Lead Opinion
OPINION
The question presented by this case is whether the motor vehicle exemption, Minn.Stat. § 550.37, subd. 12a (2012), applies to the forfeiture of a motor vehicle used in the commission of a designated driving-while-impaired (DWI) offense, pursuant to Minn.Stat. § 169A.63 (2012). The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Hennepin County on behalf of respondent vehicle and held that the motor vehicle exemption does not apply when a motor vehicle is forfeited under section 169A.63. The court of appeals affirmed. Appellant Matthew Nielsen asserts that both the motor vehicle exemption and Article I, Section 12, of the Minnesota Constitution apply to forfeiture under section 169A.63. Because we conclude that neither section 550.37, subdivision 12a, nor Article I, Section 12, applies to DWI forfeiture pursuant to section 169A.63, we affirm.
On April 11, 2011, a law enforcement officer stopped Nielsen after observing him drive in the wrong direction on a one-way street. Nielsen showed signs of intoxication and “registered [a] .282 blood alcohol concentration on a preliminary breath test.” Nielsen was arrested and charged with first-degree driving while impaired. Minn.Stat. §§ 169A.20, 169A.24 (2012). Nielsen subsequently pleaded guilty to the charged offense.
At the time of his arrest, Nielsen received a notice advising him of the County’s intent to administratively forfeit his vehicle pursuant to section 169A.63. He sought a judicial determination of the forfeiture of his vehicle in conciliation court. Nielsen argued that he was entitled to receive a portion of the value of the forfeited vehicle under the motor vehicle exemption, section 550.37, subdivision 12a. The conciliation court agreed and entered judgment in favor of Nielsen in the amount of
Nielsen appealed, and the court of appeals affirmed the district court. Nielsen v. 2003 Honda Accord,
I.
Nielsen advances two legal theories in opposition to the DWI forfeiture of his motor vehicle. First, Nielsen argues that, because the motor vehicle exemption in section 550.37, subdivision 12a, was enacted pursuant to Article I, Section 12, of the Minnesota Constitution, the owner of a motor vehicle is entitled to receive the exemption amount when the motor vehicle is forfeited under section 169A.63. Alternatively, Nielsen contends that the motor vehicle exemption applies in a DWI forfeiture proceeding as a matter of statutory interpretation because section 550.37, subdivision 12a, creates an exemption from forfeiture that does not conflict with the DWI forfeiture statute. According to Nielsen, if the value of the vehicle or the owner’s equity interest in the vehicle is greater than the value of the exemption established in section 550.37, subdivision 12a, the County is entitled to forfeit the value of the property over the exemption amount. Because we will address a constitutional question only if another legal basis to decide a case does not exist, State v. Bourke,
Statutory interpretation presents a question of law, which we review de novo. Caldas v. Affordable Granite & Stone, Inc.,
The statutes at issue here are the motor vehicle exemption, section 550.37, subdivision 12a, and the DWI forfeiture statute, section 169A.63. Section 550.37, subdivision 1, limits the enforcement of judgments by designating certain property as “not liable to attachment, garnishment,
Section 169A.63, subdivision 6(a), subjects a motor vehicle “to forfeiture ... if it was used in the commission of a designated offense or was used in conduct resulting in a designated license revocation.” Such forfeiture may be achieved through an administrative or judicial forfeiture procedure. Id., subds. 8-9; see also Patino v. One 2007 Chevrolet,
We first consider whether, based on the plain language of the statute, the exemptions in section 550.37 apply to a civil forfeiture. Section 550.37 exempts property from “sale on any final process, issued from any court.” “Final process” is defined as “process issued at the conclusion of a judicial proceeding; esp., a writ of execution.” Black’s Law Dictionary 1325 (9th ed.2009). Applying this definition, the “sale on any final process” addressed in section 550.37 contemplates a forced sale. In a judicial forfeiture proceeding, the forfeiture is complete after process is issued at the end of the proceeding. More fundamentally, as with a forced sale, forfeiture proceedings result in the involuntary transfer of property. See, e.g., Butterworth v. Caggiano,
