Oregon Court of Appeals

Opinions Filed in October 2021

Block v. DEA Properties-2 LLC

Under Miller v. Jones, 256 Or App 392 (2013) and Jantzen Beach Associates v. Jantzen Dynamic Corp., 200 Or App 457 (2005), an appurtenant easement gives the owner of the dominant estate a benefit by virtue of their ownership of the land, is transferred with the land, and is not severable from the ownership of the land.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Property Law

Kurtz v. Cain

Under State v. Walker, 350 Or 540 (2011), counsel need not engage in detailed, comprehensive analysis in order to “put all on notice about the nature of a party’s arguments” and preserve issues for appeal.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Post-Conviction Relief

State v. Dickey

Under ORS 153.042(1), an enforcement officer may issue a citation only for conduct occurring in their presence and not the presence of another officer.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

Barnes & Brennan

Under State v. Saunders, 294 Or App 102 (2018), “when a party has invited the trial court to rule in a certain way under circumstances suggesting that the party will be bound by the ruling or * * * will not later seek a reversal in the basis of that ruling” the party cannot then complain based on that invited error.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Attorney Fees

Bo and Lia Holdings LLC v. 2021 Morrison LLC

Prescriptive easements permit a “person to acquire an interest in land without paying the owner for it,” Wels v. Hippe, 360 Or 569, 578, (2016), modified on recons, 360 Or 807, (2017), and protect “established patterns of land possession” by “rewarding the long-time user of property, fulfilling expectations fostered by long use, and conforming titles to actual use of the property.” Albany & Eastern Railroad Co. v. Martell, 366 Or 715, 720 (2020).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Property Law

Dept. of Human Services v. C. C.

Under ORS 419B.815 and ORS 419B.816, “once a parent has failed to personally appear at a hearing for which the parent had proper notice… the juvenile court may choose to either immediately proceed with a hearing on the dependency petition or postpone that hearing to a later date. If the court takes the latter course, nothing [in the statutes] requires the court to notify that parent of the newly set hearing date.”

Area(s) of Law:
  • Juvenile Law

Ingle v. Matteucci

The “escape clause” exists to give a person extra time to file a petition for post-conviction relief in “extraordinary circumstances,” personal characteristics are not currently relevant to the escape clause.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Post-Conviction Relief

Markstrom v. Guard Publishing Co.

Under Laack v. Botello, 314 Or App 268 (2021), without statutory authorization courts lack the inherent authority required to strike pleadings or claims, which ORS 1.010 does not provide. Under ORCP 46, a court may impose sanctions only for the narrowly described conduct contained in the rule.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Civil Procedure

State v. Bates

Imposing conditions of probation in a judgment that have not been announced in open court at sentencing constitutes reversible error generally entitling a defendant to resentencing.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Sentencing

State v. Fitzgerald

A trial court must have ample opportunity to address a request made to the court in order to preserve an issue on appeal.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Procedure

State v. Hackett

Testimony that outlines the severe nature of a person's kicking an animal and throwing rocks at the animal is alone sufficient to support a reasonable inference that the animal experienced pain that was more than fleeting or momentary. State v. Colpo, 305 Or. App. 690, 695, 472 P.3d 277, rev. den., 367 Or. 290, 476 P.3d 1255 (2020).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

State v. Hassan

Evidence to prove motive is relevant if it has the tendency to make the motive more or less likely and the evidence is based on a rational relationship between the issues to be proven and the motive.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Evidence

State v. Huynh

Under ORS 136.785(3), enhancement facts must be found by the jury “equal to or greater than the number of jurors that was required to find the defendant guilty of the crime.”

Area(s) of Law:
  • Sentencing

State v. J.D.

Under State v. J.G., 302 Or App 97 (2020) and State v. Bodell, 120 Or App 548 (1993), a person can be found “dangerous to others” for purposes of ORS 426.005(1)(f)(A) based on verbal threats without acts of violence “if the evidence provides a foundation for predicting future violent behavior.”

Area(s) of Law:
  • Civil Commitment

State v. M. L.

