DocketNumber: Supreme Court No. S-16748
Citation Numbers: 444 P.3d 116
Judges: Matthews
Filed Date: 6/14/2019
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 10/18/2024
I. INTRODUCTION
This appeal presents two questions concerning the Alaska Sexual Offender Registration Act (ASORA).
II. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
In 2000 John Doe was convicted of aggravated sexual battery in Virginia.
In 2016 Doe filed suit requesting "[a] declaratory judgment which declares that the Alaska Department of Public Safety lacks jurisdiction to impose the ASORA upon the plaintiff, that the ASORA violates plaintiff's substantive due process rights and that the Department's appeal procedures are inadequate and deny procedural due process." He also sought an injunction enjoining enforcement of ASORA against him. Doe and the State filed cross-motions for summary judgment. After briefing and oral argument, the superior court entered an order granting the State's motion and denying Doe's. The superior court entered a final judgment in accordance with its summary judgment ruling and Doe filed the current appeal.
III. STANDARD OF REVIEW
This case involves questions of law. We review such questions de novo, "adopting *120the rule of law that is most persuasive in light of precedent, reason, and policy."
IV. DISCUSSION
A. ASORA
ASORA requires sex offenders to register with the Department of Corrections, the Troopers, or the local police within 30 days before their release from incarceration or within one day following conviction if their sentence does not include jail time.
All registrants must disclose their name, address, place of employment, date of birth, information about their conviction, aliases, driver's license number, information about the vehicles they have access to, any identifying physical features, anticipated address changes, electronic addresses, and information about psychological treatment received.
ASORA requires DPS to maintain a central registry of sex offenders that contains the information obtained under ASORA.
The legislature made the following findings when enacting ASORA:
(1) [S]ex offenders pose a high risk of reoffending after release from custody;
(2) protecting the public from sex offenders is a primary governmental interest;
(3) the privacy interests of persons convicted of sex offenses are less important than the government's interest in public safety; and
(4) release of certain information about sex offenders to public agencies and the general public will assist in protecting the public safety.[28 ]
All sex offenders must register at least every year for 15 years,
ASORA's provisions require Doe to register and re-register every three months for the rest of his life as long as he remains in Alaska.
B. Jurisdiction
Doe argues (1) that "Alaska lacks jurisdiction to impose punitive provisions upon a person whose acts were fully consummated outside of its jurisdiction," (2) that ASORA's registration requirements are punitive, and (3) that Alaska therefore lacks jurisdiction to impose ASORA's requirements on out-of-state offenders. This argument is logical in form, but its validity depends on whether its premises are correct.
The parties mainly focus on the second premise, disputing whether ASORA's requirements are punitive. Doe argues that they are punitive based on our 2008 decision in Doe v. State ( Doe 08 ).
In Doe 08 we held that the application of ASORA's registration requirements to an offender who was convicted of sex offenses and sentenced nine years before ASORA's effective date violated the ex post facto clause of article I, section 15 of the Alaska Constitution.
In Doe 08 we found it unnecessary to address the first step of the intent-effects test because, regardless of the legislature's intent, we found that the effects of ASORA were primarily punitive and therefore concluded that ASORA could not be applied to offenders who committed their crimes before the law's effective date.
In deciding whether the effects of ASORA were primarily regulatory or punitive, we analyzed seven factors:
(1) "[w]hether the sanction involves an affirmative disability or restraint";
(2) "whether it has historically been regarded as a punishment";
(3) "whether it comes into play only on a finding of scienter";
(4) "whether its operation will promote the traditional aims of punishment-retribution and deterrence";
(5) "whether the behavior to which it applies is already a crime";
(6) whether an alternative purpose to which it may rationally be connected is assignable for it"; and
(7) "whether it appears excessive in relation to the alternative purpose assigned."[42 ]
The State argues that many of the seven factors we relied on in Doe 08 do not indicate a punitive effect here because they were fully avoidable if Doe had chosen not to move to Alaska. The State also argues that some of the factors point to regulatory effects on other grounds. As to the scienter factor, the State asserts that this is absent because no finding of knowledge of wrongfulness is required to impose a duty to register on an out-of-state offender. Simply moving to the state is the triggering act.
The State also contends that a regulatory policy interest is present here that was not present in Doe 08 : requiring out-of-state offenders to register "ensures that Alaska does not become a safe haven for convicted sex offenders."
Summing up, the State argues "there are many purposes and effects of ASORA, some punitive and some non-punitive. ... Consideration of the seven [ Doe 08 ] factors and other relevant considerations demonstrate the non-punitive, regulatory purposes and effects of ASORA override any punitive effects the registration requirement may have in this case."
*123While some of the State's arguments are plausible, we find it unnecessary to rule on them because we conclude that the first premise of Doe's argument is invalid. Doe contends that the State lacks jurisdiction to impose ASORA's registration requirements on out-of-state offenders who are present in the state because the requirements are sufficiently punitive to activate the Alaska constitutional prohibition on ex post facto laws. However, this prohibition only bars application of ASORA to offenders convicted in Alaska before ASORA's effective date.
