State v. Moya

• Decision Date: 14 May 2007
• Docket Number: No. 29,919.,29,919.
• Citation: 161 P.3d 862,2007 NMSC 027
• Parties: STATE of New Mexico, Plaintiff-Petitioner, v. Donald MOYA, Defendant-Respondent.
• Court: New Mexico Supreme Court

161 P.3d 862

2007 NMSC 027

STATE of New Mexico, Plaintiff-Petitioner, v. Donald MOYA, Defendant-Respondent.

No. 29,919.

Supreme Court of New Mexico.

May 14, 2007.

Gary K. King, Attorney General, Steven S. Suttle, Assistant Attorney General, Santa Fe, NM, for Petitioner.

Robert E. Tangora, L.L.C., Robert E. Tangora, Santa Fe, NM, for Respondent.

OPINION

CHÁVEZ, Chief Justice.

{1} The issue in this case is whether an out-of-state misdemeanor conviction, which would have been classified as a felony in New Mexico, can be used to enhance a defendant's basic sentence under the Habitual Offender Act, NMSA 1978, §§ 31-18-17 to -20 (2003). Defendant Donald Moya pled guilty to two felonies in New Mexico and also admitted that he had been previously convicted of attempted forgery in Utah. Defendant agreed to a one-year sentence enhancement if the district court determined that his previous conviction, a misdemeanor in Utah, but classified as a felony in New Mexico, could be used as an enhancement felony under Section 31-18-17(D)(2). Concluding that the Habitual Offender Act did not permit the enhancement of a sentence based on an out-of-state misdemeanor conviction, the district court granted Defendant's motion to preclude the use of the Utah attempted forgery conviction. The State appealed, and the Court of Appeals affirmed, holding that Section 31-18-17(D)(2) allows "sentence enhancement only for convictions that were felonies in the state in which they were committed." State v. Moya, 2006-NMCA-103, ¶ 10, 140 N.M. 275, 142 P.3d 43. Construing Section 31-18-17(D)(2) according to its obvious spirit or reason, we hold that prior out-of-state misdemeanor convictions can be used to enhance a sentence if the offense would have been classified as a felony in New Mexico at the time of conviction. Accordingly, we reverse the Court of Appeals.

I. DISCUSSION

{2} Under the Habitual Offender Act, if a defendant is convicted of a noncapital felony in New Mexico, and has one "prior felony conviction," the defendant's sentence shall be increased by one year. § 31-18-17(A). In this case, we must determine whether a conviction of a crime classified in another jurisdiction as a misdemeanor qualifies as a "prior felony conviction." "We review questions of statutory interpretation de novo." State v. Smith, 2004-NMSC-032, ¶ 8, 136 N.M. 372, 98 P.3d 1022.

{3} The definition of a "prior felony conviction" depends on whether the prior conviction occurred within the jurisdiction of New Mexico or outside of New Mexico. Paragraph (D)(1) of Section 31-18-17 pertains to convictions within the jurisdiction of New Mexico and defines "prior felony conviction" as:

a conviction ... for a prior felony committed within New Mexico whether within the Criminal Code or not, but not including a conviction for a felony pursuant to the provisions of Section 66-8-102 NMSA 1978....

§ 31-18-17(D)(1). Paragraph (D)(2) pertains to convictions in other jurisdictions and defines "prior felony conviction" as:

a prior felony ... if:

(a) the conviction was rendered by a court of another state, the United States, a territory of the United States or the commonwealth of Puerto Rico;

(b) the offense was punishable, at the time of conviction, by death or a maximum term of imprisonment of more than one year; or

(c) the offense would have been classified as a felony in this state at the time of conviction.

§ 31-18-17(D)(2). Because the conviction at issue in this case occurred in another state, the provision we must construe is Paragraph (D)(2).

{4} The basis for the Court of Appeals's conclusion that the plain language of Section 31-18-17(D)(2) does not allow for enhancement unless the out-of-state conviction was first classified as a felony in the state in which it was committed, was the Legislature's use of the term "prior felony" at the beginning of Paragraph (D)(2). See Moya, 2006-NMCA-103, ¶ 6, 140 N.M. 275, 142 P.3d 43. Concluding that the term could not be ignored, the court held that the words "conviction" and "offense" in Subparagraphs (D)(2)(a), (b), and (c) referred to the term "prior felony." Id. The court also concluded that Paragraph (D)(2) required a "prior felony" that met the conditions of Subparagraph (D)(2)(a) and either Subparagraph (D)(2)(b) or (c). Id. Because Defendant's conviction for attempted forgery was a misdemeanor in Utah, his conviction was not a "prior felony," and it was unnecessary for the court to analyze whether Subparagraphs (D)(2)(a), (b) or (c) were satisfied.

