# Opinion No. (1979) > Oklahoma Attorney General Reports ยท October 19, 1979 URL: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/3796959 ## Case - **Full name:** Dr. Leslie Fisher Superintendent State Department of Education - **Court:** Oklahoma Attorney General Reports - **Decided:** October 19, 1979 - **Precedential status:** Published - **Opinion:** Opinion of the court - **Judges:** JAN ERIC CARTWRIGHT, ATTORNEY GENERAL OF OKLAHOMA - **Cited by:** 0 later opinions in the Frix Law Library ## Citator (automated) - No negative treatment found by the automated citator. That is not the same as a confirmation that the case is good law; read the citing cases. - Full citator and citing cases: https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/3796959 ## Opinion text Dear Dr. Fisher, The Attorney General has received your request for an opinion wherein you ask the following questions: "1. After October 1, 1979, should a person be issued a teaching certificate who has been convicted of a felony, any crime involving moral turpitude or a felony violation of the narcotics laws of the United States or the State of Oklahoma in the preceding ten year period? If the answer to the question is no, what period of time should expire before such person can be issued a certificate? "2. If an applicant holds a renewable teaching certificate issued prior to October 1, 1979, should that certificate be renewed even though he/she may have been convicted of a felony, any crime involving moral turpitude or a felony violation of the narcotic laws of the United States or the State of Oklahoma in the preceding ten year period prior to October 1, 1979? "3. If a felony, a crime involving moral turpitude or a felony violation of the narcotics laws of the United States or the State of Oklahoma has been committed after October 1, 1979, should a person not have his/her teaching certificate renewed? If the answer to the question is no, what period of time should expire before such person's certificate can be renewed?" In order to answer these questions, reference must be made to 70 O.S. 3 -104.1 (1979), which provides as follows: "No person shall receive a certificate for instructional, supervisory or administrative position in an accredited school of this state who has been convicted of a felony, any crime involving moral turpitude or a felony violation of the narcotic laws of the United States or the State of Oklahoma, provided the conviction was entered within the preceding ten-year period." In construing the above provision, consideration must be given the long-standing rule of statutory construction which provides that, when the language of a statute is clear and unambiguous, such language should be interpreted in accordance with its plain and ordinary meaning. W. S. Dickey Clay Mfg. Co. v. Ferguson Inv. Co., Okla., 388 P.2d 300 (1963). In so reading 70 O.S. 3 -104.1, the Legislature's intent is clearly evident that a person, first applying for a teaching certificate after October 1, 1979 (the effective date of the provision), shall not be eligible to receive the same if he or she has been convicted of a crime of the type described therein within ten years preceding the date of such person's application. Of necessary implication therefrom is the proposition that if such an applicant has a conviction within this ten year period, he or she can become eligible to re-apply for certification once ten years have elapsed from the date such conviction was rendered. With respect to persons currently holding renewable teaching certificates issued prior to October 1, 1979, 70 O.S. 3 -104.1 can be reasonably construed to apply to them also. Although such persons have already been issued a certificate, certification runs only for a stated time requiring a certificate holder to periodically be approved for certification. However, unlike the applicants who are seeking their first teaching certificate, those already holding a renewable certificate have acquired certain property and contract rights with respect to their employment which are recognized and protected under the Fourteenth Amendment Due Process Clause of the United States Constitution. See Perry v. Sindermann, 408 U.S. 593 , 92 S.Ct. 2694 , 33 L.Ed.2d 570 (1972) and Board of Regents v. Roth, 408 U.S. 564 , 92 S.Ct. 2701 , 33 L.Ed.2d 548 (1972). Furthermore, since the provision in question is not procedural but substantive in nature and since the language thereof neither expressly nor impliedly indicates to the contrary, it must be presumed that the Legislature intended 70 O.S. 3 -104.1 to have prospective application only. Benson v. Blair, Okla., 515 P.2d 1363 (1973). Therefore, even though the provision in question is applicable to those holding a certificate issued prior to October 1, 1979, considerations of fundamental fairness dictate that the convictions upon which failure to re-certify such persons can be based are limited to those rendered subsequent to October 1 and cannot include convictions entered prior to such date. In addition, if the holder of a renewable certificate is refused renewal under 70 O.S. 3 -104.1 due to a conviction occurring after the effective date of that provision, the statute would likewise require the lapse of ten years from the date such conviction was entered before the unsuccessful applicant would be eligible to seek renewal of his or her certificate. Accordingly, it is the opinion of the Attorney General that your questions should be answered as follows: 1. In light of 70 O.S. 3 -104.1 (1979), a person first applying for a teaching certificate after October 1, 1979, shall not be issued the same if such person has been convicted of a felony, and crime involving moral turpitude or a felony violation of the narcotics laws of the United States or the State of Oklahoma within the ten years immediately preceding the date of his or her application and will not be eligible for certification until ten years have elapsed from the date such conviction was entered. 2. If an applicant holds a renewable certificate issued prior to October 1, 1979, 70 O.S. 3 -104.1 (1979) requires that such person's certificate not be renewed if he or she has been convicted of a felony, any crime involving moral turpitude or a felony violation of the narcotics laws of the United States or the State of Oklahoma after October 1, 1979. In such case, the unsuccessful applicant shall not be eligible to seek renewal of his or her certificate until ten years have elapsed from the date of such conviction. 3. In the case of an applicant seeking renewal of a teaching certificate issued prior to October 1, 1979, only a criminal conviction entered after October 1, 1979, can form the basis for a denial of renewal under 70 O.S. 3 -104.1 (1979) . JAN ERIC CARTWRIGHT, ATTORNEY GENERAL OF OKLAHOMA BRENT S. HAYNIE, ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL --- Source: Frix Law Library, https://www.frixlaw.com/law-library/cases/3796959. Public record. Not legal advice.