NO. 94-593
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF MONTANA
1995
STATE OF MONTANA,
Plaintiff and Respondent,
v.
RICHARD A. STILL,
Defendant and Appellant.
APPEAL FROM: District Court of the Fifth Judicial District,
In and for the County of Jefferson,
The Honorable Frank M. Davis, Judge presiding.
COUNSEL OF RECORD:
For Appellant:
James Maher, Basin, Montana
For Respondent:
Hon. Joseph P. Mazurek, Attorney General, Kathy
Seeley, Assistant Attorney General, Helena,
Montana; Deborah F. Butler, Acting Jefferson County
Attorney, Boulder, Montana
Submitted on Briefs: July 27, 1995
Decided: September 14, 1995
Filed:
Clkrk
Justice James C. Nelson delivered the Opinion of the Court.
Appellant Richard A. Still (Still) was charged in Jefferson
County Justice Court with five misdemeanor violations of § 87-2-
106, MCA, for affirming to a false statement in order to obtain
resident "AU and 11 B II deer licenses, an elk license, a
conservation/fishing license, and an antelope license. The Justice
Court sentenced Still to pay $974 in fines. Still appealed to the
Fifth Judicial District Court, Jefferson County. The District
Court dismissed the appeal and let the Justice Court's decision
stand. Still appeals from the decision of the Fifth Judicial
District Court. We affirm.
We address the following issue on appeal:
Did the District Court err in dismissing Still's appeal and in
letting the Justice Court's decision stand?
BACKGROUND
Still and his family moved to Montana in late April of 1993.
He immediately took steps to establish his residency in the state
by renting a post office box, registering to vote, and applying for
a driver's license. On May 6, 1993, Still purchased a resident
deer "A" license, a resident elk license, a resident
conservation/fishing license, and a resident archery stamp. On
September 25, 1993, Still purchased a resident deer "B" license.
On each license application, Still stated that he had been a
resident for six months. On February 18, 1994, the Department of
Fish Wildlife and Parks issued five citations to Still for
affirming to false statements on his applications in violation of
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§ 87-2-106, MCA. This statute governs applications for licenses,
penalties for violations, and forfeiture of privileges.
The charges were brought in Jefferson County Justice Court.
The State moved to dismiss the charge of affirming to a false
statement to obtain a resident antelope license. The Justice Court
dismissed the charge without prejudice. Still then withdrew his
not guilty pleas, pleaded guilty to four misdemeanor counts of
violating § 87-2-106, MCA, and reserved his right to appeal. The
Justice Court sentenced Still to pay $974 in fines. Still
subsequently appealed to the Fifth Judicial District court,
Jefferson County. The District Court considered the briefs filed
in the Justice Court and found for the State, dismissing Still's
appeal and letting the Justice Court's decision stand. Still
appeals the District Court's decision.
DISCUSSION
Did the District Court err in dismissing Still's appeal and in
letting the Justice Court's decision stand?
We review a district court's conclusions of law to determine
whether the tribunal's interpretation of the law is correct. State
v. Barker (1993), 260 Mont. 85, 88, 858 P.2d 360, 362 (citing
Steer, Inc. v. Department of Revenue (1990), 245 Mont. 470, 474-75,
803 P.2d 601, 603).
Still argues that § 87-z-102, MCA, violates his constitutional
rights to equal protection, due process, and travel and that the
six-month durational residency requirement in § 87-2-102, MCA, does
not apply to Montana citizens. The State correctly argues that we
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need not address the constitutional or the statutory questions
concerning § 87-2-102, MCA, because Still's violations of a
separate statute, § 87-2-106, MCA, are dispositive.
This Court has repeatedly recognized that "courts should avoid
constitutional issues whenever possible." Wolfe v. State Dept. of
Labor & Ind. (1992), 255 Mont. 336, 339, 843 P.2d 338, 340 (citing
Ingraham v. Champion Intern. (1990), 243 Mont. 42, 46, 793 P.2d
769, 771). Certain constraints govern the Court's power to
determine the constitutionality of statutes. Among those
constraints is the principle that we will not rule on the
constitutionality of a legislative act if we are able to decide the
case without reaching constitutional considerations. Inqraham, 193
P.2d at 771; Wolfe, 843 P.2d at 340 (citing Taylor v. Dept. of
Fish, Wildlife & Parks (1983), 205 Mont. 85, 90, 666 P.2d 1228,
1231); see also State ex rel. Hammond v. Hager (1972), 160 Mont.
