State v. Anderson
State v. Anderson
Opinion of the Court
This is a delayed appeal from defendant’s enhanced sentence as an habitual criminal under former ORS 168.015 et seq.
• “COMBS NOW the State of Oregon * * * and informs the Court as follows:
“That the above named defendant is now serving a sentence in the Oregon State Penitentiary of Five years imposed by the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon, County of Umatilla, on December 16, 1964, for the crime of Possession of Narcotic Drugs.
*610 “That the said defendant at the time of the commission of the above offense had the following felony convictions:
“1. Attempted rape, February 12, 1952, in Case No. 25647 in the District Court of the State of Texas for G-rayson County.
“2. Attempted burglary, April 18, 1962, in the Circuit Court of the State of Mississippi for Hinds County.
“3. Convicted felon in possession of a firearm capable of being concealed upon the person, July
3.1964, in Case No. Cr. 3353, in the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for Umatilla County.
“4. Convicted felon in possession of a firearm capable of being concealed upon the person, October 12, 1964, in Case No. Cr. 3375, in the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for Umatilla County.
“5. Burglary not in a dwelling house, September 9.1965, in Case No. 65-168-C, in the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for Josephine County.
“6. Larceny in a store, September 29, 1965, in Case No. C-44899, in the Circuit Court of the State of Oregon for Multnomah County. “DATED this 15th day of February, 1966.”
■ The matter first came before the court on February 25, 1966, when the defendant acknowledged receipt of the information and requested the appointment of counsel. The defendant again appearéd before the court on March 2l, 1966, and a requested delay was granted to enable his appointed counsel to prepare for the case. At his next appearance on March 23, 1966, the allegations of the information were read to bim. Defendant denied the allegations of the previous convictions numbered 1, 2, 3 and 4 in the information. His attorney objected to number 5 and the court on its own motion included number 6 in the objection.
Former ORS 168.055 provided:
“(1) Within two years after conviction of the principal offense the district attorney in the county of conviction of the principal offense shall:
. . “(a) If he has reason to believe there .has been a conviction which would justify an enhanced penalty for the principal offense under any applicable law, immediately investigate to determine whether there has been such a conviction; and '
.“(b) If he obtains competent evidence, of the conviction described in paragraph (a) of this subsection, immediately file with the court of conviction of the principal offense an information alleging that conviction.
■’ “ (2) If the district attorney files the information described in paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section, he shall immediately inform the defendant of the proceeding by having a copy of the informa*612 tion served personally upon the defendant by any person who is 21 years of age or older.”
Defendant contends that the delay of nearly 14 months in' the filing of the information violated his rights under the statute. No objection to this delay was raised at trial.
In a case decided after the trial, this court interpreted the word “immediately” in former ORS 168.055 to mean that the district attorney must proceed within a reasonably prompt period of time after the pertinent information becomes known. State v. Romero, 1 Or App 217, 461 P2d 70 (1969). The defendant recognizes his failure to raise this point below, but urges our consideration under Rule 5.40.
Defendant assigns as error lack of proper authentication of the records of convictions numbered 1 and 2. This error was not preserved by timely objection and we therefore do not consider it.
As noted above, convictions numbered 1, 2 and 3 were identified from the fingerprints which were part
“(1) The court shall consider as prima facie evidence of the former conviction alleged:
“(a) A copy of the judicial record of that conviction which copy is authenticated under OES 43.110 or 43.120;
“(b) A copy of the fingerprints of the subject of that conviction which copy is authenticated under OES 43.330; and
“(c) Testimony that the fingerprints of the subject of that conviction are those of the defendant.
“(2) This section does not prohibit proof of former conviction by any other procedure.”.
Subsection (2) of former OES 168.080 provided for alternative means of identification. See, State v. Capitan, 2 Or App 338, 344, 468 P2d 533 (1970). Each-of the records in question contained a photograph of the person convicted. Photographs were an acceptable means of identification under subsection (2) of the statute. See, State v. Smith, 128 Or 515, 273 P 323 (1929). Moreover, the identity of names in the questioned records with that of defendant created a disputable presumption that the defendant in the case at bar and the person named in the records were the same. ORS 41.360 (25). State v. Byrd, 240 Or 159, 400 P2d 522, cert denied 382 US 865 (1965). While it is difficult to understand why a comparison of defendant’s fingerprints with those in the questioned records was not put into evidence, failure to require such was not error.
