Doe v State Dept Of Public Safety

6-11-2004 Alaska:

Doe v. State, Dept. Of Public Safety (Alt-Site)

This appeal presents a discrete question left unanswered by the United States Supreme Court in its recent decision rejecting a constitutional challenge to Alaska's sex offender registration statute.

After he was convicted of a sex offense, John Doe1 received a suspended imposition of sentence (SIS), subject to satisfying specified conditions. When Doe's probationary period expired without imposition of sentence, the superior court set aside his conviction under authority of AS 12.55.085(e).

The Alaska Sex Offender Registration Act (ASORA)2 became effective soon after the court set aside Doe's conviction. ASORA requires persons convicted of sex offenses to register with the state and to provide and periodically update detailed personal information that the state then publishes on the Internet.

We conclude that applying ASORA to a person whose conviction was set aside before ASORA became specifically applicable to convictions that were set aside violates the Alaska Constitution's guarantee of due process. We therefore remand for entry of an order enjoining the state from publishing Doe's personal information and requiring it to return all information Doe provided when he registered under protest.