Mellerio v. Nooth

379 P.3d 560, 279 Or. App. 419, 2016 Ore. App. LEXIS 893
CourtMalheur County Circuit Court, Oregon
DecidedJuly 7, 2016
Docket12029285P; A153539
StatusPublished
Cited by10 cases

This text of 379 P.3d 560 (Mellerio v. Nooth) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Malheur County Circuit Court, Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mellerio v. Nooth, 379 P.3d 560, 279 Or. App. 419, 2016 Ore. App. LEXIS 893 (Or. Super. Ct. 2016).

Opinion

HASELTON, S. J.

Petitioner appeals a judgment denying post-conviction relief. ORS 138.650. He contends, inter alia, that the post-conviction court erred in rejecting his claim of constitutionally inadequate representation based on criminal trial counsel’s failure to request a “Boots” jury concurrence instruction1 relating to four counts of coercion, ORS 163.275, on which he was convicted. For the reasons that follow, we conclude that: (1) with respect to two of the coercion counts (Counts 5 and 6), a jury concurrence instruction would have been inapposite, rendering counsel’s performance unexceptionable; but (2) with respect to the two other counts (Counts 7 and 8), counsel’s failure to request such an instruction breached the standard of constitutionally competent representation and that petitioner was actionably prejudiced by that failure. That disposition, in turn, obviates consideration of petitioner’s contention that counsel was inadequate for failing to request merger, upon the jury’s verdict, of Counts 5 and 7, and of Counts 6 and 8. Finally, we reject, without published discussion, petitioner’s other contentions pertaining to the purported inadequacy of trial counsel with respect to his other convictions. Accordingly, we conclude that petitioner is entitled to post-conviction relief as to Counts 7 and 8, but otherwise affirm.

The material historical facts and procedural circumstances are, for purposes of our review, undisputed. On June 30, 2010, petitioner was charged by indictment with 12 crimes, involving two victims, Rife and Gabaldon, arising out of events occurring in Yamhill County on May 27, 2010. Specifically, petitioner was charged with two counts of first-degree kidnapping, ORS 163.235, with one count pertaining to Rife and the other to Gabaldon (Counts 1 and 2); two counts of second-degree robbery, ORS 164.405, again, one each pertaining to Rife and Gabaldon (Counts 3 and 4); four counts of coercion, ORS 163.275, with two counts (Counts 5 and 7) pertaining to Rife, and two counts (Counts 6 and 8) pertaining to Gabaldon; two counts of menacing, ORS 163.190, with one count again relating to Rife and the [422]*422other to Gabaldon (Counts 9 and 10); one count of fourth-degree assault, ORS 163.160, pertaining to Rife only (Count 11); and one count of second-degree theft, ORS 164.045, also pertaining only to Rife (Count 12).

The coercion counts alleged:

“COUNT 5 — The defendant, on or about May 27, 2010, in Yamhill County, Oregon, did unlawfully and knowingly compel or induce H. Rife to engage in conduct in which she had a legal right to abstain from engaging, by means of instilling in her a fear that if she refrained from the conduct contrary to the compulsion or inducement, the said defendant would physically injure or kill H. Rife and/or her family; contrary to statute and against the peace and dignity of the State of Oregon.
“COUNT 6 — The defendant, on or about May 27, 2010, in Yamhill County, Oregon, did unlawfully and knowingly compel or induce M. Gabaldon to engage in conduct in which she had a legal right to abstain from engaging, by means of instilling in her a fear that if she refrained from the conduct contrary to the compulsion or inducement, the said defendant would physically injure or kill M. Gabaldon and/or her family; contrary to statute and against the peace and dignity of the State of Oregon.
“COUNT 7 — The defendant, on or about May 27, 2010, in Yamhill County, Oregon, did unlawfully and knowingly compel or induce H. Rife to abstain from engaging in conduct in which she had a legal right to engage, by means of instilling in her a fear that if she engaged in the conduct contrary to the compulsion or inducement, the said defendant would physically injure or kill her, her family, E. Coleman and/or K. Coleman; contrary to statute and against the peace and dignity of the State of Oregon.2
“COUNT 8 — The defendant, on or about May 27, 2010, in Yamhill County, Oregon, did unlawfully and knowingly compel or induce M. Gabaldon to abstain from engaging in conduct in which she had a legal right to engage, by means of instilling in her a fear that if she engaged in the conduct contrary to the compulsion or inducement, the said defendant would physically injure or kill her, her family, [423]*423E. Coleman and/or K. Coleman; contrary to statute and against the peace and dignity of the State of Oregon.”

(Emphases added.)

Thus, the first of the two “paired” coercion counts, Counts 5 and 6, alleged that Rife or Gabaldon had been unlawfully induced or compelled to “engage in conduct in which she had a legal right to abstain from engaging,” ORS 163.275(1), while the latter two “paired” counts, Counts 7 and 8, alleged the obverse species of coercion, that is, that Rife or Gabaldon had been induced or compelled to “abstain from conduct in which she had a legal right to engage.” Id.3 Further, and significantly to our consideration, the latter two counts, while not identifying the putative conduct from which either woman was allegedly compelled to abstain, did specify that the referent concomitant threat was that petitioner would injure or kill “her, her family, E. Coleman and/or K. Coleman.” That language was ambiguous in that it could encompass either (or both): (1) a single act of coercion predicated on a threat to injure or kill one or more of the specified individuals (i.e., “If you don’t do %’ I will injure or kill A, B, C, and/or D”); or (2) multiple, separate acts of coercion predicated on threats to injure or kill different of the specified individuals (e.g., “If you don’t do ‘x,’ I will kill or injure A”; “If you don’t do ‘y,’ I will kill or injure B”; etc.). It is that ambiguity, coupled with the evidence presented at petitioner’s criminal trial, that is the striking point of petitioner’s contention that counsel was inadequate for failing to seek a jury concurrence instruction with respect to Counts 7 and 8.

Following a jury trial in January 2011, petitioner was convicted of all charges. At trial, Gabaldon testified as a witness for the state. Rife did not testify.

[424]*424Gabaldon recounted that she, petitioner, and Rife were all acquaintances and that, on May 27, 2010, petitioner had asked her to drive him to a friend’s house in McMinnville (petitioner did not know how to drive), and Rife came with them.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
379 P.3d 560, 279 Or. App. 419, 2016 Ore. App. LEXIS 893, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mellerio-v-nooth-orccmalheur-2016.