Defendant contends that the trial court erréd in allowing the case to be heard before the expiration of
Defendant argues that under the Habitual Criminals Act, former ORS ch 168, when an enhanced penalty is imposed it cannot include the fine previously imposed as part of the punishment for the principal offense. He bases this on the theory that the penalty provisions
Defendant’s contentions relating to unconstitutionally of the Oregon Habitual Criminals Act as it existed at the time he was sentenced have all been previously decided against his position, and no purpose would be served by reviewing the authorities here.
Defendant also alleges that his trial counsel
Finally, we come to defendant’s contention
* * #
“(b) That conviction was rendered after the commission of the principal felony.”
It follows that only three convictions should have been considered. In Bevel v. Gladden, 232 Or 578, 376 P2d 117 (1962), the Supreme Court refused to set aside the ■enhanced penalty imposed when the defendant had been convicted of at least three other felonies in addition to the challenged conviction. The rationale of that opinion was that the enhanced sentence was the minimum permitted even without the challenged conviction. See, Lundgren and Neal v. Cupp, 1 Or App 334, 336, 462 P2d 447 (1969). Here this is not the case. Thus, while the sentence imposed was statutorily permitted we are unable to say that consideration of conviction numbered 4 did not influence the length of the sentence. Consequently, we vacate the sentence and remand for the imposition of a sentence consistent with this •opinion.
Sentence vacated. Remanded.
ORS 168.015 et seq was repealed by Oregon Laws 1971, ch 743, Sec 432, p 2002.
The maximum penalty for this offense was a fine not exceeding $5,000, or imprisonment in the state penitentiary Tor a period' not exceeding 10 years, or both. Former ORS 474.990, amended Oregon Laws 1971, ch 743, Sec 377, p 1978.
Rule 5.40 of this court provides:
“In appeals in actions at law no alleged error of the trial court will be considered on appeal unless regularly assigned as error in the appellant’s opening brief, except that the court reserves the right- to- take notice of an error of law apparent on the face of the record.”
Former ORS 168.065 provided:
“After 15 days from the service of the copy of the information under ORS 168.055 the court of conviction of the principal offense shall:
“(1) Cause the defendant, whether imprisoned or otherwise, to be brought before it.
“(2) Orally inform the defendant of:
“(a) The allegations in the information and the defendant’s right to a hearing on the truth of the allegations.
“(b) The defendant’s right to the aid of counsel.
“(3) Require the defendant, after he has a reasonable time to consult counsel, to admit or deny the allegations in the information.
“(4) If the defendant denies the allegations in the information, refuses to answer or remains silent, enter of record the defendant’s response or the fact of his silence and proceed to hear, determine and make a written finding on the allegations.
“(5) If the defendant admits the truth of the allegations in the information, enter of record the defendant’s response.
■ “(6) If the defendant admits, or the court otherwise finds, the former conviction alleged, vacate any sentence imposed upon conviction of the principal offense, impose any new sen-ténce permitted or required by law, and, unless the new sentence is for the defendant’s natural life, deduct from the new sentence the period of imprisonment on the sentence so vacated.”
Counsel on appeal was not defendant’s counsel at trial.
Dissenting Opinion
dissenting.
. I dissent from that portion of the court’s opinion which holds that upon defendant’s sentence under the Habitual Criminals Act the court had power to impose
“* * * [A]ny person who has been convicted of a principal felony and who, pursuant to ORS 168.015 to 168.080, is found by the court to have been formerly convicted of a felony, shall be sentenced, in the court’s discretion, as follows:
# * $
“(3) Where three or more former convictions of felony are found by the court, imprisonment for any term up to and including imprisonment for life.”
Following the filing of an information pursuant to ORS 168.055, ORS 168.065 provides:
“* * * [T]he court of conviction of the principal offense shall:
C(# # # # #
“(6) If the defendant admits, or the court otherwise finds, the former conviction alleged, vacate any sentence imposed upon conviction of the principal offense, impose any new sentence permitted or required by law '* * (Emphasis supplied.)
Nothing in the foregoing sections in my view authorizes the imposition, as a part of the enhanced penalty imposed, of a fine, whether as here originally imposed under the sentence vacated, or independently as a part of the new enhanced sentence. Had the legislature so intended, it would have said so.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- STATE OF OREGON, Respondent, v. BOBBY RAY ANDERSON (No. 3565), Appellant
- Cited By
- 6 cases
- Status
- Published