Oregon Appellate Ct - July 8, 2015

by: Abassos, Sean McGuire, Tyler Williams and Kit Taylor • July 8, 2015 • no comments

Parole Hearing – murder review hearing - The Board's Decision About Whether a Prisoner Has a PSED Must Be Supported by an Evaluation; It Need Not Follow the Evaluator's Diagnostic Conclusion

For purposes of a parole board determination at a murder review hearing (for an old sentence for murder of life in prison with the possibility of parole after 20 years) of whether a person has a “present severe emotional disturbance” (PSED), the board may reject the expert’s conclusion that a person does not have one. The question is whether there was substantial evidence to support the board’s conclusion, not whether the psychologist made a formal finding of PSED. Here, the psychologist found that the prisoner did not have a PSED, but the report contained substantial evidence that the prisoner had an emotional disorder that was present, severe and dangerous. Affirmed. Edwards v. Board of Parole 272 Or App 183