State v. Baker-Krofft

216 P.3d 335, 230 Or. App. 517, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 1277
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedSeptember 2, 2009
Docket06C53978; A135939
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 216 P.3d 335 (State v. Baker-Krofft) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Baker-Krofft, 216 P.3d 335, 230 Or. App. 517, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 1277 (Or. Ct. App. 2009).

Opinion

*519 LANDAU, P. J.

Defendant was convicted of criminal mistreatment in the second degree for withholding necessary and adequate physical care from her 11-year-old son, based on the condition of her home. ORS 163.200. She appeals, arguing that the trial court should have granted her motion for a judgment of acquittal because the state failed to prove that her son was significantly likely to be seriously harmed by the conditions of the home. We affirm.

The relevant facts are undisputed. Hedrick, a compliance officer with the City of Salem’s public health authority, responded to a report by a patrol officer about the condition of defendant’s home. Defendant lived in the residence with her husband and their 11-year-old son. When Hedrick arrived to inspect the home, defendant was at work, but her husband and son were there. During his inspection, Hedrick observed what he considered to be unsanitary conditions, in that there was clutter built up throughout the home. In some places, the clutter was piled six feet high. Although the home smelled musty and mildewy, there were no signs of rodents or other pests.

Hedrick also observed several fire hazards. The massive amount of clutter piled up throughout the home — boxes of paper and clothing — was all flammable. Hedrick considered the home to have a very heavy “fuel load.” Some of the clutter was near electrical outlets that were overloaded, which he confirmed by touching the cords and outlets and feeling that they were warm to the touch. There were no working smoke alarms, and, given the amount of clutter in the home, no one could have escaped in a timely manner in the case of a fire. Hedrick concluded that the home violated the local public health ordinance and posted the property as a health hazard. He then cited defendant and her husband for public nuisance.

Because he believed that the conditions of the home were unsafe for an 11-year-old, Hedrick also called the police. Detectives Carney and McCarley responded, and, with defendant’s husband’s consent, they walked through the home and took photographs. As had Hedrick, the detectives observed fire hazards: An extension cord ran from the house out to a *520 chicken coop in the backyard; the cord was providing electricity for a space heater that was sitting on top of stacks of straw. In a back bedroom, an iron was sitting on an ironing board; it was partially plugged into an electrical outlet but was not turned on.

When the detectives entered the kitchen, they observed that clutter covered every flat surface, although one side of the kitchen sink was available for use. The refrigerator was stocked with food, but, when the detectives opened the door, they smelled an odor of sour milk. The garbage can was overflowing. The doors to the garage and to the backyard were blocked by clutter.

The detectives then went upstairs, where defendant’s son’s bedroom and bathroom are located. The stairway railing was loose. As it was throughout the rest of the house, clutter covered every surface in his bedroom. His bathroom was also filled with clutter, and the bathtub was being used for storage. He was able, however, to access the toilet, sink, and shower.

After they investigated the home, the detectives called defendant and asked her to return to her home. When she arrived, they arrested her and her husband for criminal mistreatment of their son. There was nothing about their son’s appearance that caused the detectives concern; the arrest was based solely on the condition of the home.

Defendant and her husband were jointly charged with one count of second-degree criminal mistreatment for “withhold[ing] necessary and adequate physical care.” Defendant’s husband pleaded guilty to the charge, and he agreed to testify on behalf of the state at defendant’s trial.

The case was tried to a jury. The state’s witnesses included Hedrick, Carney, McCarley, and defendant’s husband, who testified to the foregoing facts. At the close of the state’s case-in-chief, defendant moved for a judgment of acquittal, arguing that the state’s evidence was insufficient to prove that the condition of her home constituted withholding necessary and adequate physical care. The trial court denied the motion. The jury found defendant guilty as charged.

*521 On appeal, defendant assigns error to the trial court’s denial of her motion for a judgment of acquittal. She maintains that the condition of her home did not constitute “withholding] necessary and adequate physical care” because, in her view, the legislature intended only to criminalize care by a caregiver “that poses a significant likelihood of serious harm” to the dependent person. She insists that the state failed to prove that the condition of her home posed a significant likelihood of serious harm to her son, given that the home was free of pests and controlled substances and that he was well fed and appropriately clothed.

The state disputes that the legislature intended to prohibit only care that poses a significant likelihood of serious harm. Defendant’s proposed construction of ORS 163.200, the state argues, inserts a standard that simply is not there. Instead, the state asserts, that statute is broadly worded and prohibits even less egregious conduct — that is, the statute “requires that a [caregiver] attend to the safety or well-being of [the dependent person] by providing the things that cannot be done without * * * in a ‘fully sufficient’ manner.” In the state’s view, the condition of defendant’s home demonstrated that she failed in that regard. In any event, the state contends, the high risk of fire and the inability to escape in a timely manner demonstrated that defendant’s care did in fact pose a significant likelihood of serious harm to her son.

The parties’ dispute centers on the meaning of “withholds necessary and adequate * * * physical care,” as used in ORS 163.200. In construing a statute, we examine the statutory text in its context, any relevant legislative history, and, if necessary, relevant canons of construction, to ascertain the intention of the legislature that enacted it. State v. Gaines, 346 Or 160, 171-72, 206 P3d 1042 (2009). In our examination of the statutory text, we give terms that are undefined in the statute their plain and ordinary meanings. PGE v. Bureau of Labor and Industries, 317 Or 606, 611, 859 P2d 1143 (1993). We also consider any prior judicial construction of the statute. See State v. Murray, 343 Or 48, 52, 162 P3d 255 (2007).

We begin with the statute’s text. ORS 163.200 provides, in part:

*522 “(1) A person commits the crime of criminal mistreatment in the second degree if, with criminal negligence and:

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Related

State v. Burciaga
328 P.3d 782 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2014)
State v. Inloes
243 P.3d 862 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2010)
State v. Baker-Krofft
239 P.3d 226 (Oregon Supreme Court, 2010)
State v. McCants
220 P.3d 436 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2009)
State v. Dowty
216 P.3d 911 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2009)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
216 P.3d 335, 230 Or. App. 517, 2009 Ore. App. LEXIS 1277, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-baker-krofft-orctapp-2009.