State v. Cazarez-Lopez
State v. Cazarez-Lopez
Opinion of the Court
*351The state appeals in this criminal case, raising challenges to the trial court's imposition of sentence following defendant's guilty plea to one count of attempted murder (Count 1), four counts of first-degree assault (Counts 2, 3, 4, and 5), one count of felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence (Count 6), and one count of unlawful use of a weapon (Count 7). In its first assignment of error, the state contends that the "trial court erred by merging defendant's guilty plea to felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence on Count 6 into defendant's first-degree assault conviction on Count 2." In its second assignment of error, the state argues that the trial court "erred by concluding that it was precluded from imposing the sentence for defendant's first-degree assault conviction consecutive to the sentence for defendant's attempted murder conviction." For the following reasons, we conclude that the trial court erred when it merged the guilt determination on felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence into defendant's first-degree assault conviction. We further conclude that the trial court did not err when it declined to impose the sentence for defendant's first-degree assault conviction consecutive to the sentence for defendant's attempted murder conviction. Accordingly, we remand for the entry of separate convictions for one count of felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence and one count of first-degree assault, and for resentencing, and we otherwise affirm.
I. BACKGROUND
"We describe defendant's criminal conduct to provide context to the facts significant to the issues on appeal; we relate the facts in the light most favorable to the state." State v. Provancha ,
Defendant was subsequently arrested, and charged with one count of attempted murder (Count 1), four counts of first-degree assault (Counts 2, 3, 4, and 5), one count of felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence because he had previously been convicted of assaulting the victim (Count 6), and one count of unlawful use of a weapon (Count 7). Defendant pleaded guilty to the crimes as charged.
At defendant's sentencing hearing, the parties disputed whether certain counts should merge and whether the trial court could impose defendant's sentences consecutively.
*353As relevant here, the trial court concluded that the guilt determinations on Counts 2, 3, 4, and 5, for first-degree assault, merged into a single conviction for first-degree assault on Count 2. The court further concluded that the guilt determination on Count 6, for felony fourth-degree assault, merged with the conviction on Count 2, for first-degree assault, because "the fact that [defendant] had been previously convicted of another [assault against the victim] is just a[n] enhancement factor to get it to a felony" and not an element of the crime of fourth-degree assault.
With respect to consecutive sentences, the court stated that, "based on the record in front of it," the court could not make the findings necessary to order defendant to serve the sentence for the first-degree assault conviction on Count 2 consecutive to the sentence on the attempted murder conviction on Count 1. The court reasoned that it could not impose consecutive sentences under ORS 137.123(5)(a) or (b) because "it was a continuous action," there was no indication that defendant had "a separate intent" to commit more than one criminal offense, and "if you're trying to kill somebody, you are obviously then also * * * causing them serious physical injury."
II. ANALYSIS
A. Merger
We begin by addressing the state's merger argument. On appeal, the state argues that the "trial court erred by merging defendant's guilty plea to felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence into defendant's first-degree assault conviction." Specifically, the state contends that the trial court erred when it concluded that all of the elements of felony fourth-degree assault under ORS 163.160(3) were subsumed into *473the elements of first-degree *354assault under ORS 163.185 because defendant's prior conviction was "just a[n] enhancement factor." The state asserts that defendant's prior conviction for assaulting the victim is an element of felony fourth-degree assault and, therefore, all of the elements of felony fourth-degree assault under ORS 163.160(3) are not subsumed into the elements of first-degree assault under ORS 163.185. Defendant responds that "the trial court did not err in merging the guilty verdict for fourth-degree assault with the guilty verdict for first-degree assault, because the factors that elevate fourth-degree assault to a felony are sentence enhancement facts, not elements of a separate crime."
We review a trial court's decision to merge guilt determinations for legal error. State v. Breshears ,
"(1) When the same conduct or criminal episode violates two or more statutory provisions and each provision requires proof of an element that the others do not, there are as many separately punishable offenses as there are separate statutory violations."
A trial court will apply that statute and find separately punishable offenses if three conditions are met: "(1) the defendant engaged in acts that constituted the same conduct or criminal episode; (2) the defendant's acts violated two or more statutory provisions; and (3) each statutory provision requires proof of an element that the others do not." State v. White ,
*355In this case, the parties agree that the first two conditions are met-viz. , that defendant's attack on the victim constituted a single criminal episode that violated two statutory provisions, ORS 163.185 and ORS 163.160(3). Hence, the only issue presented for purposes of merger is whether those two statutory provisions each require proof of an element that the other does not. To resolve that inquiry, "we examine only the statutory elements of each offense, not the underlying factual circumstances recited in the indictment." State v. Fujimoto ,
We therefore begin by examining the statutory provisions of ORS 163.160 to determine the elements of felony fourth-degree assault. The indictment charged defendant with felony fourth-degree assault under ORS 163.160(3)(b).