ASORA's requirements are both punitive and regulatory.
Doe also relies on State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. v. Campbell .
Requiring a sex offender with an out-of-state conviction to register under ASORA is different from assessing punitive damages against a defendant for out-of-state conduct against third parties. First, the State does have a legitimate public safety concern in *124requiring out-of-state offenders who now reside in the state to register. Second, there is no concern that a sex offender's conduct was lawful where it occurred-to the contrary, by definition it resulted in a criminal conviction. Third, the Court's concern about multiple damages awards for the same conduct has no application: being forced to register as a sex offender in multiple states for the same offense is not like being assessed multiple money judgments for the same conduct.
We conclude that Alaska is not barred by lack of jurisdiction from requiring out-of-state offenders who are present in the state from registering under ASORA.
C. Due Process
1. The parties' arguments
Doe's second argument is that ASORA violates the due process clause of the Alaska Constitution.
The State responds that ASORA does not violate substantive due process. In particular, the State disputes that ASORA infringes any fundamental rights and that therefore the "compelling interest/least restrictive means" test does not apply. Instead, the State argues for a rational basis test, which ASORA would readily pass because the statute "provides, in a usable form, the information that parents and others need to protect themselves and their children from convicted sex offenders."
2. Substantive due process
The due process clause of the Alaska Constitution provides: "No person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law."
The distinction between procedural and substantive due process is illustrated by Connecticut Department of Public Safety v. Doe , a case involving Connecticut's sex offender registration statute.
In short, even if respondent could prove that he is not likely to be currently dangerous, Connecticut has decided that the registry information of all sex offenders-currently dangerous or not-must be publicly disclosed. Unless respondent can show that that substantive rule of law is defective (by conflicting with a provision of the Constitution), any hearing on current dangerousness is a bootless exercise. It may be that respondent's claim is actually a substantive challenge to Connecticut's statute "recast in 'procedural due process' terms." Nonetheless, respondent expressly disavows any reliance on the substantive component of the Fourteenth Amendment's protections, and maintains, as he did below, that his challenge is strictly a procedural one. But States are not barred by principles of "procedural due process" from drawing such classifications. Such claims "must ultimately be analyzed" in terms of substantive, not procedural, due process. Because the question is not properly before us, we express no opinion as to whether Connecticut's Megan's Law violates principles of substantive due process.[68 ]
3. Why we apply strict scrutiny
We have employed three standards under which claims of substantive due process violations may be reviewed: strict scrutiny, intermediate scrutiny, and rational basis review.
We believe that strict scrutiny applies in the present case because the right to privacy is an explicitly enumerated right under the Alaska Constitution and thus should generally be considered fundamental.
We limit this conclusion, however, to cases where the alleged due process violation rests on a right to privacy claim that, if asserted directly, would be analyzed under strict scrutiny. This is such a case. Our right to privacy cases can be divided into two categories: those that claim a right of personal autonomy,
(1) [D]oes the party seeking to come within the protection of the right to privacy have a legitimate expectation that the materials or information will not be disclosed?
(2) [I]s disclosure nonetheless required to serve a compelling state interest?
(3) [I]f so, will the necessary disclosures occur in that manner which is least intrusive with respect to the right to privacy?[79 ]
Given that this method is used in direct claims of privacy violations involving the disclosure of sensitive information, it would be anomalous to take a more permissive approach when analyzing a claim that state action violates substantive due process because it violates the right to privacy.
But the mere invocation of the right to privacy does not automatically trigger a strict scrutiny analysis. For the right to privacy to apply, there must be both a legitimate *127expectation of privacy and a claim of a substantial infringement, as distinguished from a minimal one.
4. Legitimate expectation of privacy
We proceed to determine whether sex offenders have a legitimate expectation of privacy in the information disclosed on the internet under ASORA. A legitimate expectation of privacy is an expectation that "society is prepared to recognize as reasonable."
As already stated, Alaska's right to privacy generally protects two types of interests. One is an individual's interest in personal autonomy and independence in decision making.
We have recognized that a medical marijuana user has an interest in keeping his usage of marijuana and his medical condition private;
The fact that a person has been convicted of a sex offense is, if anything, more sensitive than the fact that a person has a serious illness, is a marijuana user, or sees a particular doctor. Sex offenders are among the most despised people in our society. Widespread publication of their conviction and personal details subjects them to community scorn and leaves them vulnerable to harassment and economic and physical reprisals.
The history of article I, section 22 (describing the Alaska constitutional right to privacy) suggests that the potential of computers to aggregate personal data was one of the core reasons for its adoption. According to an informal attorney general opinion, the legislature proposed this constitutional provision-which was later approved by the voters-"in response to a ... concern over government computers generally."
