Macnab v. State

Under ORS 30.275(9), the two year statute of limitations on a claim of false imprisonment begins to run from the date when the plaintiff is aware of the facts necessary to prove liability.

Macnab was convicted in three judgments for failure to register as a sex offender and was sentenced to jail. His sentence was stayed while he appealed. The Court lifted the stay in 2002 and Macnab was incarcerated until 2003. He was convicted for a fourth time in 2002, and appealed that judgment. After the case was retried, the Court of Appeals reversed the conviction in 2008. Macnab then filed a civil suit against the State for false imprisonment, arguing that his sentence from all four judgments should have been stayed pending his appeal of his fourth judgment. The case was dismissed in the trial court based on the two year statute of limitations under ORS 30.275(9). On appeal, Macnab argued that his claim accrued following the appellate court's judgment in 2008 because up until that point, his confinement was not unlawful. The Court of Appeals held that because Macnab knew all of the facts necessary for a claim of false imprisonment in 2002 when he was confined while awaiting his fourth appeal, the two year statute of limitations began to run from that point. Affirmed.