State v. BunkerState v. Bunker
¶ 1 Leo Bunker, Donald Williams, and Rachel Vincent were charged with criminal violations of no-contact orders under former
FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY
I. Division One—Bunker and Williams
A. Bunker
¶ 2 Leo Bunker was pulled over by the Washington State Patrol for speeding while driving his semitractor-trailer. Lillian Hiatt was Bunker‘s passenger. A records check on Bunker revealed two court orders prohibiting Bunker from contacting Hiatt. Bunker was arrested, charged, and convicted of violating no-contact orders under former
B. Williams
¶ 3 Donald Williams was convicted by a jury on three felony counts of violating a no-contact order under former
¶ 4 On March 13, 2006, Williams phoned Poole while she was at a grocery store, calling her several profane names. Poole returned home to find Williams waiting for her in an angry and intoxicated state. When Poole told Williams she was leaving to pick up their daughter from day care, Williams tried to take Poole‘s keys and grabbed her wrist. Poole broke free, and Williams placed his hand on her chest and pushed her. Frightened but uninjured, Poole got into her truck and left.
¶ 5 Williams called Poole while she drove to their daughter‘s day care. Williams yelled vulgar words over the phone at Poole so loudly that the day care provider was able to hear. Williams said he would trash the house, rip the telephone and computer out of the wall, take the tools and truck, and kidnap the children‘s dog if Poole did not immediately return home. Poole was afraid to call the police, so the day care provider called 911. An officer accompanied Poole home, but Williams was gone when Poole and the officer arrived.
¶ 6 During dinner with her daughter that night, Poole saw Williams standing at her window, trying to get in. He appeared more intoxicated than before. Poole was afraid and refused to let Williams in. Williams left, and Poole called the police. Williams denied contacting Poole on March 13, 2006, but acknowledged the order and previous violations. A jury convicted Williams of three no-contact order violations.
¶ 7 Bunker and Williams appealed their convictions, arguing that any no-contact order violation must also constitute an act requiring mandatory arrest under
II. Division Two—Vincent
¶ 8 On January 4, 2007, Pierce County Sheriff‘s Department deputies pulled over Howard Seaworth for driving a car with expired tags. Rachel Marie Vincent was Seaworth‘s passenger. A records check revealed a no-contact order prohibiting Vincent from contacting Seaworth. Vincent acknowledged she was aware of the no-contact order and had been arrested a few days prior for violating it. Vincent was again arrested for violating the no-contact order.
¶ 10 The State petitioned this court for discretionary review, and we granted review, consolidating Vincent with Bunker. Division Two then published two opinions declining to follow its previous decisions in Hogan and Madrid, instead adopting Division One‘s Bunker analysis. State v. Wofford, 148 Wash.App. 870, 881, 201 P.3d 389 (2009); State v. Allen, 150 Wash.App. 300, 309, 207 P.3d 483 (2009). We agree with the Bunker court‘s results and affirm the defendants’ criminal convictions.
ANALYSIS
¶ 11 Bunker, Williams, and Vincent were charged with violations of no-contact order provisions under former
(1) Whenever an order is granted under this chapter,
chapter 10.99 ,26.09 ,26.10 ,26.26 , or74.34 RCW , or there is a valid foreign protection order as defined inRCW 26.52.020 , and the respondent or person to be restrained knows of the order, a violation of the restraint provisions, or of a provision excluding the person from a residence, workplace, school, or day care, or of a provision prohibiting a person from knowingly coming within, or knowingly remaining within, a specified distance of a location, or of a provision of a foreign protection order specifically indicating that a violation will be a crime, for which an arrest is required underRCW 10.31.100(2) (a) or(b) , is a gross misdemeanor except as provided in subsections (4) and (5) of this section.
Former
¶ 12 The defendants argue that the statutory language italicized above modifies the phrase “a violation of the restraint provisions,” and therefore no-contact order violations that do not satisfy the mandatory arrest requirements are not crimes. If this construction of the statute is rejected, then a violation of a no-contact order is a gross misdemeanor or felony.
