State v. Serrano (A173250)

527 P.3d 54, 324 Or. App. 453
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedMarch 8, 2023
DocketA173250
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 527 P.3d 54 (State v. Serrano (A173250)) 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. Serrano (A173250), 527 P.3d 54, 324 Or. App. 453 (Or. Ct. App. 2023).

Opinion

Argued and submitted January 24, 2022; conviction on Count 5 reversed, convictions on Counts 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 reversed and remanded, otherwise affirmed March 8; on respondent’s petition for reconsideration filed March 17, and appellant’s response filed March 23, reconsideration allowed by opinion April 19, 2023 See 325 Or App 296, 528 P3d 1219 (2023)

STATE OF OREGON, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. JORGE ULISES SERRANO, Defendant-Appellant. Marion County Circuit Court 19CR02471; A173250 527 P3d 54

Defendant appeals a judgment of conviction, by nonunanimous verdicts, for two counts of first-degree rape, ORS 163.375 (Counts 1 and 3); and by unanimous verdicts for three counts of second-degree sexual abuse, ORS 163.425 (Counts 4, 7, and 8); one count of using a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct, ORS 163.670 (Count 5); and one count of first-degree encouraging child sexual abuse, ORS 163.684 (Count 6), assigning several errors. Held: The court agreed with defendant that, under the Supreme Court’s opinion in State v. Mansor, 363 Or 185, 212, 421 P3d 323 (2018), because the investigation that led to the charges in Counts 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 stemmed from material discovered in a search of defendant’s cell phone that was not authorized by a search warrant, the con- victions must be reversed. The court also agreed with defendant that the trial court erred in denying defendant’s motion for a judgment of acquittal on Count 5, using a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct, in which the court charged that defendant “compelled” the victim to engage in sexually explicit conduct that defendant recorded. The state implicitly conceded that the record does not include evidence that defendant compelled the victim. The court rejected the state’s argument that the means of committing the offense listed in ORS 163.670(1) are interchangeable descriptions rather than distinct means of committing the offense, concluding that when the differences in the means by which an offense can be committed render them “distinct acts,” the state is bound by the substan- tive allegation in the indictment. The court rejected defendant’s contention that the trial court erred in declining to sever trial of the charges relating to the juve- nile victim from trial of those relating to the adult victims, concluding that the trial court did not err in determining that the circumstances of the charges, and the conduct and the evidence on which they were based, were sufficiently similar that the charges could be joined. The court noted that the state conceded error on defendant’s fifth and sixth assignments of error, in which defendant contended that his convictions of first-degree rape (Counts 1 and 3), based on nonunanimous verdicts, must be reversed and remanded. Conviction on Count 5 reversed; convictions on Counts 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 reversed and remanded; otherwise affirmed. 454 State v. Serrano (A173250)

Thomas M. Hart, Judge. Sara A. Werboff, Deputy Public Defender, argued the cause for appellant. Also on the briefs was Ernest G. Lannet, Chief Defender, Criminal Appellate Section. Peenesh Shah, Assistant Attorney General, argued the cause for respondent. Also on the brief were Ellen F. Rosenblum, Attorney General, and Benjamin Gutman, Solicitor General. Before Tookey, Presiding Judge, and Lagesen, Chief Judge, and Aoyagi, Judge.* TOOKEY, P. J. Conviction on Count 5 reversed; convictions on Counts 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 reversed and remanded; otherwise affirmed. Aoyagi, J., concurring.

______________ * Lagesen, C. J., vice Sercombe, S. J. Cite as 324 Or App 453 (2023) 455

TOOKEY, P. J. Defendant appeals a judgment of conviction, by nonunanimous verdicts, for two counts of first-degree rape, ORS 163.375 (Counts 1 and 3); and by unanimous verdicts for three counts of second-degree sexual abuse, ORS 163.425 (Counts 4, 7, and 8); one count of using a child in a display of sexually explicit conduct, ORS 163.670 (Count 5); and one count of first-degree encouraging child sexual abuse, ORS 163.684 (Count 6).1 For the reasons that follow, we reverse defendant’s conviction on Count 5 and reverse and remand his convictions on Counts 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8. I. BACKGROUND We summarize the facts as expressly or implicitly found by the trial court. State v. Ehly, 317 Or 66, 75, 854 P2d 421 (1993). Most of the facts are procedural and undisputed. Defendant’s convictions stem from evidence police obtained through searches of the data from defendant’s cell phone pursuant to two search warrants, the first in December 2018, and the second in February 2019. The first warrant was secured based on statements by CB—who is not a victim in this case. CB reported to police in 2018, that, in 2015, at the age of 18 or 19, she had had sexual encoun- ters with defendant. CB filed the police report after learn- ing that images and videos from those 2015 encounters had been uploaded without her permission to the pornography internet site PornHub during a time frame from October 2017 through December 2018. Through investigation, police learned defendant’s username and that defendant had also posted videos of CB on Hclips, another pornography website. Several weeks after the initial investigation, defen- dant attempted to initiate communication with CB on Snapchat, a communication platform. In text conversations between defendant and CB and between defendant and a police officer posing as CB, defendant stated that he had had vaginal and anal intercourse with CB when she was unconscious and that he had multiple photos and videos of her on his computer and on his old and new cell phones. In 1 The court acquitted defendant of Count 2, attempted unlawful dissemina- tion of an intimate image, ORS 163.472; ORS 161.405. 456 State v. Serrano (A173250)

those text conversations, defendant sent a photo of himself and revealed his employment and that he had posted videos of CB on PornHub. Based on that information, in December 2018, police sought and obtained the first warrant for a search of defendant’s cell phones and computer for evidence of first-degree rape and first-degree sodomy of CB. The war- rant commanded a search of defendant’s residence and car for his cell phones and computer.

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Related

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Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2026
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566 P.3d 1241 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2025)
State v. Serrano
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State v. Serrano (A174829)
526 P.3d 773 (Court of Appeals of Oregon, 2023)

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Bluebook (online)
527 P.3d 54, 324 Or. App. 453, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-serrano-a173250-orctapp-2023.