{5} As support for its holding, the Court of Appeals relied on State v. Harris, 101 N.M. 12, 677 P.2d 625 (Ct.App.1984), a case in which the Court of Appeals interpreted a previous, but nearly identical, version of current Paragraph (D)(2). See Moya, 2006-NMCA-103, ¶ 5, 140 N.M. 275, 142 P.3d 43. Although not specifically addressing whether an out-of-state conviction must be classified as a felony in the state in which it was committed, the court in Harris interpreted what is now Paragraph (D)(2) in the same way that the Court of Appeals did in this case. The court in Harris stated that "[t]he statute clearly requires the prior conviction to have been a conviction of a felony, and this felony conviction must have occurred in one of the courts named in (2)(a)." 101 N.M. at 19, 677 P.2d at 632 (emphasis added). The court went on to say that "[t]he use of the semicolon at the end of (2)(a) indicates that (2)(b) is also a requirement," and that "or" at the end of (2)(b) indicated that (2)(c) could be used instead of (2)(b). Id.

{6} In analyzing Section 31-18-17(D)(2), our primary goal is to effectuate the Legislature's intent. See State v. Davis, 2003-NMSC-022, ¶ 6, 134 N.M. 172, 74 P.3d 1064. We do so by looking first to the words the Legislature chose and the plain meaning of the language. State v. Martinez, 1998-NMSC-023, ¶ 8, 126 N.M. 39, 966 P.2d 747. However, we must be cautious in applying the plain meaning rule. State ex rel. Helman v. Gallegos, 117 N.M. 346, 353, 871 P.2d 1352, 1359 (1994). "[W]hen the results would be absurd, unreasonable, or contrary to the spirit of the statute," we will not employ a "formalistic and mechanical statutory construction." Smith, 2004-NMSC-032, ¶ 10, 136 N.M. 372, 98 P.3d 1022. Instead, we give effect to the Legislature's intent by "adopting a construction which will not render the statute's application absurd or unreasonable," and we construe the statute "according to its obvious spirit or reason." State v. Nance, 77 N.M. 39, 46, 419 P.2d 242, 247 (1966). When construing a statute according to its obvious spirit, "courts may substitute, disregard or eliminate, or insert or add words to a statute." Nat'l Council on Comp. Ins. v. N.M. State Corp. Comm'n, 103 N.M. 707, 708, 712 P.2d 1369, 1370 (1986). We must also keep in mind that "[s]tatutes authorizing more severe punishment should be strictly construed because they are highly penal." State v. Ogden, 118 N.M. 234, 242, 880 P.2d 845, 853 (1994). However, strict construction "should not be used to defeat the policy and purposes of a statute." Id.

{7} Looking first to the language chosen by the Legislature to define "prior felony conviction," there is a notable difference between the language in Paragraph (D)(1), relating to convictions within the jurisdiction of New Mexico, and Paragraph (D)(2), relating to convictions in other jurisdictions. Paragraph (D)(1) defines a "`prior felony conviction'" as "a conviction . . . for a prior felony," whereas in Paragraph (D)(2), "prior felony conviction" is defined as a "prior felony" with three additional criteria. Had the Legislature chosen to say "a conviction" in Paragraph (D)(2), as some states do, there would be no question that prior out-of-state misdemeanor convictions could be used to enhance a sentence so long as either Subparagraphs (D)(2)(b) or (c) were satisfied. See, e.g., Ky.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 532.080(3) (Lexis Nexis Supp.2006) (defining "previous felony conviction" as "a conviction of a felony in this state or conviction of a crime in any other jurisdiction provided" certain requirements are met) (emphasis added). Thus, the plain meaning of "prior felony" in Paragraph (D)(2) indicates that only prior out-of-state felonies can be used to enhance a sentence.

{8} However, a survey of the criminal laws in the United States reveals that if Paragraph (D)(2) could be applied at all, in the vast majority of cases, Subparagraphs (D)(2)(b) or (c) would be rendered superfluous. As an example, if we interpret "prior felony" in Paragraph (D)(2) to require that the prior out-of-jurisdiction conviction first be classified as a felony in the state in which it was committed, prior convictions in both Maine and New Jersey could never be used to enhance a sentence in New Mexico. That is because Maine and New Jersey do not classify crimes as felonies or misdemeanors. In those states, crimes are classified by classes or degrees, and punishment is based on that classification. Me.Rev.Stat. Ann. tit. 17-A, § 4(1) (1983) (classes); N.J. Stat. Ann. § 2C:43-1 (West 2005) (degrees). Therefore, construing "prior felony" in Paragraph (D)(2) to mean out-of-state convictions must have been classified as a felony in that state, leads to the unreasonable result of precluding the use of crimes committed in states which do not classify crimes as felonies. We do not believe the Legislature intended such a result under a statute enacted to reduce recidivism. See State v. Chorney, 2001-NMCA-050 ¶ 13, 130 N.M. 638, 29 P.3d 538 ("The habitual offender statute has as its primary purpose to deter recidivism.").

{9} Furthermore, we must construe Section 31-18-17(D)(2) in its entirety, so that each part of the statute is given meaning and no part is superfluous. State v. Rivera, 2004-NMSC-001, ¶ 18, 134 N.M. 768, 82 P.3d 939. If we were to interpret the statute to require a prior out-of-state conviction to be a felony, then Subparagraph (D)(2)(b) would allow...