State v. Person
| Citation | 316 Or. 585,853 P.2d 813 |
| Parties | STATE of Oregon, Petitioner on Review, v. Gerald Oscar PERSON, Respondent on Review. CC 89102773; CA A67862; SC S39464. |
| Decision Date | 17 June 1993 |
| Court | Supreme Court of Oregon |
Robert B. Rocklin, Asst. Atty. Gen., Salem, argued the cause and filed the petition for petitioner on review. With him on the petition were Charles S. Crookham, Atty. Gen., and Virginia L. Linder, Sol. Gen.
Jesse Wm. Barton, Deputy Public Defender, Salem, argued the cause and filed the response for respondent on review. With him on the response was Sally L. Avera, Public Defender.
In this criminal case, defendant moved to dismiss the charges against him on the ground that the state had failed to bring him to trial within 90 days of receipt of his speedy trial notice, as required by ORS 135.763(1), set out infra. The trial court denied the motion, finding that the continuance of the trial beyond the 90-day period had been "reasonable and fair." The Court of Appeals reversed on the ground that neither defendant nor the state had requested a continuance. State v. Person, 113 Or.App. 40, 831 P.2d 700 (1992). We allowed review and now affirm the decision of the Court of Appeals.
On October 31, 1989, defendant was charged with a seven-count indictment in Linn County. Subsequently, he was imprisoned on unrelated charges in the Oregon State Correctional Institution. On January 30, 1990, the Linn County District Attorney received defendant's "Speedy Trial Notice," in which defendant requested trial on the Linn County charges within 90 days pursuant to ORS 135.760 1 and 135.763(1), discussed infra. At that time, trial already had been set for April 11, 1990, a date within the 90-day period.
On March 16, 1990, defendant's counsel moved for permission to withdraw from the case due to a conflict of interest. Following that motion, the district attorney communicated to court staff that the state would be ready for trial on April 11 and that the court should appoint a defense attorney who also could be prepared on that date. On March 26, the court allowed defendant's counsel to withdraw and issued an order appointing new counsel for defendant on the following day. On that order, however, a notation of the April 11 trial date was lined through and the notation "Trial date needs to be reset" was inserted below, apparently by court staff. Similarly, a letter from the court to defendant's new counsel dated March 27, 1990, stated: "Trial--4/11/90 at 9:30 a.m. (will be reset)."
Without a motion by either party, the court then rescheduled defendant's trial for July 25, 1990. On June 25, defendant moved to dismiss the indictment pursuant to ORS 135.765, 2 on the ground that he had not been brought to trial within 90 days of the date that the Linn County District Attorney received his speedy trial notice. The trial court denied the motion, concluding that the district attorney "did everything it could per the statute to bring the defendant to trial within the 90 days" and that "any fault in the case not going to trial on April 11" was that of defense counsel and the court staff. The court also concluded that "[t]he continuance of the April 11, 1990, trial was reasonable and fair to the defendant." Consequently, the trial went forward on July 25, and defendant was convicted of four of the seven counts against him.
On appeal from his convictions, defendant assigned as error the denial of his motion to dismiss. The Court of Appeals, sitting in banc, reversed. The court's decision turned on the interpretation of ORS 135.763, which states:
Regarding that statute, the court's six-member majority wrote:
State v. Person, supra, 113 Or.App. at 43, 831 P.2d 700.
Four dissenting judges disagreed with the majority's reading of ORS 135.763(2):
Id. at 46-47, 831 P.2d 700 (Edmonds, J., dissenting). We allowed review to address the proper interpretation of ORS 135.763.
As this court noted in State v. Hunter, 316 Or. 192, 199-200, 850 P.2d 366 (1993), once the district attorney receives an inmate's request for speedy trial under ORS 135.760 to 135.765, four scenarios are possible:
(1) The inmate is brought to trial within 90 days.
(2) The inmate is not brought to trial within 90 days because of one or more continuances of the trial granted in accordance with ORS 135.763(2).
(3) The inmate is not brought to trial within 90 days, but the inmate has waived his or her right to speedy trial under ORS 135.760 to 135.765.
(4) The inmate is not brought to trial within 90 days, but the delay is not the result of a continuance of the trial granted in accordance with ORS 135.763(2) , and the inmate has not waived his right to speedy trial.
