State v. Craigen

432 P.3d 274, 295 Or. App. 17
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedNovember 21, 2018
DocketA158112
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 432 P.3d 274 (State v. Craigen) 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. Craigen, 432 P.3d 274, 295 Or. App. 17 (Or. Ct. App. 2018).

Opinion

LAGESEN, P. J.

*276*19While facing four charges of felon in possession of a firearm (FIP), defendant shot and killed his neighbor, who defendant believed had set him up on two of the charges. After defendant was arrested, officers interrogated him mainly about the homicide, but also about the FIP charges, without first notifying the lawyer representing defendant on the FIP charges. The issue before us is whether the officers violated defendant's rights under Article I, section 11, of the Oregon Constitution when they questioned him without notifying his lawyer and giving the lawyer an opportunity to attend the interrogation and, if so, the extent to which that constitutional violation requires the suppression in the homicide case of the statements that defendant made during the interrogation.

We conclude that, under State v. Prieto-Rubio , 359 Or. 16, 376 P.3d 255 (2016), the officers violated defendant's rights under Article I, section 11, when they continued to question defendant without notifying his lawyer once it became apparent that there was a connection between the FIP charges and the homicide, when defendant disclosed that his motive for shooting the victim was his belief that the victim had set him up on the FIP charges. We conclude further that, under State v. Savinskiy , 286 Or. App. 232, 399 P.3d 1075, rev. allowed , 362 Or. 208, 407 P.3d 815 (2017) ; State v. Hensley , 281 Or. App. 523, 383 P.3d 333 (2016) ; State v. Beltran-Solas , 277 Or. App. 665, 372 P.3d 577 (2016) ; and State v. Staunton , 79 Or. App. 332, 718 P.2d 1379 (1986), the violation of defendant's rights requires suppression of the statements that defendant made after the violation occurred. Because the trial court concluded otherwise, and the error was not harmless, we reverse and remand.

STANDARD OF REVIEW

We review the trial court's denial of defendant's motion to suppress for legal error. Hensley , 281 Or. App. at 525, 383 P.3d 333. In so doing, we take the facts as the trial court expressly or necessarily found them, so long as there is evidence to support those findings. Id . at 526, 383 P.3d 333.

*20FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

In 2011, defendant was facing charges on four counts of felon in possession of a firearm. The state had brought two of the charges many years earlier, in 1991 and 1994,1 and had brought the other two in 2011. Defendant retained an attorney, Gushwa, to represent him on those charges. Gushwa sent a notice to the district attorney's office directing it to "[p]lease instruct all police officers and personnel of your office not to speak with the defendant without first obtaining written permission from me."

The trial court scheduled a status conference in that FIP case for December 30 of that year. That morning, defendant, who was out on bail, was waiting for his ride to court when he noticed that Carter, the owner of a nearby plumbing shop, was on defendant's property, examining defendant's preparations for building a fence. A short time later, after Carter had returned to his shop, defendant walked to the shop, pointed a handgun at Carter through a closed window, and fired eight times. Five bullets struck Carter, two of which were fatal. Defendant fled the scene and (according to defendant) hid in a nearby cave for two days.

In the meantime, defendant's lawyer, Gushwa, was waiting for him to show up at the status conference on the FIP charges.

*277When defendant failed to appear, Gushwa told the court that, absent a "disastrous car wreck" that might explain his client's absence, he planned to move to withdraw as counsel. After the hearing, Gushwa called defendant's house. Brooks, who had been staying with defendant, answered the phone and put Gushwa on the phone with a detective, Guerrero, who was next door investigating the shooting. Although he had not yet filed a motion to withdraw as counsel in the FIP case, Gushwa told Guerrero that he had withdrawn from the FIP case and that, if he spoke with defendant, he would tell defendant that police wanted to talk to him.

Two days later, on New Year's Day, defendant went to the home of Cossitt, a mutual friend of defendant and the *21victim. Cossitt called the police and they arrested defendant later that day. Detectives Gunter and Guerrero set up recording equipment and prepared to interrogate defendant. Both were aware of the FIP charges, but had been told that Gushwa had withdrawn, although Gushwa had not, in fact, withdrawn at the time. They gave defendant Miranda warnings and asked if he was willing to talk to them. Defendant initially said he was "not really" willing to talk but then immediately said they could ask him questions and signed a waiver form.

Although the detectives did not ask defendant about the FIP charges initially, defendant volunteered information about the 1991 and 1994 charges early in the interview.

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Related

State v. Craigen
524 P.3d 85 (Oregon Supreme Court, 2023)
State v. Craigen
489 P.3d 1071 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2021)

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Bluebook (online)
432 P.3d 274, 295 Or. App. 17, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-craigen-orctapp-2018.