The State argues (1) that a sex offender lacks a reasonable expectation of privacy in registry information because the fact of a sex offender's conviction is a matter of public record and (2) that his places of residence and employment are not of a "sensitive" nature. We do not accept these arguments. As to the first, the challenged publication here is not the public court file that shows a conviction, but rather the internet publication of both the conviction and personal information in a compilation of sex offenders.
With respect to the latter point, information concerning an offender's home address and place of employment are not necessarily in the public domain. Revealing a sex offender's home address potentially subjects him to harassment and physical attack. Revealing the offender's place of employment carries the same potential, plus it may discourage potential employers from hiring sex offenders because of the possible loss of business.
Returning to the first point, we recognized in Doe 08 that "[t]here is a significant distinction between retaining public paper records of a conviction in state file drawers and posting the same information on a state-sponsored website; this posting has not merely improved public access but has broadly disseminated the registrant's information."
Plainly there is a vast difference between the public records that might be found after a diligent search of courthouse files, county archives, and local police stations throughout the country and a computerized summary located in a single clearinghouse of information.[100 ]
A number of courts have held that a sex offender's privacy rights are implicated by internet publication of registration information, either because some of the information is private or because the aggregation and accessibility of the information raises legitimate privacy concerns, and have therefore applied strict or at least heightened scrutiny.
Government dissemination of information to which the public merely has access through various sources eliminates the costs, in time, effort, and expense, that members of the public would incur in assembling the information themselves. Those costs, however, may severely limit the extent to which the information becomes a matter of public knowledge. The [New Jersey] Notification Law therefore exposes various bits of information that, although accessible to the public, may remain obscure. Indeed, as in *130Reporters Committee ,[102 ] if the information disclosed under the Notification Law were, in fact, freely available, there would be no need for the law.[103 ]
The New Jersey court explained that "when the government assembles those diverse pieces of information into a single package and disseminates that package to the public," the government "thereby ensur[es] that a person cannot assume anonymity-in this case, [by] preventing a person's criminal history from fading into obscurity and being wholly forgotten."
Internet publication of sex offender registration information potentially inflicts grievous harms on sex offenders ranging from public scorn and ostracism to harassment, to difficulty in finding and maintaining employment, to threats of violence and actual violence. Our cases establish that the privacy clause protects against the release of information that can result in such harms in other contexts,
People who have been convicted of serious crimes, including sex offenders, have a hard time re-integrating into society after they have served their time. They should be able to expect that the state will not engage in a program of continuous publicity designed to remind the public of their past misdeeds where such a program will make their re-integration harder, if not virtually impossible. Because this expectation is reasonable, the right to privacy ensures that the state will not undertake such a program except where there is a compelling need, and only if the program is narrowly tailored to meet that need.
*1315. Compelling interest
The State argues that ASORA furthers a compelling state interest of protecting the public. Relying on decisions from other jurisdictions that quote studies showing that sex offenders "have a greater probability of recidivism than other offenders" and "are much more likely than other offenders to commit additional sex crimes,"
The only argument Doe makes concerning the absence of a compelling interest is that if an offender is not likely to commit a new sex offense, then there is not a compelling state interest that requires registration. In support of this position, Doe cites Doe 04 's conclusion that "absent the likelihood Doe will commit new sex offenses, there is no compelling government interest in requiring Doe to do the things ASORA demands."
We accept the State's assertion that the publication of sex offender information under ASORA is justified by a compelling state interest.
6. Less restrictive means
Having identified and weighed the rights involved in this case, we turn to the question whether ASORA advances the State's compelling interest using the least restrictive means available.
Doe argues, among other things, that ASORA does not meet the least restrictive means because it does not permit a hearing by which a registrant can be relieved of ASORA's requirements if he proves that he does not present a threat to the public: ASORA "labels all registrants with a 'scarlet letter' of 'dangerous sex offender' without any finding in that regard." He argues that ASORA is an "offense-based" registration law rather than an "offender-based" one in which "the extent of public notification, if any" is tied to "a sex offender's currently assessed dangerousness." Doe contends that the offense-based approach is flawed because it sweeps too broadly and includes those who are no longer dangerous: "In many cases, the offense is ancient, the offender is rehabilitated and registration and notification harms registrants and infringes upon cherished liberties without serving any remedial purpose."
In response the State argues that ASORA is narrowly tailored to accomplish its public safety purposes. The State suggests that ASORA reflects a legislative judgment that individuals-not courts or agencies-should decide what level of risk is acceptable in a given situation: "The risk that a woman may tolerate when choosing a person to date is quite different from the risk a fast food restaurant may tolerate when hiring someone to clean .... The woman [ ] may choose to apply 'zero tolerance' while the restaurant may be willing to assume more risk." The State also suggests that ASORA reflects "a legislative judgment that the effects of [sex] crimes are so serious that no level of risk is acceptable."
For the reasons that follow, we conclude that Doe has the better of the argument. ASORA's coverage is excessive to the extent it applies to sex offenders who do not present a danger of committing new sex offenses. We recognized this point in Doe 04 where we observed that without "the likelihood [that the offender] will commit new sex offenses, there is no compelling government interest in requiring" him to comply with ASORA.
