State v. Landahl

292 P.3d 646, 254 Or. App. 46, 2012 Ore. App. LEXIS 1497
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedDecember 12, 2012
Docket060140795; A146189
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 292 P.3d 646 (State v. Landahl) 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. Landahl, 292 P.3d 646, 254 Or. App. 46, 2012 Ore. App. LEXIS 1497 (Or. Ct. App. 2012).

Opinion

BREWER, J.

Defendant, who appeals a judgment convicting him of driving under the influence of intoxicants (DUII), argues that the trial court erred in setting aside its previous dismissal of the charge and in entering a judgment based on his guilty plea made upon his entry into a diversion program. Defendant asserts that we have jurisdiction over this appeal pursuant to ORS 138.050(l)(a). The state asserts that we do not. As explained below, we conclude that the state is correct; accordingly, we dismiss the appeal.

The pertinent facts are procedural and not in dispute. Defendant was charged with DUII in January of 2006 and petitioned to enter diversion. On March 1,2006, the trial court granted defendant’s petition, pursuant to which defendant made a plea of no contest to the DUII charge. The diversion and plea agreement provided that defendant understood that, if he fully complied with the conditions of the diversion agreement, the court would dismiss the charge with prejudice pursuant to ORS 813.250, but that, if defendant failed to comply with the agreement within the diversion period, the court would enter a judgment of conviction based on defendant’s plea. Conditions of the diversion agreement required defendant to participate in treatment and prohibited him from operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of intoxicants.

In March 2007, the court extended the diversion period for 180 days to allow defendant to complete his required treatment. On August 22, 2007, defense counsel filed a motion to terminate diversion, asserting that defendant had successfully completed the diversion requirements. The state did not oppose that motion, so the trial court granted it on September 11, 2007, and the court entered an order dismissing the charge. Shortly thereafter, however, the state discovered that defendant had, in fact, driven under the influence of intoxicants on August 17,2007, approximately a week before he had filed his motion to terminate diversion. The state moved to set aside the judgment dismissing the DUII charge and to terminate defendant’s diversion based on his violation of the diversion agreement. The trial court granted the state’s motion on November 19,2007, indicating [49]*49that it was vacating the judgment due to “surprise” and “misrepresentation by defendant.” On December 15, 2007, the court issued a bench warrant for defendant’s arrest. Defendant was apprehended on the warrant in April 2010 and, at that point, moved to set aside the November 2007 order vacating the September 2007 judgment of dismissal. The trial court denied defendant’s motion, entered a judgment of conviction based on defendant’s original no contest plea, and imposed a sentence of probation.

Defendant appeals that judgment pursuant to ORS 138.050. Defendant challenges the trial court’s denial of his motion to set aside the November 2007 order vacating the prior judgment, and he asks this court to “reverse his conviction and sentence and remand for entry of an order dismissing the DUII charge.” Defendant recognizes, however, that in order to do so, we must first address whether this appeal is cognizable under ORS 138.050, which limits a defendant’s appeal in situations where a defendant has entered a plea of guilty or no contest.

ORS 138.050 provides, in part:

“(1) Except as otherwise provided in ORS 135.335,[1] a defendant who has pleaded guilty or no contest may take an appeal from a judgment or order described in ORS 138.053 only when the defendant makes a colorable showing that the disposition:
“(a) Exceeds the maximum allowable by law; or
“(b) Is unconstitutionally cruel and unusual.
* * * *
“(3) On appeal under subsection (1) of this section, the appellate court shall consider only whether the disposition:
“(a) Exceeds the maximum allowable by law; or
“(b) Is unconstitutionally cruel and unusual.”

Defendant argues that the “judgment contains two dispositions that exceed the maximum allowable by law— [50]*50the DUII conviction and the sentence — because the trial court had no authority to impose either after the case had been dismissed.” Thus, defendant posits that ORS 138.050 allows him to appeal, and allows this court to review a challenge to, his conviction. As explained below, neither the text of the pertinent statutes when read in context, nor the prior opinions of the appellate courts, ultimately support defendant’s reading of ORS 138.050.

Defendant’s position rests on the assumption that his conviction is a “disposition,” as that term is used in ORS 138.050(1), and the related assumption that a conviction that is legally flawed necessarily is one that “exceeds the maximum allowable by law.” The term “disposition,” as used in this context, is a legal term of art that can mean, broadly speaking, “[a] final settlement or determination <the court’s disposition of the case>.” Black’s Law Dictionary 505 (8th ed 2004). Under that broad definition, defendant’s proposition — that a conviction is a disposition — could be correct. However, ORS 138.050(1) refers to “disposition” in the context of orders or judgments “described in ORS 138.053.” ORS 138.053, in turn, provides:

“(1) A judgment, or order of a court, if the order is imposed after judgment, is subject to the appeal provisions and limitations on review under ORS 138.040 and 138.050 if the disposition includes any of the following:
“(a) Imposition of a sentence on conviction.
“(b) Suspension of imposition or execution of any part of a sentence.
“(c) Extension of a period of probation.
“(d) Imposition or modification of a condition of probation or of sentence suspension.
“(e) Imposition or execution of a sentence upon revocation of probation or sentence suspension.

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Related

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521 P.3d 456 (Oregon Supreme Court, 2022)
State v. Merrill
492 P.3d 722 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2021)
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State v. Herrera
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State v. Davis
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State v. Ferguson
323 P.3d 496 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2014)
State v. Brewer
320 P.3d 620 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2014)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
292 P.3d 646, 254 Or. App. 46, 2012 Ore. App. LEXIS 1497, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-landahl-orctapp-2012.