Title: In re Von

State: ohio

Issuer: Ohio Supreme Court

Document:

[Until this opinion appears in the Ohio Official Reports advance sheets, it may be cited as In 
re Von, Slip Opinion No. 2016-Ohio-3020.] 
 
 
 
NOTICE 
This slip opinion is subject to formal revision before it is published in an 
advance sheet of the Ohio Official Reports.  Readers are requested to 
promptly notify the Reporter of Decisions, Supreme Court of Ohio, 65 
South Front Street, Columbus, Ohio 43215, of any typographical or other 
formal errors in the opinion, in order that corrections may be made before 
the opinion is published. 
 
 
SLIP OPINION NO. 2016-OHIO-3020 
IN RE VON. 
[Until this opinion appears in the Ohio Official Reports advance sheets, it 
may be cited as In re Von, Slip Opinion No. 2016-Ohio-3020.] 
Criminal 
law―Sex 
offenders―Registration 
requirements―R.C. 
2950.15―Retroactive application―Registration-termination procedure in 
R.C. 2950.15 does not apply to sex offenders who committed their offenses 
prior to January 1, 2008. 
(No. 2015-0619—Submitted February 24, 2016—Decided May 18, 2016.) 
APPEAL from the Court of Appeals for Trumbull County, 
No. 2013-T-0085, 2015-Ohio-943. 
____________________ 
O’DONNELL, J. 
{¶ 1} The state of Ohio appeals from a judgment of the Eleventh District 
Court of Appeals reversing a trial court order that denied Aaron K. Von’s motion 
to terminate his sex offender registration duties.  The issue presented in this court 
is whether the procedure to terminate reporting requirements which the General 
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Assembly enacted effective January 1, 2008, applies to sex offenders who 
committed offenses prior to that date. 
Facts and Procedural History 
{¶ 2} Von moved to terminate his duty to comply with sex offender 
registration laws pursuant to R.C. 2950.15, claiming that on January 29, 1997, he 
was convicted in the state of Colorado of sexual assault of a child, a fourth degree 
felony, and sexual assault in the third degree, a first degree misdemeanor.  Von 
maintained that he moved to Ohio in August 2011 and registered as a sex offender 
but did not specify his classification. 
{¶ 3} The state opposed the motion to terminate, arguing that R.C. 2950.15 
applies only to sex offenders convicted on or after January 1, 2008, the effective 
date of the Adam Walsh Act (2007 Am.Sub.S.B. No. 10).  The state cited State v. 
Williams, 129 Ohio St.3d 344, 2011-Ohio-3374, 952 N.E.2d 1108, for the 
proposition that the statute could not be applied retroactively to Von, who was 
convicted prior to that date.  The date of Von’s convictions placed him within the 
purview of Megan’s Law (1996 Am.Sub.H.B. No. 180), which was repealed by the 
Adam Walsh Act and which had no provision for terminating the duty to comply 
with sex offender registration laws. 
{¶ 4} While the trial court was considering Von’s motion to terminate, Von 
sought a preliminary injunction to stay the enforcement of a change in his 
classification from a “Tier One Sexually Oriented Offender” to a “Tier Three” 
offender.  Von attached notices indicating that he had been adjudicated a “(Pre 
AWA) Sexually Oriented Offender” but was later adjudicated a “(Pre AWA) 
SEXUAL PREDATOR.”  (Capitalization sic.) 
{¶ 5} The trial court issued the following order: “Petitioner is entitled to a 
preliminary injunction until this Court issues a determination of the merits of 
Petitioner’s challenge under R.C. 2950.031(E) or until further order of the Court.”  
The order included a handwritten statement that Von was to “remain tier 1” and 
January Term, 2016 
 