Having concluded that the motor vehicle exemption in section 550.37, subdivision 12a, applies to a civil forfeiture, we next consider whether this statutory provision conflicts with section 169A.63. Even though section 550.37 generally provides an exemption from civil forfeiture, we examine whether the exemption applies in the context of the specific forfeiture statute at issue here. See Enright,
Although permitting the owner of a motor vehicle subject to DWI forfeiture to invoke the motor vehicle exemption would avoid a conflict between section 550.37, subdivision 12a, and section 169A.63, there are several provisions in section 169A.63 that preclude reconciling the statutes in this manner. First, the DWI forfeiture statute contemplates the forfeiture of vehicles worth less than $500. Minn.Stat. § 169A.63, subd. 8(e) (“If the value of the seized property is less than $500, the claimant does not have to pay the conciliation court filing fee.”). If the motor vehicle exemption applied to forfeiture under section 169A.63, a vehicle worth less than $500 would be immune from forfeiture be
Second, the DWI forfeiture statute contains express limitations and exceptions to forfeiture that do not implicate section 550.37.For example, when a vehicle is encumbered by a perfected security interest or subject to a lease with an outstanding loan balance that exceeds the proceeds of the sale, the agency seeking forfeiture must “remit all proceeds of the sale to the secured party” after it deducts its own costs from the proceeds of the sale of a forfeited vehicle. Minn.Stat. § 169A.63, subd. 7(b). .An agency could not “remit all proceeds of the sale to the secured party” if it were required to give the owner the exemption value. Also, a vehicle is exempt from forfeiture when the owner of the vehicle establishes by clear and convincing evidence that the owner did not have actual or constructive knowledge of the vehicle’s use in violation of the law or “that the owner took reasonable steps to prevent use of the vehicle by the offender.” Id., subd. 7(d). The specific statutory limitations on forfeiture make no reference, however, to a limitation or exception from forfeiture based on the motor vehicle exemption in section 550.37, subdivision 12a. When, as here, exceptions are expressed in a statute, we generally interpret such expression to exclude all other exceptions. Janssen v. Janssen,
Third, the DWI forfeiture statute mandates that the proceeds from the sale of a forfeited vehicle be distributed to the appropriate law enforcement agency and prosecuting authority. Minn.Stat. § 169A.63, subd. 10(b). The proceeds distributed in this manner are the funds remaining “after payment of seizure, towing, storage, forfeiture, and sale expenses, and satisfaction of valid liens against the property.” Id. Nielsen does not argue, nor does the statutory language suggest, that an owner’s motor vehicle exemption under section 550.37, subdivision 12a, falls within any of these pre-distribution categories of expenses or liabilities. Thus, section 550.37,subdivision 12a, and section 169A.63 are irreconcilable.
Applying principles of statutory interpretation to these irreconcilable statutory provisions, section 169A.63 must prevail. The motor vehicle exemption in section 550.37,subdivision 12a, is the more general provision, as it applies across a range of procedures to any motor vehicle. See Minn.Stat. § 550.37, subd. 1 (“The property mentioned in this section is not liable to attachment, garnishment, or sale on any final process, issued from any court.”). The DWI forfeiture statute applies only to those motor vehicles “used in the commission of a designated offense or ... used in conduct resulting in a designated license revocation.” Minn.Stat. § 169A.63, subd. 6(a). In addition, the motor vehicle exemption was enacted before the DWI forfeiture statute. Compare Act of Apr. 11, 1980, ch. 550, § 2, 1980 Minn. Laws 739, 740 (codified at Minn. Stat § 550.37, subd. 12a), with Act of Apr. 29,1992, ch. 570, art. 1, § 15, 1992 Minn. Laws 1944, 1953-56 (codified at Minn.Stat. § 169A.63). And no aspect of the motor vehicle exemption indicates that the Legislature intends the exemption, as the more general provision, to prevail. See Hyatt,
II.
Having concluded, as a matter of statutory interpretation, that the exemption in section 550.37, subdivision 12a, does not apply when a motor vehicle is subject to forfeiture under section 169A.63, we turn to Nielsen’s constitutional argument. In doing so, we must determine whether Article I, Section 12, of the Minnesota Constitution requires application of the motor vehicle exemption in section 550.37, subdivision 12a, in the context of DWI forfeiture pursuant to section 169A.63.
