History

On April 4, 1997, Anthony W. Pollard was convicted of a sex-related offense for which he was apparently sentenced.1 On July 1, 2006, the residency restriction statute-Ind. Code § 35-42-4-11-came into effect. That statute provides that a person convicted of certain sex-related crimes is classified as an "offender against children" and commits "sex offender residency offense," a Class D felony, if the person knowingly or intentionally resides within 1,000 feet of school property, a youth program center, or a public park.2 On January 23, 2007, the State charged Pollard with violation of the residency restriction statute, and Pollard responded [1148]*1148with a motion to dismiss contending the statute violated the ex post facto prohibition contained in Article I, section 24 of the Indiana Constitution. The parties presented the matter to the trial court based on stipulated facts as follows:

1. That the defendant, Anthony W. Pollard, has an ownership interest in the real estate located at 817 North Monroe Street, Hartford City, Indiana Further, Anthony W. Pollard has had his ownership interest in the real estate for approximately the past 20 years.
2. That the defendant, Anthony W. Pollard had an ownership interest in the real estate located at 817 North Monroe Street, Hartford City, Indiana on January 12, 2007, the date the State of Indiana has alleged that the defendant committed a criminal offense under L.C. 35-42-4-11 under the above captioned cause.
3. That the residence owned and oc-eupied by Anthony W. Pollard located at 817 North Monroe Street, Hartford City, Indiana is within one thousand (1,000) feet of school property, a youth program center or a public park.
4. That the defendant, Anthony W. Pollard was residing at the residence located at 817 North Monroe Street, Hartford City, Indiana on January 12, 2007, the date the State of Indiana has alleged that the defendant committed a criminal offense under I.C. 35-42-4-11 under the above captioned cause. The defendant resided at the residence located at 817 North Monroe Street, Hartford City, Indiana more than two (2) nights in a thirty (80) day period prior to January 12, 2007.
5. That the defendant, Anthony W. Pollard has a prior conviction for an offense listed under 1.0. 835-42-4-1l1(a)@).
6. That the defendant, Anthony W. Pollard's conviction under I.C. 35-42-4-11(a)(2) occurred prior to the effective date of Indiana Code 35-42-4-11 which was on July 1, 2006.
7. That the defendant, Anthony W. Pollard has been a resident and owner of the residence located at 817 North Monroe Street, Hartford City, Indiana for at least one year prior to the effective date of I.C. 35-42-4-11.

Appellant's App. at 9-10. After entertaining arguments of counsel, submitted by way of written memoranda, the trial court granted Pollard's motion to dismiss concluding that as applied to Pollard the residency restriction statute violates the ex post facto prohibition of Article I, section 24 of the Indiana Constitution. Appellant's App. at 19. On review, focusing primarily on the punitive impact of the statute on Pollard's property interest, the Court of Appeals agreed and affirmed the trial court's order of dismissal. State v. Pollard, 886 N.E.2d 69 (Ind.Ct.App.2008). Although we agree the trial court's order of dismissal should be affirmed our analysis is different from that of our colleagues. We therefore grant transfer and affirm the judgment of the trial courts.3

Discussion

Article I, section 24 of the Indiana Constitution provides that "[nlo ex post facto law ... shall ever be passed." Among other things, "Itlhe ex post facto prohibition forbids ... the States to enact any law 'which imposes a punishmént for [1149]*1149an act which was not punishable at the time it was committed; or imposes additional punishment to that then pre-seribed.'" Weaver v. Graham, 450 U.S. 24, 28, 101 S.Ct. 960, 67 L.Ed.2d 17 (1981) (quoting Cummings v. Missouri, 71 U.S. (4 Wall.) 277, 325-26, 18 L.Ed. 356 (1866)). The underlying purpose of the Ex Post Facto Clause is to give effect to the fundamental principle that persons have a right to fair warning of that conduct which will give rise to criminal penalties. Armstrong v. State, 848 N.E.2d 1088, 1093 (Ind.2006). Pollard contends the residency restriction statute imposes retroactive punishment because he committed a qualifying offense prior to July 1, 2006.

We recently determined that in evaluating ex post facto claims under the Indiana Constitution we apply what is commonly referred to as the "intent-ef-feets" test. Wallace v. State, 905 N.E.2d 371, 378 (Ind.2009). Under this test the court must first determine whether the legislature meant the statute to establish civil proceedings. Id. If the intention of the legislature was to impose punishment, then that ends the inquiry, because punishment results. If however the court concludes the legislature intended a non-punitive, regulatory scheme, then the court must further examine whether the statutory scheme is so punitive in effect as to negate that intention thereby transforming what was intended as a civil, regulatory scheme into a criminal penalty. Id.

A. Whether the Legislature Intended to Impose Punishment

Whether the legislature intended the residency restriction statute to be civil or criminal is primarily a matter of statutory construction. And as we observed in Wallace for the overall Sex Offender Registration Act, "it is difficult to determine legislative intent since there is no available legislative history and the Act does not contain a purpose statement." Id. at 383 (quoting Spencer v. O'Connor, 707 N.E.2d 1039, 1043 (Ind.Ct.App.1999)). As with the overall Act, the residency restriction statute does not contain a purpose statement. However, unlike the overall Act where some components are contained in the civil code and others in the criminal code, see Jensen v. State, 905 N.E.2d 384, 390 (Ind.2009), the residency statute is located solely within the criminal code, seg, e.g., Kansas v. Hendricks, 521 U.S. 346, 361, 117 S.Ct. 2072, 138 L.Ed.2d 501 (1997) (noting the fact that the Kansas Sexually Violent Predator Act was placed in the probate code rather than the eriminal code evinced a legislative intent to create a civil proceeding).

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
908 N.E.2d 1145, 2009 Ind. LEXIS 511, 2009 WL 1883731, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-pollard-ind-2009.