¶ 13 It is clear from examining the statute in context that any no-contact order violation is a crime, and the arrest provision does not modify the phrase “a violation of the restraint provisions.” The mandatory arrest requirements are thus not elements of the crime of violating a no-contact order under former
Statutory Interpretation
¶ 14 We review questions of statutory interpretation de novo and interpret statutes to give effect to the legislature‘s intentions. City of Spokane v. County of Spokane, 158 Wash.2d 661, 672-73, 146 P.3d 893 (2006). We begin by examining the plain language of the statute. In re Forfeiture of One 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle, 166 Wash.2d 834, 838-39, 215 P.3d 166 (2009). “‘The plain meaning of a statute may be discerned from all that the Legislature has said in the
¶ 15 One such grammar rule is the last antecedent rule, which states that qualifying or modifying words and phrases refer to the last antecedent. Spokane, 158 Wash.2d at 673, 146 P.3d 893; Berrocal v. Fernandez, 155 Wash.2d 585, 600, 121 P.3d 82 (2005) (C. Johnson, J., dissenting). Related to this rule is the corollary principle that “‘the presence of a comma before the qualifying phrase is evidence the qualifier is intended to apply to all antecedents instead of only the immediately preceding one.‘” Spokane, 158 Wash.2d at 673, 146 P.3d 893 (internal quotation marks omitted) (quoting Berrocal, 155 Wash.2d at 593, 121 P.3d 82). We do not apply the rule if other factors, such as context and language in related statutes, indicate contrary legislative intent or if applying the rule would result in an absurd or nonsensical interpretation. See State v. McGee, 122 Wash.2d 783, 789, 864 P.2d 912 (1993); In re Pers. Restraint of Smith, 139 Wash.2d 199, 204-05, 986 P.2d 131 (1999).
¶ 16 Contrary to the defendants’ assertions, the last antecedent rule and its comma corollary do not apply here. The plain language of former
¶ 17 First, it is clear that the legislature intended a criminal misdemeanor or felony penalty for no-contact order violations under former
¶ 18 Next, defendants’ argued application of the last antecedent rule‘s corollary would render statutory language superfluous.
¶ 19 Finally, applying the last antecedent rule would contradict express legislative intent. If the defendants’ interpretation is correct, a restrained party would commit a criminal offense by entering an expressly prohibited area near a protected party‘s home to visit a friend. Whether the protected party knew of the restrained party‘s visit would not matter. However, no criminal offense would occur if a restrained party purposefully encountered and harassed a protected party while the protected party was at work, shopping, or at any other location that was not expressly identified as a prohibited area, provided the restrained party did not threaten physical violence. The legislature has stated that the purpose of domestic violence laws is to give “maximum protection” to domestic violence victims.
¶ 20 The plain language of
Legislative Amendment
¶ 21 Even if we believed the plain language of former
¶ 22 We may refer to a statute‘s subsequent history to clarify an ambiguous statute‘s original intent. See Rozner v. City of Bellevue, 116 Wash.2d 342, 347-48, 804 P.2d 24 (1991). In 2007, the legislature unanimously amended former
The legislature finds this act necessary to restore and make clear its intent that a willful violation of a no-contact provision of a court order is a criminal offense and shall be enforced accordingly to preserve the integrity and intent of the domestic violence act. This act is not intended to broaden the scope of law enforcement power or effectuate any substantive change to
any criminal provision in the Revised Code of Washington.
Laws of 2007, ch. 173, § 1 (emphasis added). This legislative statement of intent leaves no doubt regarding the correct interpretation of former
CONCLUSION
¶ 23 We affirm the Court of Appeals in Bunker and reverse the superior court in Vincent. We hold each conviction was proper under the correct understanding of former
WE CONCUR: BARBARA A. MADSEN, Chief Justice, CHARLES W. JOHNSON, TOM CHAMBERS, SUSAN OWENS, MARY E. FAIRHURST, and DEBRA L. STEPHENS, Justices, WILLIAM W. BAKER, Justice Pro Tem.
SANDERS, J. (dissenting).
¶ 24 Former
ANALYSIS
¶ 25 The majority today fumbles several relevant rules of statutory construction. Chiefly, it bypasses the following tenet: “In interpreting a statute, this court looks first to its plain language. If the plain language of the statute is unambiguous, then this court‘s inquiry is at an end. The statute is to be enforced in accordance with its plain meaning.” State v. Armendariz, 160 Wash.2d 106, 110, 156 P.3d 201 (2007) (emphasis added) (citations omitted). The majority similarly ignores the rule that obliges us to derive legislative intent from the plain language of the statute. “When statutory language is unambiguous, we look only to that language to determine the legislative intent without considering outside sources.” State v. Delgado, 148 Wash.2d 723, 727, 63 P.3d 792 (2003) (emphasis added); see also Tingey v. Haisch, 159 Wash.2d 652, 657, 152 P.3d 1020 (2007) (when a “‘statute‘s meaning is plain on its face, then the court must give effect to that plain meaning as an expression of legislative intent‘” (quoting State v. Jacobs, 154 Wash.2d 596, 600, 115 P.3d 281 (2005) (internal quotation marks omitted))). We review statutory construction de novo. City of Spokane v. County of Spokane, 158 Wash.2d 661, 672-73, 146 P.3d 893 (2006).
