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State v. Druktenis1/30/2004
ssed, and the Defendant was never advised, that the provisions of the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act might someday in the future change, thereby potentially subjecting him to registration as a sex offender.
4. At the time Defendant pled guilty to the offenses contained in the Plea and Disposition Agreement, Defendant was advised by his attorney that he would not be required to register as a sex offender.
5. Defendant agreed to enter into the negotiated plea agreement based upon the above representations from his attorney.
The district court denied Defendant's motion. Among other determinations, the court held that "SORA not unduly disadvantage the defendant," that the "disadvantage or burden to the defendant emanate from his plea of guilty," and that SORA was not punitive and therefore not in violation of ex post facto laws. Further, the court rejected Defendant's asserted denial of due process by having to register without having been given proper notice, and Defendant's argument that Article II, Section 18 barred the application of SORNA. In regard to Defendant's argument that retroactive application violated the plea agreement, the court indicated that " he registration provisions and public disclosure provisions of [SORA were] collateral consequences of [Defendant's] plea" and did not invalidate the plea agreement. Defendant filed a motion to reconsider, in which he did not renew his request to withdraw the plea. The court entered an order denying the motion to reconsider and incorporating its earlier findings contained in its order denying Defendant's initial motion to withdraw his plea. The court further found that Defendant was a sex offender within the meaning of SORNA, that he must register, and that " he act of registering is a collateral consequence of defendant's original plea." Defendant appeals.
On appeal, Defendant contends in his brief in chief that (1) subjecting him to registration as a sex offender under SORNA violates the Ex Post Facto Clause of the New Mexico and the United States Constitutions because, " rrespective of its purpose, SOR A has a predominantly punitive effect"; (2) his case was "pending" for the purposes of Article IV, Section 34 of the New Mexico Constitution which prohibits the Legislature from enacting legislation that "shall affect the right or remedy of either party, or change the rules of evidence or procedure, in any pending case"; and (3) application of SORNA violates Defendant's right to both substantive and procedural due process in that registration is required without an assessment that Defendant is a current danger to society or a recidivist and without affording Defendant an opportunity "to challenge the legislative assumptions and findings that he is dangerous and presents a threat of likely recidivism."
Defendant's reply brief is devoted solely to his contention, not clearly raised, if raised at all, in his brief in chief or below, that the SORNA requirements violate constitutional contract impairment prohibitions. See U.S. Const. art. I, § 10 ("No State shall . . . pass any . . . Law impairing the Obligation of Contracts."); N.M. Const. art. II, § 19 ("No . . . law impairing the obligation of contracts shall be enacted by the legislature."). In the conclusion only of his brief in chief, Defendant asks this Court to "consider reversing" the district court's denial of his motion to withdraw his plea, but Defendant does not set out any point, authority, or argument in support of this request. In oral argument, Defendant expressly withdrew his plea withdrawal request.
We held this appeal in abeyance and stayed Defendant's registration as a sex offender pending the dis
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 New Mexico Personal Injury Attorneys
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