In Doe 08 we recognized that ASORA imposed excessive burdens in relation to its regulatory purposes. We stated:
It is significant that ASORA's scope is broad; it encompasses a wide array of crimes that vary greatly in severity. Moreover, ASORA provides no mechanism by which a registered sex offender can petition *133the state or a court for relief from the obligations of continued registration and disclosure. "Offenders cannot shorten their registration or notification period, even on the clearest determination of rehabilitation or conclusive proof of physical incapacitation."[112 ]
As a footnote to this statement we quoted Justice Ginsburg's criticism of ASORA: "[T]he Act makes no provision whatever for the possibility of rehabilitation. ..."
Doe successfully completed a treatment program and was granted early release from mandatory parole. A superior court granted him legal custody of his minor daughter based on its determination that he was successfully rehabilitated and posed "a very little risk of re-offending."[114 ]
We continued, to illustrate ASORA's excessiveness: "Despite this evidence of rehabilitation, ASORA requires Doe to register quarterly and requires the state to publicly disseminate his personal information for the rest of his life."
The courts of two other states have decided that offense-based registration statutes are constitutionally deficient on due process grounds because they fail to offer a sex offender an individualized hearing.
One such decision is Doe v. Attorney General .
As to the public disclosure on request of sex offender information, it is contrary to the principle of fundamental fairness that underlies the concept of due process of law to deny the plaintiff a hearing at which the evidence might show that he is not a threat to children and other vulnerable persons whom the act seeks to protect and that disclosure is not needed when balanced against the public need to which the sex offender act responded. Government action unreasonably stigmatizing the plaintiff would violate the plaintiff's constitutionally protected rights.[121 ]
The Massachusetts court characterized this result as a failure of procedural due *134process.
Another decision is State v. Bani , in which the Supreme Court of Hawaii held that the public notification requirements of that state's registration act were unconstitutional because they did not offer a sex offender a meaningful opportunity to argue "that he or she does not represent a threat to the community and that public notification is not necessary."
Undoubtedly, Bani's interest in the protected "liberty" denied him by [the statute] is great. As discussed at length above, the public notification provisions adversely affect a person's interests in reputation, employment and earning opportunities, housing, and personal safety.
....
The current procedures under the public notification provisions ... are extremely broad and contain absolutely no safeguards to prevent erroneous deprivations of a registrant's liberty interests. ... Surely, not all offenders present a significant danger to the public. Yet [the statute] currently deprives all offenders-including those who present no danger to the community and are not likely to recidivate-of these interests automatically , for life. Therefore, persons convicted of crimes listed under [the statute] who do not pose a significant danger to the community are at substantial risk of being erroneously deprived of their liberty interest.[126 ]
Another recent case has also determined that a state registration act is excessive and unconstitutional as applied to offenders who are not likely to recidivate.
We have concluded that ASORA furthers a compelling state interest in protecting the public from sex offenders who "pose a high risk of reoffending after release from custody."
D. Remedy
ASORA is overbroad because it imposes its requirements on all persons convicted of designated offenses without affording them a hearing at which they might show that they are not dangerous. It therefore fails the *135strict scrutiny test under which statutes that infringe on fundamental constitutional rights may be justified. We now address the question of what remedy should follow from this conclusion.
One possible remedy would be for this court to declare ASORA invalid. The legislature would almost certainly re-enact a modified ASORA that is narrower in scope, including providing for hearings for those who claim that they do not pose a likelihood of reoffending. The amended Act could prescribe useful details concerning such hearings including whether they should be conducted before an agency or the superior court, the phrasing of the precise questions to be decided, and the standard of proof to be used.
But there are also serious drawbacks to invalidating ASORA. The structure of ASORA would be temporarily taken down. All sex offenders would be exempt from registration and re-registration requirements, and the internet registry would go dark. The public safety benefits of ASORA would be lost until the Act was replaced. Further, when the replacement Act became effective, there would be new and potentially complex questions of the permissible retroactivity of the new Act. In our view, these negative factors counsel against holding ASORA to be invalid.
The alternative we choose is to permit Doe to file a civil action in the superior court in which he will be permitted to attempt to prove that he no longer poses a risk to the public that justifies continued registration.
The hearing remedy narrows ASORA and saves it from a ruling declaring it to be unconstitutional on the grounds urged in this case.
We have received no briefing as to the particular details of the hearing required by our decision. These issues should be decided by the superior court when the hearing is requested.
V. CONCLUSION
The superior court correctly concluded that Doe must register under ASORA. ASORA has effects that are both punitive and regulatory in nature. The former prevent retroactive application of the act under the ex post facto clause of the Alaska Constitution, but they do not preclude imposing registration duties on out-of-state offenders who are present in the state.
