Endangering the Welfare of a Minor

This wikilog article is a draft, it was not published yet.

by: Ryan • January 10, 2012 • no comments

The Oregon Supreme Court has taken review of State v. McBride. The question presented is:

"For purposes of imposing criminal liability under ORS 163.575(1)(b), what is the correct interpretation of the phrase '[p]ermits a person under 18 years of age to enter or remain in a place where unlawful activity involving controlled substances is maintained or conducted'?"

The specific issue in McBride reminds me of an old argument I used to encourage (but never had a chance to make myself) that the phrase "maintained or conducted" did not include mere possession. If the legislature intended possession, they would have said possession. Consequently, just because a 15 year-old is in a house at the same time marijuana is possessed, that's not enough to constitute endangering. I wrote about making that argument to the court here . There's even a sample motion.

I don't know if McBride will reach that issue, but I thought I'd start highlighting some old posts you might not know to look for.