Only in the event of the fourth scenario does ORS 135.765 require dismissal. Id. at 200, 850 P.2d 366.
In this case, the Linn County District Attorney received defendant's speedy trial notice on January 30, 1990. Defendant's trial did not occur within 90 days of that date. The state argues, however, that, for purposes of ORS 135.763(1), the district attorney "brought the inmate to trial" within the 90 days because the trial court found that the district attorney "did everything [he] could * * * to bring the defendant to trial within the 90 days." According to the state, "[t]he district attorney did all he was required to do under the terms of the statute."
"In interpreting a statute, this court's duty is to discern the intent of the legislature." Teeny v. Haertl Constructors, Inc., 314 Or. 688, 694, 842 P.2d 788 (1992). We attempt to discern the legislature's intent by examination of both the text and the context of the statute. Southern Pacific Trans. Co. v. Dept. of Rev., 316 Or. 495, 852 P.2d 197 (1993) (). The text of the statutory provision itself "must always be the starting point in any interpretive endeavor" and is the best evidence of the legislature's intent. Roseburg School Dist. v. City of Roseburg, 316 Or. 374, 378 & n. 4, 851 P.2d 595 (1993) (citing State ex rel Juv. Dept. v. Ashley, 312 Or. 169, 174, 818 P.2d 1270 (1991)).
ORS 135.763(1) states that "[t]he district attorney, after receiving a notice requesting trial under ORS 135.760, shall, within 90 days of receipt of the notice, bring the inmate to trial upon the pending charge." (Emphasis supplied.) By its terms, ORS 135.763(1) requires the district attorney to "bring the inmate to trial." Until the trial actually has commenced, the district attorney has not fulfilled that duty.
It follows that, because defendant was not "brought to trial" within 90 days of the receipt of his speedy trial notice, the trial court's denial of defendant's motion to dismiss was correct only if either (1) one or more continuances of the trial were granted in accordance with ORS 135.763(2) or (2) defendant waived his right to speedy trial. No claim of waiver is involved here. Consequently, the issue in this case is whether any continuance of the trial in this case that carried the trial date beyond the 90-day period was granted in accordance with ORS 135.763(2).
As noted above, defendant's trial originally was scheduled for April 11, 1990, a date within 90 days of the district attorney's receipt of defendant's speedy trial notice. The trial then was rescheduled for a date beyond the 90-day period. As the state concedes, the district attorney did not move for this continuance and defendant did not consent to it. Thus, the issue in this case narrows down to whether a continuance granted without motion of the district attorney and without consent of the defendant nonetheless can be one granted in accordance with ORS 135.763(2).
ORS 135.763(2) provides:
While ORS 135.763(2) may not be a model of precision, we believe that the legislature's intended meaning may be determined from the text of the statute. Moreover, as will be discussed infra, an examination of the context of the statute yields the same result. The statute...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
State v. Butterfield
...ORS 174.010. We also look to the statute's context, which involves an examination of other provisions of the statute. State v. Person, 316 Or. 585, 590, 853 P.2d 813 (1993); State v. Trenary, supra, 316 Or. at 175, 850 P.2d 356. Examination of the nonsupport statute's text and context unque......
-
NORTHWESTERN TITLE LOANS v. DCBS
...no statutory basis for trial court's action; trial court therefore also lacked inherent authority in that regard); State v. Person, 316 Or. 585, 591-92, 853 P.2d 813 (1993) (although statute providing for authority of trial court to grant continuances was not a "model of precision," reviewi......
-
Brinkman v. Abm Onsite Servs. W., Inc.
...always be the starting point in any interpretive endeavor and is the best evidence of the legislature's intent." State v. Pers. , 316 Or. 585, 590, 853 P.2d 813 (1993) (quotation marks omitted). Defendant emphasizes that the private cause of action of ORS § 652.615 allows a victorious plain......
-
State v. Waechter
...859 P.2d 1143. What legislative history that does exist was summarized by Justice Van Hoomissen in his dissent in State v. Person, 316 Or. 585, 853 P.2d 813 (1993). He described the legislative history relevant to ORS 135.765 as "The 1955 Senate and House Journal shows that the legislation ......