Arnold v. State
Annotate this CaseAppellant Vera Arnold was convicted of criminal solicitation to commit capital murder and criminal conspiracy to commit theft by deception. After she was paroled, Appellant filed petitions to seal the records of both convictions pursuant to Ark. Code Ann. 5-4-105(a)(2) and Ark. Code Ann. 16-93-1201 to -1210. The circuit court denied the petitions. Appellant subsequently filed new petitions to seal the records of her convictions, asserting she had been sentenced under Ark. Code Ann. 5-4-105(a)(1) and Ark Code Ann. 16-93-301 to -303. Along with the petitions, Appellant filed a motion for relief from the circuit court's previous order, arguing (1) because sections 16-93-1201 to -1210 were not in effect as of the date of her offenses, she was eligible to refile her petitions under sections 16-93-301 to -303; and (2) sections 16-93-301 to -303 were unconstitutional. The circuit court denied the petitions and the motion. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the trial court did not err in applying rational-basis review to the statutes in question; (2) the trial court did not err in finding the statutes in question constitutional; and (3) the statutes in question did not violate Appellant's constitutional right to a legal sentence.
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