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that the state did not oppose him “REMAINING TIER I UNTIL 
DETERMINATION OF MERITS.”  (Capitalization sic.) 
{¶ 6} The trial court then denied the motion to terminate Von’s duty to 
comply with sex offender registration laws because at the time of his convictions, 
Megan’s Law was in effect in Ohio as codified in R.C. Chapter 2950, and it 
contained “no provision to terminate one’s status as a registered sex offender post-
conviction.”  The court concluded that subsequent amendments to R.C. Chapter 
2950 were not retroactive. 
{¶ 7} In a split decision, the appellate court reversed.  In the lead opinion, 
Judge Wright concluded that R.C. 2950.15 may be applied retroactively because 
the statute expressly states that it applies to an offender regardless of when the 
offense was committed.  Moreover, the statute creates a new right for offenders 
without imposing a new burden or obligation on the state.  That opinion further 
asserted that to be eligible for relief, Von had to be a Tier I sex offender—an Adam 
Walsh Act classification—but the trial court had not made a final determination 
regarding his status.  The lead opinion explained that “even though many provisions 
of the Adam Walsh Act were declared unconstitutional as applied to offenders 
convicted of sex crimes that occurred prior to January 1, 2008, R.C. 2950.15 can 
be severed from those other provisions.”  2015-Ohio-943, at ¶ 26.  Thus, the lead 
opinion ordered the matter remanded to the trial court to determine Von’s status 
and to consider the merits of the motion to terminate if it found that Von is a Tier I 
sex offender for purposes of deciding his eligibility for relief pursuant to R.C. 
2950.15. 
{¶ 8} Judge Cannon authored a separate opinion concurring in judgment 
only.  He explained that Von is subject to Megan’s Law, not the Adam Walsh Act, 
and therefore R.C. 2950.15 does not retroactively apply to him.  He noted that 
“[t]his would effectively defeat [Von’s] application because * * * [he] should not 
be classified as a Tier I offender.”  Id. at ¶ 40 (Cannon, P.J., concurring in judgment 
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only).  Judge Cannon further opined that Von’s classification under Megan’s Law 
was subject to debate and concurred in the decision to remand that issue to the trial 
court. 
{¶ 9} Judge Grendell dissented and expressed a third view that the record 
contained no evidence that Von had ever been classified as a Tier I sex offender; 
based on Williams, she explained, it would be unconstitutional to classify him as a 
Tier I sex offender, and she therefore concluded that R.C. 2950.15 was 
“inapplicable to Von on its face.”  Id. at ¶ 44 (Grendell, J., dissenting).  She also 
expressed the view that the propriety of Von’s previous Megan’s Law 
classifications was not properly before the appellate court. 
{¶ 10} We accepted the state’s discretionary appeal from the appellate court 
on two propositions of law: 
 
 
The registration termination procedure delineated in R.C. 
2950.15 may not be retroactively applied to sex offenders who 
commit their crimes before January 1, 2008 and who are convicted 
and sentenced before that date. 
 
A statute which has not been found unconstitutional is not 
subject to the judicial remedy of severance. 
 
Positions of the Parties 
{¶ 11} The state maintains that the appellate court erred in holding that sex 
offenders classified under Megan’s Law may avail themselves of the privilege 
legislatively granted to Adam Walsh Act offenders to terminate their registration 
obligations.  The state urges that only Tier I sex offenders are eligible offenders for 
purposes of R.C. 2950.15, and pursuant to this court’s holding in Williams, the 
Adam Walsh Act and its tier classifications do not retroactively apply to offenders 
like Von who committed their crimes before the Adam Walsh Act took effect.  
January Term, 2016 
 
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Thus, those offenders cannot be classified as Tier I sex offenders and cannot take 
advantage of the termination procedure in R.C. 2950.15.  The state does not oppose 
a remand to the trial court for a determination of Von’s proper Megan’s Law 
classification, recognizing the confusion that exists on this point. 
{¶ 12} Von did not file a merit brief. 
Issue 
{¶ 13} The issue here is whether the statutory procedure to terminate the 
obligation for sex offenders to comply with registration requirements applies to 
offenders who committed their offenses before the statute’s effective date.  More 
simply stated, do the statutory procedures to relieve an Adam Walsh Act offender 
from the obligation to report apply to a Megan’s Law offender?  Plainly, they do 
not. 
Law and Analysis 
Background 
{¶ 14} In 1996, the General Assembly enacted Megan’s Law, which revised 
R.C. Chapter 2950 and established a comprehensive system of classifying sex 
offenders into three categories:  sexually oriented offenders, habitual sex offenders, 
and sexual predators.  Former R.C. 2950.09, 146 Ohio Laws, Part II, 2618. 
{¶ 15} Then, in 2007, the General Assembly enacted the Adam Walsh Act, 
which “repealed Megan's Law, effective January 1, 2008, and replaced it with new 
standards for sex-offender classification and registration pursuant to the federal 
Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act, Section 16901 et seq., Title 42, 
U.S.Code.”  Bundy v. State, 143 Ohio St.3d 237, 2015-Ohio-2138, 36 N.E.3d 158, 
¶ 5.  This scheme, which the General Assembly codified in R.C. Chapter 2950, 
divides sex offenders into Tier I, Tier II, and Tier III sex or child-victim offenders.  
R.C. 2950.01(E) through (G). 
{¶ 16} In Williams, this court considered whether the Adam Walsh Act 
could constitutionally be retroactively applied to an offender who committed a sex 
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offense prior to its enactment.  We concluded that the Adam Walsh Act, part of 
which was expressly made retroactive, is punitive, and “as applied to defendants 
who committed sex offenses prior to its enactment, violates Section 28, Article II 
of the Ohio Constitution, which prohibits the General Assembly from passing 
retroactive laws.”  Williams at ¶ 16 and at the syllabus. 
{¶ 17} Subsequently, we clarified that only persons who commit their 
underlying offense on or after the effective date of the Adam Walsh Act can be 
constitutionally subjected to its requirements.  In re Bruce S., 134 Ohio St.3d 477, 
2012-Ohio-5696, 983 N.E.2d 350. 
R.C. 2950.15 
{¶ 18} R.C. 2950.15 provides:   
 
