State v. Wiederien , 2006 Iowa Sup. LEXIS 14 ( 2006 )

WIGGINS, Justice.

The State charged the defendant with harassment under Iowa Code section 708.7(4) (2003). At the initial appearance, the court issued a no-contact order requiring the defendant not to have contact with the alleged victim. The district court acquitted the defendant of the charge but continued the no-contact order pursuant to section 708.12(2). Because we find the court does not have the authority to extend a no-contact order under section 708.12(2) after an acquittal, we reverse the judgment of the district court and remand the case for the court to issue judgment consistent with this opinion.

I. Background Facts and Proceedings.

The State charged Mary Jane Wiederien with harassment in the third degree under Iowa Code section 708.7(4). The alleged harassment involved her conduct towards her physician. The affidavit attached to the complaint alleged Wiederien contacted her physician’s office via mail and fax, appeared to be following her physician, and filed a complaint against her physician with the Iowa Board of Medical Examiners. At Wiederien’s initial appearance, the magistrate issued a no-contact order under section 708.12(1) ordering Wiederien to have no contact with her physician.

After a bench trial, the magistrate found Wiederien not guilty of harassment in the third degree due to the State’s failure to prove intent to harass. Even though the magistrate found Wiederien not guilty of the criminal charge, he found Wiederien’s physician “had a legitimate right to feel nervous and afraid,” and continued the no-contact order for two years from the original issue date, with a limited exception allowing Wiederien to visit her physician’s neighbors.

Wiederien appealed the magistrate’s continuation of the no-contact order to the district court, claiming the magistrate could not continue the no-contact order upon a finding of not guilty. The district court affirmed the magistrate’s decision. Wiederien appeals.

II.Issue.

Wiederien claims “[w]hen a defendant is found not guilty, the court’s jurisdiction ends; therefore, the court no longer has the authority to continue a no contact order.” We distinguish the court’s lack of subject matter jurisdiction from the court’s lack of authority to hear a case. Christie v. Rolscreen Co., 448 N.W.2d 447, 450 (Iowa 1989). “A constitution or a legislative enactment confers subject matter jurisdiction on the courts.” In re Estate of Falck, 672 N.W.2d 785, 789 (Iowa 2003). The Iowa Code gives the district court subject matter jurisdiction to enter a no-contact order against a defendant who is prosecuted for harassment. Iowa Code § 708.12(l)-(2).

“ ‘[LJack of authority to hear [a] particular case,’ ” also referred to as “lack of jurisdiction of the case,” occurs when the court has subject matter jurisdiction but may not be able to act in a particular case for some reason. Christie, 448 N.W.2d at 450. The crux of Wiederien’s appeal is that section 708.12(2) did not give the magistrate authority to continue a no-contact order after the court acquits the defendant of the underlying harassment charge. Consequently, we will determine whether the magistrate had the authority to continue the no-contact order after he acquitted Wiederien on the charge of harassment.

III. Scope of Review.

We must interpret Iowa Code section 708.12 to determine whether the district court has the authority to continue a no-contact order after it acquits a defendant on the underlying harassment charge. Because Wiederien’s appeal raises a question of statutory interpretation, our review is for correction of errors at law. State v. Wolford Corp., 689 N.W.2d 471, 473 (Iowa 2004).

IV. Analysis.

The Code provides:

When a person arrested for harassment in violation of section 708.7 ... is brought before a magistrate for initial appearance ... and the magistrate finds probable cause to believe that a violation of section 708.7 ... has occurred and that the presence of or contact with the defendant poses a threat to the safety of the alleged victim, persons residing with the alleged victim, or members of the alleged victim’s immediate family, the magistrate shall enter an order which shall require the defendant to have no contact with the alleged victim, persons residing with the alleged victim, or members of the alleged victim’s immediate family, and to refrain from harassing the alleged victim, persons residing with the alleged victim, or members of the alleged victim’s immediate family, in addition to any other conditions of release determined and imposed by the magistrate under section 811.2.

Iowa Code § 708.12(1). The Code further provides:

The order has force and effect until it is modified or terminated by subsequent court action in a contempt proceeding or the criminal or juvenile court action and is reviewable in the manner prescribed in section 811.2. Upon final disposition of the criminal or juvenile court action, the court shall make a determination whether the no-contact order should he modified or terminated. If a defendant is convicted for, receives a deferred judgment for, or pleads guilty to a violation of section 708.7 ... the court shall modify the no-contact order issued by the magistrate to provide that the no-contact order shall continue in effect for a period of five years from the date that the judgment is entered or the deferred judgment is granted, regardless of whether the defendant is placed on probation.

Id. § 708.12(2) (emphasis added).

When confronted with the task of statutory interpretation, we have stated:

The goal of statutory construction is to determine legislative intent. We determine legislative intent from the words chosen by the legislature, not what it should or might have said. Absent a statutory definition or an established meaning in the law, words in the statute are given their ordinary and common meaning by considering the context within which they are used. Under the guise of construction, an interpreting body may not extend, enlarge or otherwise change the meaning of a statute.

