Oregon Supreme Ct - Dec 27, 2013

by: Abassos • December 27, 2013 • no comments

A Party May Obtain Appellate Review Without First Excepting in Trial Court

A party may obtain appellate review of a jury instruction (or absence of one) without having to except in trial court. The appellate court is not precluded “from reviewing a claim of error pursuant to the court’s traditional plain error doctrine.” Here, defendant objected properly but did not except properly. The Court holds that the issue was preserved and the defendant's claim that an improper jury instruction was given is entitled to appellate review. Reversed and Remanded. State v. Vanornum, 354 Or 614 (December 2013).

Jurors Must Concur on Whether Defendant Was the Principal or Aided and Abetted the Principal

Upon request, a concurrence instruction must be given which states that 10 jurors must agree as to whether defendant was the principal or aided and abetted another in committing the crime. An exception to this requirement is cases of third-degree assault which “can be prove[n] either by directly inflicting an injury or by engaging in acts extensively intertwined with inflicting that injury.” A principal in the first degree and a principal in the second degree are interchangeable for Assault III. Affirmed. State v. Phillips, 354 Or 598 (December 2013).