Oregon Supreme Ct - April 23, 2015

by: Frangieringer and Abassos • April 23, 2015 • no comments

Witness Tampering - The Victim is the State, Not the Witness

The state is the victim in a prosecution for Witness Tampering, not the eponymous witness. Furthermore, a “vulnerable victim,” for the purposes of the aggravating factor codified by OAR 213-008-002(1)(b)(B), “has the same meaning as it has in the relevant statutory provision defining the offense for which the defendant is being sentenced.” Because the witness is not a victim for the charge of Witness Tampering, and the state of Oregon is not vulnerable, the vulnerable victim aggravating factor is inapplicable. State v. Lykins, 357 Or 145 (2015).