Auen v. Alcoholic Beverages Div., 679 N.W.2d 586, 590 (Iowa 2004) (citations omitted).

We resort to “the rules of statutory construction only when the terms of [a] statute are ambiguous.” IBP, Inc. v. Harker, 683 N.W.2d 322, 325 (Iowa 2001). If reasonable persons can disagree on a statute’s meaning, it is ambiguous. State v. Ahitow, 544 N.W.2d 270, 272 (Iowa 1996). “Ambiguity may arise in two ways: (1) from the meaning of particular words; or (2) from the general scope and meaning of a statute when all its provisions are examined.” Holiday Inns Franchising, Inc. v. Branstad, 537 N.W.2d 724, 728 (Iowa 1995).

Section 708.12 is ambiguous because it is susceptible to two meanings. We could interpret the word “disposition” in section 708.12(2) to encompass an acquittal; in such a case, the court would have the authority to extend the no-contact order upon Wiederien’s acquittal. An alternative interpretation could be made based on the language in section 708.12(2), which specifically sets forth a framework to continue the no-contact order when a defendant’s guilt is established but fails to provide any framework when the defendant is acquitted. This language could evidence a legislative intent that the court does not have the authority to continue the no-contact order when it acquits the defendant. In this instance, we could conclude the legislature used the word “disposition” to encompass a finding of delinquency in a juvenile court action as well as a conviction in a criminal proceeding.

When we find an ambiguity, we have stated:

To resolve the ambiguity and ultimately determine legislative intent, we consider (1) the language of the statute; (2) the objects sought to be accomplished; (3) the evils sought to be remedied; and (4) a reasonable construction that will effectuate the statute’s purpose rather than one that will defeat it.

State v. Green, 470 N.W.2d 15, 18 (Iowa 1991). We do not interpret a statute so broadly that our interpretation “threaten[s] the constitutional due process prohibitions against vagueness and uncertainty.” State v. Pace, 602 N.W.2d 764, 771 (Iowa 1999).

The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibits vague statutes. State v. Reed, 618 N.W.2d 327, 332 (Iowa 2000). A statute is void for vagueness if it lacks clearly defined prohibitions. Grayned v. City of Rockford, 408 U.S. 104, 108, 92 S.Ct. 2294, 2298, 33 L.Ed.2d 222, 227 (1972). The values protected by the void-for-vagueness doctrine are:

First, because we assume that man is free to steer between lawful and unlawful conduct, we insist that laws give the person of ordinary intelligence a reasonable opportunity to know what is prohibited, so that he may act accordingly. Vague laws may trap the innocent by not providing fair warning. Second, if arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement is to be prevented, laws must provide explicit standards for those who apply them. A vague law impermissibly delegates basic policy matters to policemen, judges, and juries for resolution on an ad hoc and subjective basis, with the attendant dangers of arbitrary and discriminatory application. Third, but related, where a vague statute “abut[s] upon sensitive areas of basic First Amendment freedoms,” it “operates to inhibit the exercise of [those] freedoms.” Uncertain meanings inevitably lead citizens to “ ‘steer far wider of the unlawful zone’ ... than if the boundaries of the forbidden areas were clearly marked.”

Id. at 108-09, 92 S.Ct. at 2298-99, 33 L.Ed.2d at 227-28 (alterations in original) (citations omitted).

Section 708.12(2) provides the court with the authority to extend a no-contact order “[i]f a defendant is convicted for, receives a deferred judgment for, or pleads guilty to a violation of section 708.7.” This language clearly informs the court and the defendant under what circumstances the court will extend a no-contact order. Section 708.12(2) does not contain any similarly express standards or guidelines as to when the court may extend a no-contact order when the court acquits a defendant.

The magistrate continued the no-contact order because “the victim in this case had a legitimate right to feel nervous and afraid.” Nowhere in the statute did the legislature give the magistrate the authority to extend a no-contact order on an acquittal when the victim felt nervous and afraid. The legislature’s failure to define the burden of proof and the circumstances in which a court can extend a no-contact order after an acquittal not only fails to give the defendant notice as to when the court will extend the order, but also leads to an arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement of the statute on an ad hoe and subjective basis. Therefore, to avoid an interpretation of section 708.12(2) that jeopardizes the constitutional due process proscriptions against vagueness and uncertainty, we hold section 708.12(2) does not give the court the authority to continue a no-contact order when the defendant is acquitted.

V. Disposition.

Because we hold Iowa Code section 708.12(2) does not give the court the authority to continue a no-contact order when it acquits a defendant on the harassment charge, we reverse the judgment of the district court and remand the case for the court to issue judgment consistent with this opinion.

REVERSED AND CASE REMANDED.

All justices concur except CADY, J., who dissents.