The superior court also correctly recognized that registration may seriously affect Doe's liberty interests. But the court did not strike a proper balance between Doe's liberty interests and ASORA's public safety purposes when it concluded that ASORA may be applied to Doe without affording him the right to a hearing to show that he does not pose a risk to the public sufficient to require continued registration. Doe's affected liberty interests are fundamental and thus protected from infringement by state action except under a narrowly drawn statute reasonably designed to achieve a compelling state interest. If Doe can show at a hearing that he does not pose a risk requiring registration, then there is no compelling reason requiring him to register, and the fact that ASORA does not provide for such a hearing means that the statute is unnecessarily broad.
The flaw in ASORA identified in this case is that it does not provide Doe with an opportunity to be heard. This can best be cured by providing him with such an opportunity. For these reasons the judgment of the superior court is AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, and REMANDED for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
BOLGER, Chief Justice, with whom STOWERS, Justice, joins, dissenting.
BOLGER, Chief Justice, with whom STOWERS, Justice, joins, dissenting.
The court's opinion applies strict scrutiny to the sex offender registration statute based *137on the conclusion that sex offenders have a legitimate expectation of privacy in the information disclosed by registration. To reach this conclusion, the opinion relies on cases involving information that is easily recognized as private or protected: the medical condition of a medical marijuana user, a police officer's personnel file, the personal details of a political advertiser, and the professional clients of a public official.
But John Doe is in a different situation. Nineteen years ago, Doe was convicted of aggravated sexual battery in Virginia. The Alaska Department of Public Safety determined that this offense had essentially the same elements as the crime of first degree sexual assault under Alaska law. In Alaska this offense now generally carries a presumptive term of 20 to 30 years' imprisonment for a first offender.
These potential penalties establish that such sex offenders have a reduced expectation of privacy based on their convictions of serious felony offenses. During the term of imprisonment, an offender's expectations of privacy are almost completely overridden by the need for prison security.
For one thing, a sex offender has a reduced expectation of privacy with respect to his conviction information because such information is a matter of public record.
In addition, for a convicted sex offender, the interest in privacy must be considered in relation to other legitimate constitutional concerns. The Alaska Constitution requires "criminal administration" to be based on "the need for protecting the public, community condemnation of the offender, the rights of victims of crimes, restitution from the offender, and the principle of reformation."
One of the constitutional principles implicated here is the State's interest in public safety. The Alaska Legislature relied on this principle when it enacted the registration statute, concluding that "the privacy interests of persons convicted of sex offenses are less important than the government's interest in public safety."
Considering the limitations on a sex offender's privacy interests and the State's constitutionally protected interest in public safety, a lower level of scrutiny is appropriate. And under such a review, the State's registration is a fair and reasonable tool to promote the State's interest.
The court's opinion also concludes that there is a less restrictive alternative to the registration statute because it does not allow an individual offender to have a hearing to show he is not dangerous. As a remedy, the court provides each sex offender with the right to a hearing to prove "that he no longer poses a risk to the public that justifies continued registration."
It is not surprising that the court's opinion refers the superior court to legislative solutions to these policy questions, concluding that the court "may find that the laws of one or more states providing for such proceedings *139supply an apt model."
Finally the court's opinion finds that the entire registration statute is unconstitutional absent a hearing in which an offender may demonstrate that they are not dangerous. As the State identified, however, Doe's general grievance addresses two distinct provisions of the law: AS 12.63.010 - .020's sex offender registration requirement and AS 18.65.087's public disclosure requirement. Yet the injuries to Doe's right to privacy follow only from disclosure. It is well-established that "[t]he unconstitutionality of a part of an act does not necessarily defeat or affect the validity of its remaining provisions."
See AS 12.63.010 -.100 ; AS 18.65.087.
See
Kiva O. v. State, Dep't of Health & Soc. Servs., Office of Children's Servs .,
AS 12.63.010(a), (b).
AS 12.63.100(6), (7).
AS 12.63.100(7)(A), (B) ; AS 11.41.100(a)(3) ; AS 11.41.110(a)(3).
AS 12.63.100(2) ; AS 11.41.100(a)(3) ; AS 11.41.300.
AS 12.63.100(1)(C) ; AS 11.41.410 ; AS 11.41.434.
AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(I), (ii) ; AS 11.41.420 ; AS 11.41.425 ; AS 11.41.427 ; AS 11.41.436 ; AS 11.41.438 ; AS 11.41.440(a)(2).
AS 12.63.100(7)(C) ; AS 12.63.100(1)(C).
AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(iii) ; AS 11.41.452 ; AS 11.41.455.
AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(iii), (iv) ; AS 11.41.458 ; AS 11.41.460.
AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(v) ; AS 11.61.125 ; AS 11.61.127 ; AS 11.61.128.
AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(vi) ; AS 11.66.110 ; AS 11.66.130(a)(2).
AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(ix) ; AS 11.66.100(a)(2).
See AS 11.41.436(a)(6) ; AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(I).
See AS 11.61.127 ; AS 12.63.100(7)(C)(v).
AS 12.63.010(b)(1).
