State v. Williams

Summary

The Supreme Court of Ohio held that applying 2007 Am.Sub.S.B. No. 10's sex-offender registration requirements to defendants who committed sex offenses before the law's enactment violates Section 28, Article II of the Ohio Constitution, which prohibits retroactive laws. The court concluded that the expanded registration and reporting obligations were punitive and imposed new burdens on past conduct. It reversed the appellate judgment and remanded for resentencing under the law in effect when Williams committed the offense.

Holdings

1. 2007 Am.Sub.S.B. No. 10, as applied to defendants who committed sex offenses before its enactment, violates Section 28, Article II of the Ohio Constitution because it imposes new or additional burdens, duties, obligations, or liabilities as to a past transaction.
2. The court did not decide whether S.B. 10 also violates the Ex Post Facto Clause of the United States Constitution because its holding under the Ohio Constitution resolved the case.

Questions Presented

1. Whether 2007 Am.Sub.S.B. No. 10, when applied to defendants who committed sex offenses before its enactment, violates Section 28, Article II of the Ohio Constitution, which prohibits retroactive laws.
2. Whether the increased registration and reporting requirements imposed by S.B. 10 are substantive and punitive rather than remedial for purposes of Ohio's retroactivity analysis.
3. Whether S.B. 10 also violates the Ex Post Facto Clause of the United States Constitution.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded