State v. Gore

• Decision Date: 26 April 1984
• Docket Number: No. 49856-3,49856-3
• Citation: 39 A.L.R.4th 975,101 Wn.2d 481,681 P.2d 227
• Parties: , 39 A.L.R.4th 975 The STATE of Washington, Respondent, v. Johnie Lee GORE, Petitioner.
• Court: Washington Supreme Court

Page 481

101 Wn.2d 481

681 P.2d 227, 39 A.L.R.4th 975

The STATE of Washington, Respondent, v. Johnie Lee GORE, Petitioner.

No. 49856-3.

Supreme Court of Washington En Banc.

April 26, 1984.

Paris K. Kallas-Lewis, Washington Appellate Defender Ass'n, Seattle, for petitioner.

Norman K. Maleng, King County Prosecutor, Barbara L. Corey-Boulet, Deputy Pros. Atty., Seattle, for respondent.

WILLIAM H. WILLIAMS, Chief Justice.

The issue in this case is whether the petitioner's conviction for being a felon in possession of a firearm must be vacated when his predicate felony conviction has been reversed for insufficient evidence. We hold that it must be so vacated, and reverse the Court of Appeals.

Petitioner Johnie Lee Gore was convicted of second degree burglary on November 2, 1979. On April 16, 1980, while his burglary conviction was on appeal, Gore was arrested for allegedly pointing a pistol at some people in a parking lot. He was charged with violating RCW 9.41.040, which prohibits one who has been "convicted" of a crime of violence from possessing a firearm. ¹

On June 19, 1980, Gore stipulated to facts sufficient to enter a finding of guilty on the weapon charge, but expressly preserved his right to appeal should his burglary conviction be reversed. The trial court entered a judgment of guilty. On May 4, 1981, the Court of Appeals reversed Gore's burglary conviction for lack of sufficient evidence. State v. Gore, 29 Wash.App. 1002 (1981) (unpublished).

Between Gore's burglary conviction and his April 16 arrest for weapon possession, this court decided State v. Swindell, 93 Wash.2d 192, 607 P.2d 852 (1980), which holds that a constitutionally valid conviction is a necessary element that the State must prove under RCW 9.41.040. Eight days before Swindell was decided, the United States Supreme Court decided Lewis v. United States, 445 U.S. 55, 100 S.Ct. 915, 63 L.Ed.2d 198 (1980). In Lewis the Court held that under the federal firearms statute, the predicate felony conviction need not be constitutionally valid.

Following our denial of the State's motion for reconsideration of Swindell, Gore appealed his firearm conviction, arguing that under Swindell the Court of Appeals was required to reverse his conviction. The State responded that Swindell was inconsistent with Lewis, and urged the Court of Appeals to follow Lewis. The court agreed with the State and affirmed Gore's conviction. State v. Gore, 35 Wash.App. 62, 665 P.2d 428 (1983). We granted review.

I.

The starting point in our analysis is Burgett v. Texas, 389 U.S. 109, 88 S.Ct. 258, 19 L.Ed.2d 319 (1967). In Burgett the defendant was charged with assault. The prosecution attempted to bring the defendant within the Texas recidivist statute by introducing four prior uncounseled convictions, which were void under Gideon v. Wainwright, 372 U.S. 335, 83 S.Ct. 792, 9 L.Ed.2d 799 (1963). The Supreme Court held that introduction of these void convictions was "inherently prejudicial" and could not be used to "support guilt or enhance punishment for another offense". Burgett, 389 U.S. at 115, 88 S.Ct. at 262. The Court further stated that when uncounseled convictions are used in a subsequent prosecution "the accused in effect suffers anew" the original constitutional violation. Burgett, at 115, 88 S.Ct. at 262. The Court has since applied the Burgett reasoning in other contexts, holding that an uncounseled felony conviction may not be used to enhance sentencing or to impeach the defendant's credibility. United States v. Tucker, 404 U.S. 443, 92 S.Ct. 589, 30 L.Ed.2d 592 (1972); Loper v. Beto, 405 U.S. 473, 92 S.Ct. 1014, 31 L.Ed.2d 374 (1972).

This court relied on Burgett by analogy in State v. Holsworth, 93 Wash.2d 148, 607 P.2d 845 (1980). In Holsworth several defendants in habitual criminal prosecutions alleged that their prior convictions, upon which the State relied to prove the defendants' habitual criminal status, were based on guilty pleas which were invalid under Boykin v. Alabama, 395 U.S. 238, 89 S.Ct. 1709, 23 L.Ed.2d 274 (1969). We held that when the defendant challenges the use of such a conviction, the State must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the guilty plea was made knowingly and voluntarily. We reasoned that a conviction based on an invalid guilty plea was a "defect of constitutional magnitude" and that use of such a conviction in a subsequent prosecution "renewed" the constitutional violation. Holsworth, 93 Wash.2d at 157, 607 P.2d 845.