AS 12.63.010(b)(2).
AS 12.63.010(d).
AS 12.63.010(e).
AS 12.63.010(c).
AS 18.65.087.
AS 18.65.087(b).
AS 18.65.087(h). See Sex Offender/Child Kidnapper Registry , Alaska Dep't of Public Safety , http://www.dps.state.ak.us/sorweb/sorweb.aspx (follow "view all entries" hyperlink) (last visited Apr. 1, 2019).
See Sex Offender/Child Kidnapper Registry , Alaska Dep't of Public Safety , http://www.dps.state.ak.us/sorweb/sorweb.aspx (follow "view all entries" hyperlink, then select a name) (last visited Apr. 1, 2019).
Ch. 41, § 1, SLA 1994.
AS 12.63.010(d)(1) ; AS 12.63.020(a)(2).
AS 12.63.100(1).
AS 12.63.010(d)(2) ; AS 12.63.020(a)(1).
AS 12.63.100(6), (7).
AS 12.63.010(a)(3) ; AS 12.63.100(6). See State, Dep't of Public Safety v. Doe I ,
AS 12.63.010(d)(2).
Doe 08 ,
Id .
Id. at 1007 ("It is not necessary to address the first step of the test ... because the second part of the test-whether ASORA's effects are punitive-resolves the dispute before us."), 1018 ("[W]e conclude that ASORA's effects are punitive.").
Id. at 1008 (alteration in original) (quoting Kennedy v. Mendoza-Martinez ,
AS 12.63.010(a)(3).
The State's arguments on appeal largely mirror the superior court's written decision, which concluded:
Based on this Court's consideration of the seven factors applied in Doe , the non-punitive, regulatory purposes and effects of ASORA's registration requirements override any punitive effect the registration provisions of ASORA might have. ... And unlike the offender in Doe , Doe in this case could have avoided application of the statute to him. Because Alaska's interests are regulatory and the effects of the registration provisions of ASORA are not punitive, the restrictions on punishment suggested in Doe do not apply. Alaska has jurisdiction to impose the registration requirements on Doe based on his out of state conviction. To the extent Doe argues Alaska cannot require him to register at all when he moves into the state, his argument does not have merit. If Doe's arguments were accepted, sex offenders would be free to leave their convicting state and move to Alaska where they would not be subject to any registration requirement.
See Doe 08 ,
We recognized in Doe 08 that ASORA's regulatory purposes and effects were "undeniably legitimate and important" although "convincingly outweigh[ed]" by the statute's punitive effects. Id . at 1018.
Doe cites Wheat v. State ,
See Wheat, 734 P.3d at 1008 (noting that appeal dealt with jurisdiction for criminal prosecutions); Dudley ,
See AS 12.63.010(a)(3).
See Alaska Const. art. I, § 7.
The superior court in its written decision recognized that registration could result in significant adverse affects on an offender's liberty:
Specific examples include offenders having difficulty finding employment, losing their jobs, being forced to move residences, receiving threats of violence, and being subject to vigilantism and protests. Based on these potential effects, requiring Doe to register as a sex offender under ASORA may seriously affect his liberty.
But the court appears to have simply assumed without express analysis that the State's interest in public safety underlying ASORA outweighed Doe's liberty interests: "General interests predominate."
The State does not argue that ASORA's registration and public disclosure provisions are severable and thus we do not consider that question.
Alaska Const. art. I, § 7.
See Millard v. Rankin ,
See Concerned Citizens of S. Kenai Peninsula v. Kenai Peninsula Borough ,
Church v. State, Dep't of Revenue ,
AS 12.63.010(a) ; AS 12.63.100(6).
Connecticut , 538 U.S. at 4,
Doe v. Dep't of Pub. Safety ex rel. Lee ,
Connecticut , 538 U.S. at 4,
Huffman v. State ,
Huffman ,
Sampson v. State ,
Concerned Citizens ,
Id .
Article I, section 22 of the Alaska Constitution provides that "[t]he right of the people to privacy is recognized and shall not be infringed."
Washington v. Glucksberg ,
We have stressed the importance of the right to privacy: "Since the citizens of Alaska, with their strong emphasis on individual liberty, enacted an amendment to the Alaska Constitution expressly providing for a right to privacy not found in the United States Constitution, ... the right is broader in scope than that of the Federal Constitution." Anchorage Police Dep't Empls. Ass'n v. Mun. of Anchorage ,
See Ravin ,
See Alaska Wildlife All. v. Rue ,
See Alaska Wildlife ,
See Huffman v. State ,
Local 1264 , 973 P.2d at 1134 (quoting Nathanson v. State ,
See, e.g. , Alaska Wildlife ,
See, e.g. , Huffman ,
Local 1264 , 973 P.2d at 1134 (first alteration in original) (quoting Doe v. Alaska Superior Court, Third Judicial Dist. ,
State v. Glass ,
See Luedtke v. Nabors Alaska Drilling, Inc. ,
See State v. Planned Parenthood of Alaska ,
Rollins v. Ulmer ,
Jones v. Jennings ,
Messerli ,
Falcon v. Alaska Pub. Offices Comm'n ,
Our case law has identified the serious harms that can result from internet publication of information concerning a sex offender. In Doe v. State, Dep't of Pub. Safety , (Doe 04 ) we noted that the consequences flowing from registration were "potentially destructive" and included: loss of employment, being forced to move, threats of violence and actual violence, difficulty locating places to reside and work, and being "subjected to protests and group actions designed to force [offenders] out of their jobs and homes."
