State v. Rocheleau

The Court of Appeals panel in this case erred by dismissing Appellant’s appeal from the requirement that he register for lifetime under the Kansas Offender Registration Act (KORA), Kan. Stat. Ann. 22-4901 et seq., on the grounds that the notice of appeal mentioned only sentencing.Appellant pleaded guilty to aggravated indecent solicitation of a child. The district court sentenced Appellant to a term of imprisonment and ordered lifetime registration under KORA. On appeal, Appellant argued that the lifetime registration violated the Ex Post Facto Clause of the federal Constitution because it exceeded the registration period applicable at the time he committed his crime. The Court of Appeals panel dismissed the appeal, holding that the notice of appeal limited the court’s jurisdiction because KORA registration was not part of a criminal sentence. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that Appellant’s notice of appeal should have been read broadly enough to encompass his KORA challenge under the conflicting caselaw existing when he appealed. As to the merits, the Supreme court affirmed the lifetime registration requirements, holding that changes to offender registration requirements implemented after Appellant committed his crime are not “punishment” and so are not cruel and unusual punishment proscribed by the Eighth Amendment to the federal Constitution. View "State v. Rocheleau" on Justia Law