"(1) A person commits the crime of assault in the fourth degree if the person:
*474"(a) Intentionally, knowingly or recklessly causes physical injury to another[.]
"* * * * *
"(2) Assault in the fourth degree is a Class A misdemeanor.
*356"(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2) of this section, assault in the fourth degree under subsection (1)(a) * * * of this section is a Class C felony if the person commits the crime of assault in the fourth degree and:
"(a) The assault is committed in the immediate presence of, or is witnessed by, the person's or the victim's minor child or stepchild or a minor child residing within the household of the person or victim;
"(b) The person has been previously convicted of violating this section, * * * and the victim in the previous conviction is the same person who is the victim of the current crime;
"(c) The person has at least three previous convictions for violating this section * * *; or
"(d) The person commits the assault knowing that the victim is pregnant."
As we explain below, for purposes of our merger analysis, the relevant elements of felony fourth-degree assault under ORS 163.160(3)(b) are: (1) knowingly; (2) causes physical injury to another; and (3) defendant having been previously convicted of assaulting the victim.
As noted, the state and defendant dispute whether defendant's previous conviction for assaulting the victim is an element of the crime of felony fourth-degree assault, or a sentence-enhancement factor that does not function as an element for purposes of our merger analysis. See State v. Baker ,
*357Defendant relies on our opinion in State v. Yong ,
In Yong , the trial court entered two convictions for felony fourth-degree assault based on two different paragraphs of ORS 163.160(3) ; the first conviction was based on the defendant's previous conviction for assaulting the same victim, and the second conviction was based on the defendant "committ[ing] the assault in the immediate presence of the victim's child, who witnessed the assault." Id . at 543,
We turn to whether the enumerated circumstances that elevate fourth-degree assault to a felony under ORS 163.160(3) constitute alternative ways of proving the element of aggravation and, as such, are elements of that crime. As we observed in Yong , "the structure of the subsection defining when fourth-degree assault may be aggravated to a felony is similar to the structure[ ] of" ORS 163.095, which defines aggravated murder.
Additionally, in other contexts, we have consistently analyzed the element of aggravation under ORS 163.160(3) as an element of the crime of felony fourth-degree assault. For example, in State v. Reynolds ,
Furthermore, in the context of a defendant stipulating to a prior conviction for felony fourth-degree assault, we have analyzed the prior conviction as an element of the crime of felony fourth-degree assault. See State v. Hambrick ,
Finally, in the context of motions for judgment of acquittal, we have recognized that the crimes of felony fourth-degree assault and fourth-degree assault are separate offenses because felony fourth-degree assault requires the state to prove the additional element of aggravation beyond a reasonable doubt. See State v. Cox ,
Thus, for purposes of merger, we conclude that fourth-degree assault and felony fourth-degree assault are distinct criminal offenses and the enumerated circumstances that elevate fourth-degree assault to a felony under ORS 163.160(3) constitute alternative ways of proving the element of aggravation. Accordingly, in this case, the elements of felony fourth-degree assault are: (1) knowingly; (2) causes physical injury to another; and (3) defendant having been previously convicted of assaulting the victim.
*477Having determined the elements of felony fourth-degree assault, we now turn to the elements of first-degree assault. The indictment charged defendant for first-degree assault under ORS 163.185(1)(a).
With respect to the third question under ORS 161.067(1), whether each statutory provision requires proof of an element that the other does not, we first note that "to act intentionally presupposes acting knowingly, and to inflict serious physical injury presupposes physical injury." State v. O'Hara ,
By elevating fourth-degree assault to a felony, ORS 163.160(3) expresses a legislative policy choice to punish more severely those people who repeatedly assault the same victim. In assaulting the victim in this case, defendant used a dangerous weapon and he chose to assault a victim whom he had previously assaulted. Defendant argues, in effect, that this judgment of conviction should not reflect that the victim was his wife or that she had been previously assaulted by defendant.
B. Consecutive Sentencing
We turn to the state's second assignment of error. The state argues that the trial court "erred by concluding *363that it was precluded from imposing the sentence for defendant's first-degree assault conviction consecutive to the sentence for defendant's attempted murder conviction."
