State of Oregon v. Buck

262 P.2d 495, 200 Or. 87, 1953 Ore. LEXIS 278
CourtOregon Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 21, 1953
StatusPublished
Cited by40 cases

This text of 262 P.2d 495 (State of Oregon v. Buck) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Oregon Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State of Oregon v. Buck, 262 P.2d 495, 200 Or. 87, 1953 Ore. LEXIS 278 (Or. 1953).

Opinions

LATOURETTE, C. J.

Appeal by Dr. George H. Buck, a duly licensed physician and surgeon of the state of Oregon, from a judgment of conviction and sentence predicated on the alleged violation of § 23-408, OCLA, known as the Criminal Abortion Act, which is as follows:

“If any person shall administer to any woman pregnant with a child any medicine, drug, or substance whatever, or shall use or employ any instrument or other means, with intent thereby to destroy such child, unless the same shall be necessary to preserve the life of such mother, such person shall, in case the death of such child or mother be thereby produced, be deemed guilty of manslaughter. ’ ’

The indictment, inter alia, charges that on December 11, 1950, Dr. Buck, by employing certain instruments, destroyed the unborn child of a certain woman, it not being necessary to preserve the life of the woman.

The medical code, in effect at the time in question, after providing for a board of medical examiners, the licensing of physicians and surgeons, and other pro[91]*91visions not necessary for this opinion, provided by §54-931, OCLA, inter alia, as follows:

“The board may refuse to grant a license to any applicant who desires to practice medicine and surgery in this state or may suspend or revoke such licenses for any of the following reasons:
“(a) Unprofessional or dishonorable conduct;
“(b) The procuring or aiding or abetting in procuring an abortion unless such is done for the relief of a woman whose health appears in peril because of her pregnant condition after due consultation with another duly licensed medical physician and surgeon;
<<#####
“(i) Conviction of any offense for which the punishment may be incarceration in a state penitentiary or in a federal prison; a copy of the record of conviction, certified to by the clerk of the court entering the conviction, shah be conclusive evidence;
i i # # * * # ? >

Among the definitions found in § 54-901, OCLA, are the following:

(( # * & * #
‘ ‘ ‘Unprofessional or dishonorable conduct’ shall mean such conduct as would not be indulged in by an ethical physician and surgeon, under all the circumstances, taking into consideration the good of the patient, and the public, the time and place.
“ ‘Abortion’ shall mean the expulsion of the foetus at a period of uterogestation so early that it has not acquired the power of sustaining an independent life; provided it shall be conclusively presumed for the purpose of this statute that the foetus has not acquired such power earlier than one hundred fifty (150) days after gestation, and a disputable presumption of lack of such power shall arise if the expulsion take place earlier than two hundred forty (240) days after gestation.”

[92]*92The main question involved in this appeal is what effect, if any, the Medical Practice Act contained in chapter 9, title 54 (§54-901 — 54-945, OCLA, as amended) has on the Criminal Abortion Act. And in this connection it may be noted that the outcome of this case not only affects Dr. Buck, whose license to practice medicine has heretofore been revoked on a matter wholly unrelated to the facts in this case, In re Buck, 200 Or 488, 258 P2d 124, but also the entire medical profession.

It is a familiar rule that a court, in construing a statute, must ascertain the intent and purpose of the legislation from the language used. The rule is well stated in Swift & Co. and Armour & Co. v. Peterson, 192 Or 97, 108, 233 P2d 216, as follows:

“The cardinal rule for the construction of a statute is to ascertain from the language thereof the intent of the lawmakers as to what purpose was to be served, or what object was designed to be attained. Leonard v. Ekwall, 124 Or. 351, 359, 264 P. 463; Fox v. Galloway, 174 Or. 339, 346, 148 P. 2d 922. We accomplish this with such aid as may be found in the rules of interpretations and legitimate extrinsic sources, always keeping in mind that the legislative intent to enact a valid and constitutional law will be assumed. Fullerton v. Lamm, supra, at page 670. When the legislative intent has been ascertained, it should be given effect, even though, in doing so, the literal meaning of the words used is not followed. Allen v. Multnomah County, 179 Or. 548, 554, 173 P. 2d 475; Wood v. State, 133 Tex. 110, 126 S. W. 2d 4, 121 A. L. R. 931, 935. In arriving at the legislative intention, it is proper for the court to take into consideration the policy and purposes of the Act, and to consider in that connection whether or not such a policy and purposes will be attained by a literal interpretation of the language used. Ban-[93]*93field v. Schulderman, 137 Or. 167, 178, 296 P. 1066, 298 P. 905, 89 A.L.R. 504; Allen v. Multnomah County, supra, at 554. It is the express intent of the legislature which we seek, and to do this we must look to the entire statute. * * V’

It is well recognized that when the language of an act is unambiguous the intent of the legislature must be gained from the language used.

Giving consideration to the Medical Practice Act alone it is obvious that the same clearly and pointedly authorizes a doctor to perform an abortion as therein defined, if the same is done for the relief of a woman whose health appears in peril because of her pregnant condition after due consultation with another duly licensed medical physician and surgeon.

Since the Criminal Abortion Act and the Medical Practice Act conflict, it is our province to determine the relationship between the two, and, in so doing, we must construe the same together. It is true that the Medical Practice Act makes no express reference to the Criminal Abortion Act, but that is unimportant if there are necessary implications relating to it.

We recognize that repeals, amendments or modifications of previous statutes by implication are not favored, nor are they frowned upon in a proper case. If the legislature clearly intended by the enactment of the Medical Practice Act to alter or change the Criminal Abortion Act under given circumstances, such intention must be given full force and effect.

It is generally conceded that statutes in pari materia are to be construed together. There is another rule of equal importance, and that is, although statutes are not strictly in pari materia, yet, if they relate to the same matter, persons or things, or the same class [94]*94of persons or things, or are closely allied to the same subject or object, they may be construed together.

In 50 Am Jur 347, Statutes, § 350, we read:

“Although there may be statutory provisions which, in a sense, relate to the same matter and yet are not in pari materia, the general rule is that statutes or statutory provisions which relate to the same person or thing, or to the same class of persons or things, or to the same or a closely allied subject or object, may be regarded as in pari materia. * * * ”

In Black, Interpretation of Laws, 2d ed, p 340, § 104, we find the following:

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Buehler v. Rosenblum
311 P.3d 882 (Oregon Supreme Court, 2013)
State v. Andrews
27 P.3d 137 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2001)
State Ex Rel. Compass Corp. v. City of Lake Oswego
898 P.2d 198 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1995)
Griffin v. Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District
870 P.2d 808 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1994)
Harris v. Craig
697 P.2d 189 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1985)
Harris v. Craig
684 P.2d 30 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1984)
State v. Reams
636 P.2d 913 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1981)
Whipple v. Howser
632 P.2d 782 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1981)
State v. McIntire
537 P.2d 1151 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1975)
Klamath Irrigation District v. Employment Division
534 P.2d 190 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1975)
Lerch v. Cupp
497 P.2d 379 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1972)
Judson v. Apprenticeship and Training Council
495 P.2d 291 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1972)
State v. Eaton
492 P.2d 506 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 1972)
State v. Hawkins
463 P.2d 858 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1970)
Meade v. Freeman
462 P.2d 54 (Idaho Supreme Court, 1969)
State v. Wilkinson
420 P.2d 629 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1966)
State v. Anderson
410 P.2d 230 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1966)
Jacob v. State Tax Commission
2 Or. Tax 134 (Oregon Tax Court, 1965)
State v. Elliott
383 P.2d 382 (Oregon Supreme Court, 1963)
City of Woodburn v. Domogalla
1 Or. Tax 292 (Oregon Tax Court, 1963)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
262 P.2d 495, 200 Or. 87, 1953 Ore. LEXIS 278, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-of-oregon-v-buck-or-1953.