WILLIAM LOUIS BARTLETT -v- E. S. ALAMEIDA, JR.; W. A. DUNCAN, Warden

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

May 10, 2004

OPINION
PER CURIAM:
William Louis Bartlett is a state prisoner serving a 25-yearto-life sentence for failing to re-register as a sex offender pursuant to California’s sex offender registration statute, Cal. Pen. Code § 290(a)(1)(A). He contends, in his quest for a writ of habeas corpus, that his conviction violates due process because the state was not required to prove that he had knowledge of the lifelong duty to register. The district court denied Bartlett’s petition. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2253, and we reverse and remand.

I.
William Bartlett was convicted of rape in California in 1983 and incarcerated. When paroled in 1986, he signed a form acknowledging that he had a lifelong duty to register as a sex offender in California. In the next four years, Bartlett repeatedly violated his parole and was returned to prison five times. Bartlett registered as a sex offender when he was released from prison in 1987 and again in 1990 when he was released. By 1990, Bartlett had signed three forms, each indicating that his duty to register as a sexual offender was a lifelong requirement, and he had duly registered twice as a sex offender. After 1990, however, he never again registered as a sex-offender. Bartlett was convicted of robbery and commercial burglary in 1992 and sentenced to prison for 11 years. While in prison and again when paroled in 1997, Bartlett signed forms acknowledging that his “responsibility to register as a sexual offender is a lifetime requirement.” When Bartlett once again violated his parole, he was returned to prison. When released in 1998, Bartlett signed another notice of duty to register. He did not register as a sex offender after his release. Rather, he was eventually discovered by authorities residing in a convalescent home under an assumed name.

Bartlett was charged with a violation of § 290(a)(1)(A), providing that “[e]very person [convicted of a sexual offense as] described in paragraph (2), for the rest of his or her life while residing in . . . California, . . . shall be required to register with the chief of police of the city in which he or she is residing . . . .” Bartlett admitted at his trial that he signed the registration requirement forms and registered as a sex offender while on parole for the sex offense, but contended that he was unaware that his duty to register was lifelong. He testified that he believed that his obligation to register as a sex offender ended when his parole for that offense expired. Bartlett explained to the jury that he did not read any of the registration notices because they were presented to him along with a number of other documents when he was being processed out of custody. He further testified that he began living under an assumed name because he knew he had violated his parole on the robbery and burglary convictions and was afraid to return to prison.

The court instructed the jury that “[i]t is not an element of the offense that the convicted sex offender have actual or probable knowledge of his duty to register. The convicted sex offender need only have been given actual notice of the requirement to register as a sex offender.” During deliberations, the jury became deadlocked and sent the court a note requesting that the court elaborate on the meaning of “willfully” in the jury instructions. In response, the court reiterated that “actual knowledge is not an element of the crime. Actual notice is an element of the crime. You must be given notice.

Actual knowledge is not an element of the crime. The people don’t have to prove actual knowledge beyond a reasonable doubt.” Bartlett was convicted of failing to register as a sex offender in violation of § 290. Because this conviction was his “third strike,” Bartlett was sentenced to a term of 25 years to life in prison. His conviction was upheld by the California Court of Appeal. That court reasoned that “actual knowledge is not an element of the offense of failing to register as a sexual offender.” The court also noted that even if federal due process requires proof of actual knowledge, Bartlett’s “repeated actual notice of the registration requirement supplies proof of the probability of actual knowledge.” The California Supreme Court denied Bartlett’s petition for review. A few months later, however, the California Supreme Court held, in a different case, that the state must prove as an element of the crime that a defendant had “actual knowledge” of the duty to register under § 290. People v. Garcia, 25 Cal. 4th 744, 752 (2001) (noting that making actual knowledge of the duty to register an element of a § 290 violation “undoubtedly” satisfies federal due process). ..more..