ORS 137.123(5) provides:
"The court has discretion to impose consecutive terms of imprisonment for separate convictions arising out of a continuous and uninterrupted course of conduct only if the court finds:
"(a) That the criminal offense for which a consecutive sentence is contemplated was not merely an incidental violation of a separate statutory provision in the course of the commission of a more serious crime but rather was an indication of defendant's willingness to commit more than one criminal offense; or
"(b) The criminal offense for which a consecutive sentence is contemplated caused or created a risk of causing greater or qualitatively different loss, injury or harm to the victim * * * than was caused or threatened by the other *364offense or offenses committed during a continuous and uninterrupted course of conduct."
The trial court concluded that the attack was a "continuous action" and that it "cannot make the findings based on the record in front of it in regards to doing any consecutive sentencing" under ORS 137.123(5)(a) or (b). Specifically, the trial court found:
"I don't think there was a separate intent. * * * I have no facts in front of me to suggest that his entire intent wasn't to just cause her physical injury. * * * I mean, * * * serious physical injury includes murder[.]
"* * * * *
"The definition of serious physical injury includes killing somebody.
"* * * * *
"So, therefore, if you're trying to kill somebody, you are obviously then also * * * causing them serious physical injury with a weapon. That's why to me there's not a distinction between the two in which the court feels confident the court can make the findings necessary to do * * * consecutive sentences."
Additionally, the trial court stated that, in case it erred with respect to its authority to impose consecutive sentences, it wanted to make it "clear [to] * * * the Court of Appeals" that it was "trying to max out whatever time is available to it because of the horrific nature of these particular * * * crimes." We understand the court to have ruled that it was precluded, as a matter of law, from imposing consecutive sentences for defendant's attempted murder conviction and his first-degree assault conviction because the state failed to adduce sufficient evidence for the court to make the predicate factual findings under ORS 137.123(5).
Accordingly, we consider whether a consecutive sentence would have been authorized under ORS 137.123 (5)(a) or (b). See State v. Traylor ,
Under ORS 137.123(5)(a), "the question is whether there is any evidence in the record to support a finding that defendant's commission of first-degree assault was 'not merely' 'incidental' to his commission of attempted * * * murder, but, instead, demonstrated a separate and distinct intent to commit the lesser offense." Edwards ,
Nothing in the record of this case supports an inference that defendant's commission of first-degree assault was "not merely * * * incidental" to his commission of attempted murder. ORS 137.123(5)(a). The record is silent as to the lapse of time in between the repeated blows with the machete, and the state failed to adduce any evidence that defendant struck any one blow with an intention different from the intention with which he struck any other blow. In other words, nothing suggests that defendant struck any one blow intending only *366to injure the victim. The state's argument that defendant had not only an intent to kill but also a separate intent to inflict serious physical injury "because defendant * * * struck the victim not only on her head but on different places on her body" is speculative at best. There is no evidence that, when the victim attempted to defend herself, the multiple blows to the victim's arms and hands-which caused her right arm to be partially severed from her body at the elbow, exposed the bones and tendons in her wrists and hands, and broke her right arm in several places-were struck in any qualitatively different way than the blows to the victims face and head. See Provancha ,
2. ORS 137.123(5)(b)
Under ORS 137.123(5)(b), "[t]o determine whether an offense 'caused or created a risk of causing greater or qualitatively different loss, injury or harm' than another offense under the statute," we apply the following analysis:
"[A] court must (1) determine which offense is the offense for which a consecutive sentence is contemplated; (2) compare the harms-real or potential-that arose from that offense with those that arose from the offense to which it will be sentenced consecutively; (3) determine whether the offense for which a consecutive sentence is contemplated caused or risked causing any harm that the other did not; and, if so, (4) determine whether the harm that is unique to that offense is greater than or qualitatively *480different from the harms caused or threatened by the other."
*367State v. Rettmann ,
Our application of that principle in Provancha and Edwards is instructive. In Provancha , the defendant struck the victim in the head multiple times with a baseball bat.
For similar reasons, the record in this case does not support a consecutive sentence under ORS 137.123 (5)(b). The trial court contemplated a consecutive sentence for first-degree assault.
III. CONCLUSION
In sum, the trial court erred when it merged the guilt determination on felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence into defendant's first-degree assault conviction. The trial court did not err when it declined to impose the sentence for defendant's first-degree assault conviction consecutive to the sentence for defendant's attempted murder conviction.
