State v. Bastow
State v. Bastow
Opinion of the Court
*384Defendant appeals a judgment revoking his probation. We write to address only defendant's second assignment of error, in which he contends that the trial court erred in revoking his probation because the only evidence that he violated the terms of probation was his uncorroborated admission to using controlled substances; we reject his remaining assignment without discussion. We conclude, contrary to defendant's argument, that his uncorroborated admission was sufficient to support revocation. Accordingly, we affirm.
The relevant facts are undisputed. Defendant was convicted of unauthorized use of a vehicle, ORS 164.135, felon in possession of a restricted weapon, ORS 166.270(2), and possession of methamphetamine, ORS 475.894. The trial court placed him on probation for 36 months.
A condition of defendant's probation was that he not use or possess controlled substances. In his first meeting with his probation officer, defendant admitted that "he was still actively using methamphetamine a few times a week." At a subsequent probation revocation hearing, the officer testified about defendant's admission, and the state requested that the court revoke probation. The state presented no other evidence of defendant's conduct. Defendant argued that the evidence was insufficient to support revocation because the state offered no corroborating evidence of his admission. The trial court disagreed and revoked probation, sentencing defendant to 30 months in prison followed by 24 months of post-prison supervision.
On appeal, defendant renews his argument that the state was required to present corroborating evidence of his admission to support revocation of probation. Defendant relies on ORS 136.425(2), which requires corroborating evidence of confessions to support convictions of crimes. The state argues that ORS 136.425(2) does not apply here because it applies only to criminal proceedings, and not to probation revocation hearings or other proceedings.
*828We review a trial court's decision to revoke probation for abuse of discretion.
*385State v. Hammond ,
ORS 136.425(2) provides:
"[A] confession alone is not sufficient to warrant the conviction of the defendant without some other proof that the crime has been committed."
The statute plainly states that an uncorroborated confession is insufficient to support conviction of a crime.
It is well-settled that a probation revocation hearing is not a criminal proceeding; rather, probation hearings occur after convictions that result from criminal proceedings. See, e.g. , State v. Gonzalez ,
Because defendant was not being convicted when the trial court revoked his probation, ORS 136.425(2) does *386not apply.
Affirmed.
Our conclusion is not inconsistent with State v. Hauskins ,
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.