Opinion ID: 2224358
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Administrative conduct

Text: The majority's other attempt to salvage this flawed ordinance is to argue that city inspectors cured any vagueness problems by informing Ms. Reha of specific ordinances requiring that exits be kept free of clutter and requiring property owners to eradicate insects, rodents, vermin or other pests. The problem with the majority's analysis is that the thing which must be specific is the law, [2] not the instructions from the government agent enforcing the law. What happened here was that Ms. Reha got specific notice of what the inspector thought was required. The inspector issued a notice citing three Minneapolis ordinances which she believed were violated by the condition of the house. But when it came time for trial, Ms. Reha's guilt was judged solely on the vague clean and sanitary ordinance. The unfairness of this can be illustrated by looking at an analogous traffic situation. Under the majority's reasoning, the legislature could enact a statute making bad driving an offense. A police officer then could stop a motorist and issue a ticket for bad driving. When the driver asks for an explanation, the officer could say that the driver went 50 miles per hour in a 35-mile-per-hour zone in violation of Minn.Stat. § 169.14, subd. 2; drove with an obstructed view in violation of Minn.Stat. § 169.37; and failed to yield the right of way in violation of Minn.Stat. § 169.20, subd. 1. But when the case comes to trial, the driver must defend solely against the vague accusation of bad driving. In such a case, the only specific notice the driver has of the prohibited conduct is what the officer says. Similarly, the only specific notice Ms. Reha had of the prohibited conduct was what the housing inspector said. But that is not good enough. A criminal defendant is entitled to specific notice of the alleged misconduct. That notice must come from the law and from the judge in court, not from an agent of the prosecutor. Kolender and Newstrom stand for the proposition that vague laws are unconstitutional because they encourage arbitrary and discriminatory enforcement. What could be more arbitrary than leaving the definition of the offense to the discretion of the arresting officer? In effect, the majority is saying that any vagueness was cured when the inspector notified Ms. Reha of what the ordinance means. That would be like leaving it to police officers, instead of the courts, to determine whether searches are reasonable under the fourth amendment. Such an approach flies in the face of almost 200 years of American jurisprudence. It is not for the executive branch to say what the law means. It is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is. Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137, 177, 2 L.Ed. 60 (1803). In the same opinion, the great Chief Justice Marshall spoke of the American system as a government of laws, and not of men. Id. at 163. Yet, we are ignoring that simple legal principle today by holding that if a law doesn't speak clearly, the words of the man or woman enforcing the law can cure the problem. I cannot join is such a result.