In Doe 08 we noted our agreement with the observation that ASORA "exposes registrants, through aggressive public notification of their crimes, to profound humiliation and community-wide ostracism."
We stated in Doe 08 that "[o]utside Alaska, there have been reports of incidents of suicide by and vigilantism against offenders on state registries."
1986 Informal Op. Att'y Gen. 442 (citing numerous newspaper articles).
Id . at 441.
AS 18.65.087(a), (b).
Id .
U.S. Dep't of Justice v. Reporters Comm. For Freedom of Press ,
See, e.g. , Paul P. v. Verniero ,
Reporters Comm. ,
Poritz ,
Id .
See supra notes 85-88.
We also conclude that for reasons already stated the consequences of such dissemination are important. Thus the requirement that privacy claims involve substantial rather than minimal impacts in order to trigger strict scrutiny review is also satisfied. See supra pp. 126-27.
The dissenting opinion concludes that a lower level of scrutiny should be used for reasons that can be distilled into three categories.
First, the opinion reasons that because Doe might well still be in jail if he had committed his offense in Alaska rather than Virginia he should be treated as though he is still a prisoner with expectations of privacy that are "almost completely overridden by the need for prison security." Dissent at 137. Relatedly, even if he were only on probation or parole he would still have "a diminished expectation of privacy." Dissent at 137.
Second, the dissent notes that conviction information is a matter of public record and the notoriety of a serious sex crime itself can result in "stigma and infamy." Dissent at 137.
And third, the dissent argues that the State's interest in public safety makes "a lower level of scrutiny ... appropriate." Dissent at 138.
We disagree for the reasons that follow.
First, we believe that Doe's privacy rights must be evaluated based on his actual status as a person who is neither a prisoner, parolee, nor probationer, rather than based on the sentence he may have received if he had hypothetically committed his crime in Alaska. The exigencies of incarceration require that prisoners be subject to continuous surveillance and search at any time. "A right of privacy in traditional Fourth Amendment terms is fundamentally incompatible with the close and continual surveillance of inmates and their cells." Hudson v. Palmer ,
Our response concerning the privacy rights of a probationer or parolee is similar. Warrantless searches of their persons or residences can be justified under conditions of release that are directly related to their underlying crimes. Id . at 1243. To that extent, they have a diminished expectation of privacy. But, as we have noted, "Any justification for treating parolees differently from any other person must stem from their special status. They are entitled to all rights accorded other persons except where valid purposes of parole require restrictions." Id . at 1240. Doe lacks the special status of a parolee or probationer. The suggestion that he should be treated as such because he probably still would be on probation or parole if he had committed his crime in Alaska cannot be squared with our case law. Moreover, parolees and probationers have rights more restricted than those enjoyed by the general public only as to searches and other intrusions that are "both consistent with the goal of rehabilitation and necessary for the proper functioning of the parole system." Id . at 1242. The continuous publication of personal and conviction information under ASORA goes well beyond these criteria and therefore should be tested under a full-rather than restricted-privacy-rights model.
The dissenting opinion's second group of reasons for concluding that a lower level of scrutiny should be employed is based on the fact that conviction records are public and that a notorious sex crime naturally results in stigma and infamy. We have already addressed the public records point at some length in this opinion. See supra pp. 128-30. Put briefly, not all the information published under ASORA is public-offender addresses and employment information most notably-and, as we recognized in Doe 08 , there is a significant distinction between retaining records of a conviction in state files and maintaining an easy-to-browse compilation of information about sex offenders on the internet.
As to the third reason, the State's interest in public safety, we have also already addressed this point in this opinion. See supra pp. 123-24. The State has an undoubted and strong interest in ensuring public safety. This interest plays a critical part in assessing Doe's claim because it is the countervailing interest against which Doe's constitutional claim must be weighed. We recognize in Part IV(C)(5) of this opinion (see infra pp. 131-32) that the State's interest is compelling and justifies a narrowly tailored sex offender registration law. But under our method for analyzing privacy-based constitutional claims, the asserted countervailing interest plays no role in determining whether there is a legitimate expectation of privacy. See supra pp. 126-27. That is step one of the analysis. The strength and legitimacy of the countervailing interest is relevant in the second step of the analysis, which determines whether the countervailing interest is sufficiently strong to overcome the privacy-based constitutional claim that is subject to such review.