For a person to be involuntarily committed, the State must establish a "particularized" and "highly probable" threat sufficient to show that the person is a danger to self within the meaning of ORS 426.005(1)(f)(A). State v. S. R. J., 281 Or App 741, 749, 386 P3d 99 (2016).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

State v. Schumacher

Under State v. Veatch, 223 OR App 444 (2008), testimonial “[r]eference to a defendant’s exercise of a constitutional right” from which a jury is likely to infer guilt “jeopardizes the right to a fair trial[,]” particularly when it goes uncured.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Procedure

State v. Thornsberry

Any fact that increases a criminal penalty past a statutory maximum must be a fact found by a jury beyond a reasonable doubt. Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 US 466, 490, 120 S Ct 2348, 147 L Ed 2d 435 (2000).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Sentencing

United Academics of OSU v. OSU

A substantial reason argument alleging insufficient reference to the record or consideration of the evidence (or "cherry-picking") misconstrues the standard as laid out in Jenkins, which does not require a complete recounting of all evidence. Mendacino v. Board of Parole, 287 Or. App. 822, 838, 404 P.3d 1048 (2017), rev. den., 362 Or. 508, 424 P.3d 724 (2018). While it may be possible to draw different inferences from the evidence, that does not imply that the inferences drawn by the ERB were unreasonable, and the Court is not empowered, under its standard of review, to displace reasonable and reasoned inferences drawn by the Board. City of Roseburg v. Roseburg City Firefighters, 292 Or. 266, 271, 639 P.2d 90 (1981).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Employment Law

Dept. of Human Services v. J. S. E. S.

The determination to terminate parental rights under ORS 419B.500 is focused on the needs of the child. Dept. of Human Services v. T. M. D., 365 Or 143, 166, 442 P3d 1100 (2019).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Family Law

State v. Carter

Lay opinion testimony is not relevant to prove the truth or falsity of a person’s statement. See State v. Chandler, 360 Or 323, 334, 380 P3d 932 (2016). “If there is little likelihood that the error affected the verdict, [an appellate court] will not reverse on the basis of that error.” State v. Nguyen, 293 Or App 492, 498, 429 P3d 410 (2018).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Evidence

State v. Montgomery

Under ORS 163.545, whether a child is “unattended” for purposes of child neglect turns on whether there was or was not a responsible person present who can take care of the child’s needs. That determination is made considering the totality of the circumstances, including the child’s age, the location where the child is left, and the period of time the child was left.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

State v. Perrodin

Under State v. Jennings, 220 Or App 1 (2008) and State v. Dodge, 223 Or App 130 (2008), when a defendant challenges an arrest based on a facial deficiency to a warrant, the state must either produce the warrant or defend the arrest as a valid warrantless arrest supported by probable cause.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Procedure

Dalbeck v. Bi-Mart Corp.

Under ORS 659A.403, places of public accommodation may not discriminate against anyone aged 18 or older based on their age unless there is a statute expressly allowing such discrimination.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Civil Law

Department of Human Services v. J. L. J.

To preserve an error for appeal, “‘a party must provide the trial court with an explanation of [his or her] objection that is specific enough to ensure that the court can identify its alleged error with enough clarity to permit it to consider and correct the error immediately.’” Senvoy, LLC v. Employment Dept., 312 Or App 387, 388-39, ___ P3d ___ (2021) (quoting State v. Vanornum, 354 Or 614, 632, 317 P3d 889 (2013)).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Juvenile Law

Dept. of Human Services v. H. M. I. F.

In assessing whether a permanency plan should be changed from reunification, “both DHS’s efforts and a parent’s progress are evaluated by reference to the facts that formed the bases for juvenile court jurisdiction.” Dept. of Human Services v. N. T., 247 Or App 706, 715, 271 P3d 143 (2012).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Family Law

Dept. of Human Services v. T. N. M.

A juvenile court may assert jurisdiction over a child under ORS 419B.100(1)(c) when it finds that, considering the totality of the circumstances, the child’s conditions or circumstances endanger the child’s welfare. When a parent’s alleged risk-causing conduct is at issue, DHS has the burden of demonstrating a nexus between the parent’s conduct and the threatened harm to the child. Dept. of Human Services v. L. E. F., 307 Or App 254, 258, 476 P3d 119 (2020), rev den, 367 Or 559 (2021).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Family Law

Ebright and Ebright

Under ORS 107.105(1)(f), which provides, in part, that “the court may provide in the judgment . . . [f]or the division or other disposition between the parties of the real or personal property, or both, of either or both of the parties as may be just and proper in all the circumstances.”