Remanded for the entry of separate convictions for one count of felony fourth-degree assault constituting domestic violence and one count of first-degree assault, and for resentencing; otherwise affirmed.
As discussed in more detail below, the "court has discretion to impose consecutive terms of imprisonment for separate convictions arising out of a continuous and uninterrupted course of conduct only if the court finds" that there "was an indication of defendant's willingness to commit more than one criminal offense" or that "[t]he criminal offense for which a consecutive sentence is contemplated caused or created a risk of causing greater or qualitatively different loss, injury or harm to the victim." ORS 137.123(5).
In discussing former ORS 161.062(1) (1985), repealed by Or. Laws 1999, ch. 136, § 1, "the nearly identical precursor to ORS 161.067(1)," State v. Parkins ,
"clearly intended that criminal records accurately reflect all crimes actually committed and that a person who commits multiple crimes by the same conduct or during the same criminal episode should have a criminal record reflecting each crime committed rather than only a single conviction which would not accurately portray the nature and extent of that person's conduct."
State v. Crotsley ,
Count 6 of the indictment alleged, in part: "The defendant, on or about March 19, 2015, * * * did unlawfully and knowingly cause physical injury to [the victim], defendant having previously been convicted of assaulting the above named victim." ORS 163.160 has been amended since defendant committed his crime; however, because those amendments do not affect our analysis, we refer to the current version of the statute. See Or. Laws 2015, ch. 639, § 2; Or. Laws 2017, ch. 337, § 1.
ORS 163.095 provides, in part, that, "[a]s used in ORS 163.105 and this section, 'aggravated murder' means murder as defined in ORS 163.115 which is committed under, or accompanied by, any of the following circumstances[.]" ORS 163.095 then lists various aggravating circumstances set out as subsections "under which murder becomes subject to the enhanced penalties for aggravated murder." Barrett ,
ORS 132.540(2) (2001) provided that "[t]he indictment shall not contain allegations that the defendant has previously been convicted of the violation of any statute which may subject the defendant to enhanced penalties, except where the conviction constitutes a material element of the crime charged."ORS 132.540 was amended in 2009. Or. Laws 2009, ch. 180, § 1. ORS 132.540(3) now provides that "[t]he indictment must allege that the defendant has previously been convicted of an offense when the previous conviction constitutes a material element of the charged offense."
Count 2 of the indictment alleged, in part: "The defendant * * * did unlawfully and intentionally cause serious physical injury to [the victim] by means of a machete, a dangerous weapon, * * * by chopping her face."
The indictment charged defendant with felony fourth-degree assault "constituting domestic violence" pursuant to ORS 132.586 because defendant knowingly caused physical injury to his spouse. See ORS 135.230(3) (defining domestic violence). Under ORS 132.586(2), "[w]hen a crime involves domestic violence, the accusatory instrument may plead, and the prosecution may prove at trial, domestic violence as an element of the crime." We express no opinion on whether the element of "constituting domestic violence" would also preclude merger in this case.
The state also contends that "[t]he trial court erroneously concluded that it was precluded from reviewing the record and making factual findings." We disagree; the trial court expressly relied on the state's sentencing memorandum and reviewed "the record in front of it" to make its decision. The only additional evidence offered by the state that the court decided would not be helpful to its analysis were photographs of the victim's injuries. Given the graphic detail of the attack and the victim's injuries set forth in the written record as described above, we agree with the trial court that the photographs would be of little value in determining whether defendant had a separate intent to inflict only serious physical injury. The state never raised an argument that the trial court was required to admit that evidence or make factual findings, or that the court had merely stated legal conclusions. Thus, the error alleged here is unpreserved. See State v. Bucholz ,
As noted, the trial court merged the guilt determinations on Counts 2, 3, 4, and 5, for first-degree assault, into a single conviction for first-degree assault on Count 2. We consider all of the assaultive conduct charged in those counts because, when multiple guilt determinations for the same crime merge into a single conviction, the scope of the conviction includes all of the underlying conduct. See Barrett ,
Accordingly, we consider all of the blows with the machete to the victim's face (Count 2), head (Count 5), arms, and hands (Counts 3 and 4) in our analysis under ORS 137.123(5).
Because the indictment alleges only that defendant attempted to kill the victim on the date of the attack, and does not rely on any specific conduct to form a basis for that allegation, we presume that the attempted murder charge encompasses all of defendant's assaultive conduct. On this record, the state's suggestion to the contrary is mere speculation.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.