Doe v. Pataki ,
See, e.g. , Joshua E. Montgomery, Fixing a Non-Existent Problem with an Ineffective Solution: Doe v. Snyder and Michigan's Punitive Sex Offender Registration and Notification Laws , 51 AKRON L. REV. 537, 560-73 (2017) (describing how recidivism rates for sex offenders are low compared to other types of criminals and that registration does not reduce recidivism, and may actually increase it); Hal Arkowitz and Scott O. Lilienfeld, Once a Sex Offender, Always a Sex Offender? Maybe Not. , SCI. AM. (Apr. 1, 2008), https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/misunderstood-crimes/ (noting that general public vastly overestimates sex offenders' recidivism rates); Roger Przybylski, Adult Sex Offender Recidivism, Dep't of Just., Sex Offender Management Assessment & Planning Initiative , 107 (March 2017), https://www.smart.gov/SOMAPI/pdfs/SOMAPI_Full%20Report.pdf, ("[R]ecidivism remains a difficult concept to measure, especially in the context of sex offenders."). Recently, for example, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals observed:
Intuitive as some may find this, the record before us provides scant support for the proposition that SORA in fact accomplishes its professed goals. The record below gives a thorough accounting of the significant doubt cast by recent empirical studies on the pronouncement in Smith that "the risk of recidivism posed by sex offenders is frightening and high." One study suggests that sex offenders (a category that includes a great diversity of criminals, not just pedophiles) are actually less likely to recidivate than other sorts of criminals. Even more troubling is evidence in the record supporting a finding that offense-based public registration has, at best, no impact on recidivism. In fact, one statistical analysis in the record concluded that laws such as SORA actually increase the risk of recidivism, probably because they exacerbate risk factors for recidivism by making it hard for registrants to get and keep a job, find housing, and reintegrate into their communities.
Does #1-5 v. Snyder ,
Doe 04 ,
Id .
Doe 08 ,
Id . at 1017 n.143 (second alteration in original) (quoting Smith , 538 U.S. at 117,
Id . at 1017 (quoting Doe I v. Otte ,
Id .
Id .
Id . at 1009.
Id . at 1012 ; see former Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 6, §§ 178C -179O (1996).
Attorney Gen. ,
Id . (citations omitted).
Id . at 1013.
Subsequent to the publication of the Bani decision, the Hawaii legislature amended the section of its sex offender registration and notification statute that provided "[a]ccess to registration information" to include a hearing that provided a sex offender with the opportunity to present evidence to show that "the offender does not represent a threat to the community and that public release of relevant information is not necessary." State v. Guidry,
Bani ,
See Millard v. Rankin ,
Ch. 41, § 1, SLA 1994. See supra Part IV(C)(5).
Alternatively, he may proceed by amending the complaint in the current proceeding.
We note that the Supreme Court of New Hampshire recently imposed a similar hearing requirement to save that state's act from unconstitutionality as applied to an ex post facto claim. See Doe v. State ,
See Nichols v. Eckert ,
K & L Distribs., Inc. v. Murkowski ,
It is the constitutionally vested duty of this court to assure that administrative action complies with the laws of Alaska. We would not be able to carry out this duty to protect the citizens of this state in the exercise of their rights if we were unable to review the actions of administrative agencies simply because the legislature chose to exempt their decisions from judicial review. The legislative statement of finality is one which we will honor to the extent that it accords with constitutional guarantees. But if the administrative action is questioned as violating, for example, the due process clause, we will not hesitate to review the propriety of the action to the extent that constitutional standards may require.
Id . at 357.
The legislature may find it appropriate to amend ASORA in order to prescribe conditions under which relief from registration may be granted.
See Wayne A. Logan, Database Infamia: Exit from the Sex Offender Registries ,
As already noted, the Supreme Court of New Hampshire imposed an individualized risk assessment hearing requirement to save New Hampshire's registration act from unconstitutionality on ex post facto grounds. Doe ,
See Mary K. Huffman, Moral Panic and the Politics of Fear: The Dubious Logic Underlying Sex Offender Registration Statutes and Proposals for Restoring Measures of Judicial Discretion to Sex Offender Management , 4 Va. J. Crim. L. 241, 269-74 (2016).
"Static factors represent historical information not subject to change, such as prior criminal record, previous violations of community supervision, and age at first offense." Id . at 271.
"Dynamic factors present as 'those characteristics, circumstances, and attitudes that can change throughout one's life.' Changeable variables include substance abuse, attitude, maturity, social support, and self-management practices."
Op. at 127-28 nn. 89-93.
AS 12.55.125(i)(1)(A)(ii).
AS 12.55.125(q).
Hudson v. Palmer ,
Sprague v. State ,
See People v. Jeha ,
See Patterson v. State ,
State v. Druktenis ,
See, e.g. ,
Alaska Const. art. I, § 12.
State v. Ranstead ,
Ch. 41, § 1(3), SLA 1994.
See, e.g. , Doe v. Cuomo ,
Op. at 135.
Op. at 135-36.
Egan v. Hammond ,