Opinion ID: 1111406
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Ravin v. State

Text: Mallan argues that we should follow the example of the Alaska Supreme Court in Ravin v. State, 537 P.2d 494 (Alaska 1975). In Ravin, the Alaska court held that the express right to privacy in the Alaska Constitution protects the right to possess and use marijuana in the privacy of one's home: [W]e conclude that citizens of the State of Alaska have a basic right to privacy in their homes under Alaska's constitution. This right to privacy would encompass the possession and ingestion of substances such as marijuana in a purely personal, non-commercial context in the home unless the state can meet is substantial burden and show that proscription of possession of marijuana in the home is supportable by achievement of a legitimate state interest. Id. at 504. The reasoning the court applied in reaching this conclusion is highly instructive. The court first examined whether the right to possess or ingest marijuana constitutes a fundamental right that must be supported by a compelling state interest. Id. at 502. The court concluded that possession and ingestion of marijuana is not a fundamental right. Id. However, the court went on to address the distinctive nature of the home as a place where the individual's privacy receives special protection. Id. at 503. The court noted: The privacy amendment to the Alaska Constitution was intended to give recognition and protection to the home. Such a reading is consonant with the character of life in Alaska. Our territory and now state has traditionally been the home of people who prize their individuality and who have chosen to settle or to continue living here in order to achieve a measure of control over their own lifestyles which is now virtually unattainable in many of our sister states. The home, then, carries with it associations and meanings which make it particularly important as the situs of privacy. Id. at 503-04. Thus, the Alaska court took an approach very similar to our own Stanley/Kam approach and focused on the home as the situs of privacy. The court even cited Stanley as authority for its decision. Id. However, it should be noted that Ravin extends the Stanley/Kam approach beyond pornography to include possession of marijuana. We reject Mallan's suggestion to adopt the Ravin analysis. Initially, we state the obvious: Ravin is a case from another jurisdiction and is in no sense binding upon us. Furthermore, Ravin was based, at least in part, on social and cultural factors unique to Alaska. In addition, as discussed supra, we are not inclined to extend the Stanley/Kam approach any further than the particular circumstances of Stanley and Kam. Moreover, as far as we can determine, Alaska stands alone in extending the right to privacy to include possession and use of marijuana. Other states that have considered the issue uniformly conclude that possession and use of marijuana is not protected. See, e.g., State v. Murphy, 117 Ariz. 57, 570 P.2d 1070 (Ariz. 1977); Nat'l Org. for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) v. Gain, 100 Cal.App.3d 586, 161 Cal.Rptr. 181 (1979); Kreisher v. State, 319 A.2d 31 (Del.1974); Laird v. State, 342 So.2d 962 (Fla.1977) Blincoe v. State, 231 Ga. 886, 204 S.E.2d 597 (1974); State v. Kelly, 106 Idaho 268, 678 P.2d 60 (App.), cert. denied, 469 U.S. 918, 105 S.Ct. 296, 83 L.Ed.2d 231 (1984); State v. Chrisman, 364 So.2d 906 (La.1978); Marcoux v. Attorney General, 375 Mass. 63, 375 N.E.2d 688 (1978); People v. Williams, 135 Mich.App. 537, 355 N.W.2d 268 (1984); State v. Kells, 199 Neb. 374, 259 N.W.2d 19 (1977); People v. Shepard, 50 N.Y.2d 640, 431 N.Y.S.2d 363, 409 N.E.2d 840 (1980); Miller v. State, 458 S.W.2d 680 (Tex.Crim.App.1970); State v. Smith, 93 Wash.2d 329, 610 P.2d 869, cert. denied, 449 U.S. 873, 101 S.Ct. 213, 66 L.Ed.2d 93 (1980). Finally, even if we were to adopt the Ravin analysis, Mallan's conviction would still be affirmed. Ravin was expressly based on privacy within the home. The record is clear that Mallan was sitting in an automobile parked in a public parking lot.