Constitutional interpretation presents a question of law, which we review de novo. State v. Brooks,
In Torgelson v. 17138 880th Ave., we considered whether Article I, Section 12, “prohibits drug asset forfeiture of homestead property.”
Like the homestead exemption at issue in Torgelson, the personal property exemptions in section 550.37 reflect the constitutional directive in Article I, Section 12. Moyer v. Int’l State Bank of Int’l Falls, Minn.,
Nielsen asserts that, because the Legislature has provided an exemption for motor vehicles from forfeiture generally, that exemption must apply to DWI forfeitures under section 169A.63. But Nielsen’s assertion fails to consider the Legislature’s authority to limit the scope or extent of an exemption. See Cont’l Cas. Co. v. Knowlton,
For example, in McPherson v. University Motors, Inc., we considered whether the enforcement of a statutory lien on personal property remaining on the premises of unlawfully detained realty was “limited by Minn. Const, art. 1, § 12, and the exemption statute, Minn. [Stat.] § 550.37, to nonexempt property.”
We are mindful that the forfeiture provision at issue here could be seen as distinct from some statutory liens, in that a motor vehicle owner does not voluntarily subject the property to liability. But statutory liens have been deemed exceptions to the exemption statutes and not contrary to the Minnesota Constitution when the liens are based on implied consent created by parties’ voluntary conduct. McPherson,
Affirmed.
Notes
. The exemption value is adjusted periodically, and when the forfeiture of Nielsen’s vehicle was initiated, the exemption value was $4,400. Minn.Stat. § 550.37, subd. 4a; 34 Minn. Reg. 1460 (Apr. 26, 2010).
. We observe that we would be presented with the same fundamental constitutional question even if we held that the exemption in section 550.37 did not apply to forfeitures. That is, even if we concluded that based on the plain language of section 550.37, the motor vehicle exemption did not apply to a civil forfeiture, we would confront a statutorily created limitation on the scope or extent of an exemption. And we still would be required to consider whether Article I, Section 12, permits such a limitation, or requires application of the motor vehicle exemption in section 550.37, subdivision 12a, to DWI forfeiture under section 169A.63.
Concurrence Opinion
(concurring).
On the record now before our court, I join in the majority opinion. I write separately, however, to highlight at least one of the serious problems presented by our forfeiture process in Minnesota. As the majority opinion notes in passing, Minn.Stat. § 169A.63, subd. 10(b) (2012), provides for
And therein lies a significant conflict of interest. Notwithstanding the laudable public policy goals that underlay the original legislative decision to provide for asset forfeiture, law enforcement and prosecutors have a financial interest in deciding which assets to seize and that decision may or may not be informed by agency budget considerations. Indeed, the United States Department of Justice has produced a guide that urges law enforcement to use asset forfeiture to boost the “bottom line” of police agencies. John L. Worrall, Asset Forfeiture 14 (Problem-Oriented Guides for Police, Response Ser. No. 7, 2008) (“The obvious advantage of asset forfeiture is its potential to boost an agency’s bottom line.... Researchers have found, indeed, that forfeiture can assist agencies by augmenting their discretionary budgets.”), available at www.popcenter.org.
Under the current statutory scheme there is no effective check on an agency’s decision to seek forfeiture in one case and not in another. And while there are, in theory, defenses available to those whose assets have been seized, the owner is often financially unable to mount an effective defense.
With all due respect to our law enforcement and prosecutorial authorities, this statutory forfeiture regime creates the wrong incentives and is inconsistent with historic American insistence on checking authority. As James Madison observed long ago, “If men were angels, no government would be necessary.” The Federalist No. 51, at 398-99 (James Madison) (J.B. Lippincott ed., 1880). There are, no doubt, many different ways to address this concern, as well as other challenges associated with our statutory forfeiture procedures, but the proper venue to deal with these problems is the Legislature. The undertaking of this effort is long overdue.
Dissenting Opinion
(dissenting).
I respectfully dissent. We are to construe personal property exemptions such as the motor vehicle exemption set out in MinmStat. § 550.37, subd. 12a (2012), liberally in favor of the party benefitted by the exemption. See DeCoster v. Nenno,