(A) As used in this section * * *, “eligible offender” means 
a person who is convicted of, pleads guilty to, was convicted of, or 
pleaded guilty to a sexually oriented offense or child-victim oriented 
offense, regardless of when the offense was committed, and is a tier 
I sex offender/child-victim offender * * *. 
(B) Pursuant to this section, an eligible offender may make a 
motion to the court of common pleas * * * requesting that the court 
terminate the eligible offender’s duty to comply with sections 
2950.04, 2950.041, 2950.05, and 2950.06 of the Revised Code. 
 
(Emphasis added.) 
{¶ 19} While R.C. 2950.15(A) explicitly states that a person qualifies as an 
eligible offender “regardless of when the offense was committed,” that statement is 
ineffective by itself to qualify an individual as an eligible offender unless that 
offender is also a Tier I sex offender, because the statute uses the conjunction “and,” 
which imposes a dual requirement to effect its application. 
January Term, 2016 
 
7
{¶ 20} The record contains no evidence that Von has been classified as a 
Tier I sex offender or child-victim offender.  To the contrary, the documentation 
attached to his motion for a preliminary injunction demonstrates that he has been 
previously classified as a Megan’s Law offender, not an Adam Walsh Act offender.  
And therefore, he is not a Tier I sex offender. 
{¶ 21} As established by this court in Williams and In re Bruce S., the tier 
classification system of the Adam Walsh Act cannot be constitutionally applied to 
Von or other sex offenders who committed offenses prior to its effective date, 
regardless of when they are convicted or sentenced. 
{¶ 22} The claim that the remedy of severance would permit Megan’s Law 
offenders to be reclassified as Adam Walsh Act Tier I offenders for the purpose of 
having their Megan’s Law duties terminated is inconsistent with Williams, In re 
Bruce S., and the plain language of R.C. 2950.15(B), which permits eligible 
offenders to request termination of their “duty to comply with sections R.C. 
2950.04, 2950.041, 2950.05, and 2950.06 of the Revised Code.”  Notably, the 
legislature made no reference to Megan’s Law, which is indicative of its intent that 
those offenders are not eligible for termination of those registration duties. 
{¶ 23} Accordingly, Von and other sex offenders who committed their 
offenses prior to January 1, 2008, the effective date of the Adam Walsh Act, cannot 
be constitutionally classified pursuant to it and therefore cannot be “eligible 
offenders” as defined by R.C. 2950.15(A). 
Conclusion 
{¶ 24} The registration termination procedure delineated in R.C. 2950.15 
does not apply to sex offenders who committed their offenses prior to January 1, 
2008. Accordingly, the judgment of the appellate court is reversed to the extent that 
it reversed the denial of Von’s motion to terminate his duty to comply with sex 
offender registration laws. 
SUPREME COURT OF OHIO 
 
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{¶ 25} However, given the confusion regarding Von’s current status, we 
affirm the judgment of the appellate court to the extent that it remanded this matter 
for a determination of his sex offender classification pursuant to Megan’s Law.  We 
remand the cause to the trial court with instructions to determine the appropriate 
classification for Von in accordance with Megan’s Law. 
Judgment affirmed in part 
and reversed in part, 
 and cause remanded. 
O’CONNOR, C.J., and PFEIFER, KENNEDY, and FRENCH, JJ., concur. 
LANZINGER, J., concurs in judgment only. 
O’NEILL, J., dissents. 
_________________ 
 
Dennis Watkins, Trumbull County Prosecuting Attorney, and LuWayne 
Annos and Deena L. DeVico, Assistant Prosecuting Attorneys, for appellant.  
 
_________________