Finally, we relied on Burgett and Holsworth in Swindell. There we held that the State may not use a constitutionally invalid felony conviction to prove that the defendant was a felon in possession of a weapon under RCW 9.41.040. As noted above, the Court of Appeals in this case chose not to follow Swindell, and instead found that "public policy concerns" mandated adoption of the United States Supreme Court's reasoning in Lewis, 445 U.S. at 68, 100 S.Ct. at 922. State v. Gore, supra, 35 Wash.App. at 68, 665 P.2d 428.

II.

Petitioner Gore argues that because his burglary conviction was unconstitutionally obtained, under Swindell he cannot be considered "convicted" for the purposes of RCW 9.41.040. The State responds that Swindell was wrongly decided and urges us to follow Lewis. We find the Supreme Court's reasoning in Lewis unpersuasive, and hereby reaffirm our decision in Swindell.

As noted above, the Supreme Court in Lewis held that the defendant could be considered "convicted" for purposes of the federal firearms act, even though all of his prior convictions were void under Gideon. The Court reasoned that the statute, 18 U.S.C. app. § 1202(a)(1) (1970), unambiguously prohibited a "convicted" person from possessing a gun, regardless of whether the predicate conviction "ultimately might turn out to be invalid for any reason." Lewis, 445 U.S. at 62, 100 S.Ct. at 919. This interpretation was also supported by the legislative history of the statute, according to the Court: "There is no indication of any intent to require the Government to prove the validity of the predicate conviction." Lewis, at 63, 100 S.Ct. at 920.

Unlike the Supreme Court, we do not find the language of the Washington statute, RCW 9.41.040, to be crystal clear. The statute provides that no person who has been "convicted" of a crime of violence shall possess a firearm. As all parties admit, this statute may be interpreted in two alternative ways. The first is the State's, i.e., that any outstanding felony conviction may be used as the predicate conviction. The second alternative is that only a constitutionally valid outstanding conviction may serve as the predicate conviction. ² Where two possible constructions are permissible, the rule of lenity requires us to construe the statute strictly against the State in favor of the accused. State v. Sass, 94 Wash.2d 721, 620 P.2d 79 (1980); State v. Workman, 90 Wash.2d 443, 584 P.2d 382 (1978); Seattle v. Green, 51 Wash.2d 871, 322 P.2d 842 (1958); see also Lewis v. United States, supra, 445 U.S. at 69, 100 S.Ct. at 92, 93 (Brennan, J., dissenting) ("Because either interpretation fairly comports with the statutory language, surely the principle of lenity requires us to resolve any doubts against the harsher alternative and to read the statute to prohibit the possession of firearms only by those who have been constitutionally convicted of a felony.") We therefore interpret RCW 9.41.040 as requiring a constitutionally valid predicate conviction. ³ State v. Swindell, supra, 93 Wash.2d at 197, 607 P.2d 852.

The Court of Appeals apparently did not feel bound by our decision in State v. Swindell, 93 Wash.2d 192, 607 P.2d 852 (1980). It perceived a "conflict" between Swindell and Lewis, and chose to resolve it in favor of Lewis. State v. Gore, 35 Wash.App. 62, 66, 665 P.2d 428 (1983). The court did not state, however, that Lewis controlled on a federal constitutional question. Rather, it said that the Lewis court's interpretation of the federal statute expressed the better public policy concerns, and that RCW 9.41.040 should therefore be interpreted in a similar manner.

In failing to follow directly controlling authority of this court, the Court of Appeals erred. Swindell is based on a state statute, and Lewis is based on a federal statute. While the Supreme Court's interpretation of a similar federal statute is persuasive authority, it is not controlling in our interpretation of a state statute. Weeks v. Chief of the Washington State Patrol, 96 Wash.2d 893, 897, 639 P.2d 732 (1982); Young v. Seattle, 25 Wash.2d 888, 894, 172 P.2d 222 (1946). Further, once this court has decided an issue of state law, that interpretation is binding on all lower courts until it is overruled by this court. Godefroy v. Reilly, 146 Wash. 257, 262 P. 639 (1928); cf. Hutto v. Davis, 454 U.S. 370, 102 S.Ct. 703, 70 L.Ed.2d 556 (1982) ("unless we wish anarchy to prevail within the federal judicial system, a precedent of this Court must be followed by the lower federal courts"). The Court of Appeals was therefore without authority to adopt Lewis based on what it perceived to be the preferable policy.

III.

We now turn to the specific prosecution in this case. At the time of petitioner Gore's arrest, his burglary conviction was on appeal. The State relied on this conviction in its prosecution for Gore's alleged violation of RCW 9.41.040. Gore argues that because his burglary conviction was reversed on appeal for insufficient evidence, his subsequent conviction, being predicated on the burglary conviction, must also be reversed. We agree.

An analogous case is State v. White, 31 Wash.App. 655, 644 P.2d 693 (1982). White was a consolidated appeal from two criminal convictions. The defendant in White was first convicted of perjury in the first degree. He was later charged with several counts of forgery and theft. During the course of the jury trial on these latter charges, the defendant testified in his own...