Opinion ID: 2635531
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: statutory interpretation of k.s.a. 21-4729 and k.s.a. 21-4603d

Text: Resolution of this case turns on our interpretation of three statutory provisions: K.S.A. 21-4729 (requiring a certified drug abuse treatment program for qualified offenders), K.S.A. 21-4603d(n) (recognizing exceptions to the certified drug abuse treatment program and further explaining the contours of that program), and K.S.A. 21-4603d(f)(1) (granting district courts discretion to impose prison sentences in cases where the underlying offense was committed while on felony parole). Interpretation of sentencing statutes is a question of law over which an appellate court exercises unlimited review. State v. Walker, 280 Kan. 513, 515, 124 P.3d 39 (2005). When courts are called upon to interpret statutes, the fundamental rule governing that interpretation is that the intent of the legislature governs if that intent can be ascertained. The legislature is presumed to have expressed its intent through the language of the statutory scheme it enacted. State ex rel. Stovall v. Meneley, 271 Kan. 355, 378, 22 P.3d 124 (2001). For this reason, when the language of a statute is plain and unambiguous, courts need not resort to statutory construction. In re K.M.H., 285 Kan. 53, 79, 169 P.3d 1025 (2007), cert. denied ___ U.S. ___, 129 S.Ct. 36, 172 L.Ed.2d 239 (2008). Instead, [w]hen the language is plain and unambiguous, an appellate court is bound to implement the expressed intent. State v. Manbeck, 277 Kan. 224, Syl. ¶ 3, 83 P.3d 190 (2004). Only where the face of a statute leaves its construction uncertain does the court look to the historical background of the enactment, the circumstances attending its passage, the purpose to be accomplished, and the effect the statute may have under the various constructions suggested. [Citation omitted.] Robinett v. The Haskell Co., 270 Kan. 95, 100-01, 12 P.3d 411 (2000).