Opinion ID: 2531181
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Propriety of Section 2-619 Motion to Attack Constitutionality

Text: ¶ 13 At the outset, we express our agreement with the trial court's determination that it was necessary to reach the constitutional question presented. The State suggests that a motion to dismiss brought pursuant to section 2-619(a)(9) can never be a proper vehicle to attack the constitutionality of a statute. We believe, however, that the State is mistaken that the constitutional question should not be reached under the circumstances here. Section 2-619(a)(9) allows for dismissal of an action on the ground that the claim asserted against defendant is barred by other affirmative matter avoiding the legal effect of or defeating the claim. 735 ILCS 5/2-619(a)(9) (West 2010). It is claimants' contention that the forfeiture statute is facially unconstitutional because it does not provide an early opportunity for a probable cause hearing to test the validity of the seizure pending the outcome of the forfeiture proceeding. Claimants assert that this is an affirmative matter which would defeat the State's claim to forfeiture because if they are correct that the Constitution requires a probable cause hearing, the statute would be declared a nullity and void ab initio and the vehicles would be ordered immediately returned to claimants. See, e.g., People v. Wright, 194 Ill.2d 1, 24, 251 Ill.Dec. 469, 740 N.E.2d 755 (2000); People ex rel. Sklodowski v. Illinois, 162 Ill.2d 117, 136, 205 Ill.Dec. 63, 642 N.E.2d 1180 (1994) (Freeman, J., concurring in part and dissenting in part, joined by Harrison, J.) (legislation unconstitutional on its face is void, not merely voidable); In re Contest of the Election for the Offices of Governor & Lieutenant Governor Held at the General Election on November 2, 1982, 93 Ill.2d 463, 471, 67 Ill.Dec. 131, 444 N.E.2d 170 (1983). The State counters by contending that even if due process is violated by the failure of the statute to provide for a probable cause hearing, the appropriate remedy would not be dismissal of the forfeiture action, but rather for this court to order that a probable cause hearing be conducted. We disagree with the State. The trial court correctly found that to fashion the remedy suggested by the State would require the court to significantly rewrite the legislation. The rule is well settled in Illinois that our state courts may not rewrite legislation to avoid constitutional issues or create a remedy for a constitutional violation. City of Urbana v. Andrew N.B., 211 Ill.2d 456, 477, 286 Ill.Dec. 75, 813 N.E.2d 132 (2004); see also DeSmet v. County of Rock Island, 219 Ill.2d 497, 510, 302 Ill.Dec. 466, 848 N.E.2d 1030 (2006); In re Branning, 285 Ill.App.3d 405, 410, 220 Ill.Dec. 920, 674 N.E.2d 463 (1996) (rule of construing a statute so as to uphold its constitutionality when reasonably possible is not a license to rewrite legislation). Thus, if the claimants are correct that the lack of a probable cause hearing violates due process, the statute would be facially unconstitutional and the appropriate remedy would be dismissal. The State concedes that if the statute is declared constitutionally defective and dismissal is deemed the appropriate remedy, then the motion to dismiss was properly brought under section 2-619(a)(9). Accordingly, we must reach the merits of the constitutional question presented by this case.