¶ 26 Former
Whenever an order is granted under this chapter,
chapter 10.99 ,26.09 ,26.10 ,26.26 , or74.34 RCW , or there is a valid foreign protection order as defined inRCW 26.52.020 , and the respondent or person to be restrained knows of the order, a violation of the restraint provisions, or of a provision excluding the person from a residence, workplace, school or day care, or of a provision prohibiting a person from knowingly coming within, or knowingly remaining within, a specified distance of a location, or of a provision of a foreign protection order specifically indicating that a violation will be a crime, for which an arrest is required underRCW 10.31.100(2)(a) or(b) , is a gross misdemeanor except as provided in subsections (4) and (5) of this section.
(Emphasis added.)
¶ 27 While this statute is inelegant, its plain language is also unambiguous. When the irrelevant portions are removed, the statute reads, “[A] violation of the restraint provisions..., for which an arrest is required under
¶ 28 Despite the majority‘s claim to the contrary, there is no reason the last antecedent rule‘s corollary should not apply here. Majority at 490-91. The majority‘s primary reason for dismissing this rule of grammar (i.e., that a subsequent statutory provision contains the word “also“) makes little sense. Majority at 491. Aside from being loose justification
¶ 29 Moreover, the majority‘s contention that the corollary to the last antecedent rule, if applied, would lead to absurd results does not ring true. See id. at 490-91, 491, 491-92. That the legislature would characterize as gross misdemeanors only violations that carry the requirement of arrest under
¶ 30 Accordingly I would hold the qualifying phrase “for which an arrest is required under
¶ 31 The statute‘s plain language ends our inquiry. See Armendariz, 160 Wash.2d at 110, 156 P.3d 201. Yet the majority nonetheless delves into external sources, including amendments passed after the violations.1 Majority at 492. Our rules of statutory construction require us to derive legislative intent from the plain language of this unambiguous statute. Delgado, 148 Wash.2d at 727, 63 P.3d 792; Tingey, 159 Wash.2d at 657, 152 P.3d 1020.2
¶ 32 Here, police found Leo Bunker in the willing company of Lillian Hiatt after Bunker was stopped for speeding. Hiatt, who had a restraining order against Bunker, was a passenger in the truck. The same theme applies to Rachel Vincent, whom police discovered in a car with a man who held a no-contact order against her. Donald Williams violated a no-contact order by yelling profanities at Linda Poole, grabbing Poole‘s wrist, trying to take her keys, and threatening to trash her house, steal her truck, and kidnap her dog. He also appeared on Poole‘s front porch late at night and rattled the doorknob in an attempt to enter her home.
¶ 33 For a conviction to stand the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt every essential element of a crime charged. In re Winship, 397 U.S. 358, 364, 90 S.Ct. 1068, 25 L.Ed.2d 368 (1970). The State charged the defendants with violations of former
¶ 34 Accordingly I would hold the State improperly charged the defendants under former
CONCLUSION
¶ 35 Because the majority today misapplies our rules of statutory construction, I dissent. The plain language of former
Notes
Although it is clear that the mandatory arrest provision does not modify “a violation of the restraint provisions,” it is not altogether clear which antecedents the arrest provision does modify. The Bunker court found:
[T]he legislature intended the phrase “for which an arrest is required under RCW 10.31.100(2)(a) or (b)” to modify the previous two complete clauses, respectively. That is, “RCW 10.31.100(2)(a)” refers to the clause “or of a provision excluding the person from a residence, workplace, school, or day care, or of a provision prohibiting a person from knowingly coming within, or knowingly remaining within, a specified distance of a location,” while “RCW 10.31.100(2) ... (b)” refers to “or of a provision of a foreign protection order specifically indicating that a violation will be a crime.” Former RCW 26.50.110. This construction is not particularly surprising, insofar as the circumstances referenced are precisely those “for which an arrest is required” in each respective subsection of RCW 10.31.100(2). It also has the advantage of being the only construction whereby each of the subsections of RCW 10.31.100(2)-(a) and (b)-is not being applied to circumstances that, by its own terms, are governed solely by the other subsection.
Bunker, 144 Wash.App. at 419-20, 183 P.3d 1086. Though this interpretation is plausible, the present issue is whether the arrest provision clause modifies the antecedent “violation of the restraint provisions.” We need not decide what antecedents the arrest provision does modify.