Area(s) of Law:
  • Family Law

Harned v. Amsberry

As stated in Jones v. Mississippi, in sentencing a juvenile homicide offender, “a State’s discretionary sentencing system is both constitutionally necessary and constitutionally sufficient.” After Jones, so long as the court is allowed to consider relevant mitigating circumstances and has the discretion to impose a lesser sentence than life without parole, no more is required.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Post-Conviction Relief

State v. Buell

Under State v. Korth, 269 Or App 238 (2015), a defendant charged with theft-by-receiving must have particularized knowledge or believe that the goods are stolen and “[p]ossession [of] or proximity to stolen goods * * * does not, on its own, allow for a finding that a person actually knows or believes that they are stolen.”

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

State v. Halvorson

Double jeopardy may be triggered by an “ostensibly civil proceeding” if that proceeding is “so punitive either in purpose or effect as to transform what was clearly intended as a civil remedy into a criminal penalty.” Hudson v. United States, 522 US 93, 99, (1997). Under ORS 137.106(1)(a), if the victim in a criminal case has suffered economic damages, the defendant must repay those damages in full.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Remedies

State v. Henry

For restitution award purposes, a trial court may not find that an amount paid was reasonable based solely on the fact of payment by CVCP. State v. J. M. E., 299 Or App 483, 489, 451 P3d 1018 (2019). Medical costs that are at or below the market rate are considered reasonable. State v. Workman, 300 Or App 622, 623-24, 455 P3d 566 (2019).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Remedies

State v. Osborn

A defendant can be restrained at trial if they pose an “immediate and serious risk of dangerous or disruptive behavior.” State v. Moore, 45 Or App 837, 839-40 (1980). Further, the trial court’s decision to restrain a defendant must be supported by developing a record of the basis for choosing to exercise its discretion.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

State v. Phillips

The term “vehicle” in ORS 164.135(1)(a) covers items such as trailers and conduct such as towing. State v. Eastep, 361 Or 746, 756–57, 399 P3d 979 (2017). The failure to include a “lesser-included offense can impermissibly enhance the risk of an unwarranted conviction” when (1) the “element that elevates the lesser-included offense to the greater one is doubtful” and (2) “there must be substantial evidence of a serious lesser offense.” Perida-Alba v. Coursey, 356 Or 654, 665, 342 P3d 70 (2015).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Criminal Law

Johnson v. Premo

Witness testimony not provided to the trier of fact could have a tendency to affect the verdict even if the testimony only coincides with other evidence.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Post-Conviction Relief

Koenig v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Ins. Co.

An award of economic damages including damages paid by PIP in an undetermined amount does not prevent a PIP offset in a UIM claim. Wade v. Mahler, 167 Or App 350, 355-58, 1 P3d 485, rev den, 331 Or 334 (2000).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Insurance Law

Mouktabis v. M.A.

Statements made as part of a judicial proceeding are absolutely privileged, meaning that they cannot form the basis for a defamation claim. Chard v. Galton, 277 Or 109, 112, 559 P2d 1980 (1977).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Tort Law

State v. Jones

For an appellate court to uphold a trial court’s ruling on the basis that it was “right for the wrong reason,” (1) the facts of record must be sufficient to support the alternative basis for affirmance; (2) the trial court’s ruling must be consistent with the view of the evidence under the alternative basis for affirmance; and (3) the record must materially be the same one that would have developed had the prevailing party raised the alternative basis for affirmance below. See Outdoor Media Dimensions Inc. v. State of Oregon, 331 Or 634, 659-60, 20 P3d 180 (2001).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Evidence

State v. Martinez

OEC 404(3) bars the use of other-acts evidence “to prove that a person has a propensity to engage in certain types of behavior and that the person acted in conformance with that propensity on a particular occasion.” State v. Skillicorn, 367 Or 464, 476, 479 P3d 254 (2021). When other-acts evidence is offered under OEC 404(3), the proponent must articulate a theory of relevance that does not logically depend on propensity reasoning. See State v. Levasseur, 309 Or App 745, 753, 483 P3d 1167, clarified and adh’d on recons, 312 Or App 733, 489 P3d 630 (2021).

Area(s) of Law:
  • Evidence

Walker v. Oregon Travel Information Council

Under Greist v. Phillips, 322 Or 281, 295, 906 P2d 798 (1995), factual findings made by a jury do not prevent a court from making different factual findings in a separate matter in equity.

Area(s) of Law:
  • Civil Procedure

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