391, 400, 503 P.2d 52, 57.
In the instant case, the State brought charges against Still
for violating 5 87-2-106, MCA. Section 87-z-106, MCA, provides in
87-2-106. Application for license -- penalties for
violation -- forfeiture of privileges. (1) . . . The
applicant shall state the applicant's name, age,
occupation, place of residence, post-office address, the
qualifvinq lenqth of time as a resident in the state of
Montana, whether a citizen of the United States or an
alien, and other facts, data, or descriptions as may be
required by the department. . .
(6) It is unlawful to subscribe to any statement,
on any application or license, that is materiallv false.
?uy material false statement contained in an application
renders the license issued pursuant to it void. A person
violatins anv provision of this statute is quiltv of a
misdemeanor.
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(7) (a) A person notmeetinq the residency criteria
set out in 87-2-102 who is convicted of affirminq to a
false statement to obtain a resident license shall be:
(i) fined not less than the greater of $100 or
twice the cost of the nonresident license that authorized
the sought-after privilege or more than $1,000;
(ii) imprisoned in the county jail for not more than
6 months; or
(iii) both fined and imprisoned.
(b) 1n addition to the penalties specified in
subsection (7) (a), upon conviction or forfeiture of bond
or bail, the person shall forfeit any current hunting,
fishing, and trapping licenses and the privilege to hunt,
fish, and trap in Montana for not less than 18 months.
. . . [Emphasis added. 1
When Still applied for his resident licenses, he affirmed that he
had been a resident for six months, when in fact, he had been a
resident for less than two weeks for four of the applications and
for approximately five months for one application. Section 87-Z-
106, MCA, states that it is unlawful to subscribe to a statement on
the application that is materially false and a person violating a
provision of the statute is guilty of a misdemeanor. Regardless of
whether Still disagrees with the six-month durational residency
requirement for a resident fishing, hunting, or trapping license,
he subscribed to statements that were materially false.
Still's violations of the statute governing applications for
fishing, hunting, or trapping licenses are separate and distinct
from any constitutional or statutory challenge of the statute
defining residency for the above licenses. The convictions stand
independently of the statutory residency requirement. Had Still
wished to challenge the six-month durational residency requirement
on both constitutional and statutory grounds, he should have filled
out the application truthfully and, if denied the license, then
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challenged the denial of the license. See Baldwin v. Montana Fish
& Game Comm'n (1978), 436 U.S. 371, 98 S.Ct. 1852, 56 L.Ed.2d 354
(challenging the State's statutory licensing requirements which
impose higher fees on nonresidents than on residents); Monroe v.
State (1994), 265 Mont. 1, 873 P.2d. 230 (seeking a declaratory
judgment that the statute defining "resident" for purposes of
issuing resident fishing, hunting, and trapping licenses was void
for vagueness).
Still did not fill out the applications truthfully, but
instead attested to false statements. His violations of § 87-2-
106, MCA, are dispositive. As a result, we need not discuss the
issues of statutory construction of § 87-2-102, MCA, and the
alleged violations of Still's right to equal protection, right to
due process, and right to travel. Accordingly, we hold that the
District Court correctly interpreted the applicable law.
/
Affirmed.
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September 14, 1995
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I hereby certify that the following certified order was sent by United States mail, prepaid, to the
following named:
James Maher
Attorney at Law
P.O. Box 81
Basin, MT 59631
Hon. Joseph P. Mazurek, Attorney General
Kathy Seeley, Assistant A.G.
Justice Bldg.
Helena, MT 59620
Jefferson County Attorney
Deborah F. Butler, Acting County Attorney
Courthouse, P.O. Box H
Boulder, MT 59632
ED SMITH
CLERK OF THE SUPREME COURT
STATE OF MONTANA