Summary
correcting as plain error trial court's imposition of $11,760 in attorney fees on the 64 year-old defendant, who had been sentenced to 186 months in prison, where there was no evidence regarding the defendant's ability to pay the fees
Summary of this case from State v. BelowOpinion
Nos. 11C45285 A151445.
2014-04-30
STATE of Oregon, Plaintiff–Respondent, v. Gordon Fraser STRONG, Defendant–Appellant.
Peter Gartlan, Chief Defender, and Mary M. Reese, Senior Deputy Public Defender, Office of Public Defense Services, filed the brief for appellant. Ellen F. Rosenblum, Attorney General, Anna M. Joyce, Solicitor General, and Tiffany Keast, Assistant Attorney General, filed the brief for respondent.
Peter Gartlan, Chief Defender, and Mary M. Reese, Senior Deputy Public Defender, Office of Public Defense Services, filed the brief for appellant. Ellen F. Rosenblum, Attorney General, Anna M. Joyce, Solicitor General, and Tiffany Keast, Assistant Attorney General, filed the brief for respondent.
Before SERCOMBE, Presiding Judge, and HADLOCK, Judge, and TOOKEY, Judge.
PER CURIAM.
Defendant appeals a judgment convicting him of five counts of first-degree sexual abuse, asserting that the trial court plainly erred in ordering him to pay $11,760 in count-appointed attorney fees in the absence of evidence in the record of his ability to pay those fees. SeeORS 151.505(3) (a court may not order a defendant to pay fees unless the defendant “is or may be able” to pay them); ORS 161.665(4) (same); see also State v. Kanuch, 231 Or.App. 20, 24, 217 P.3d 1082 (2009) (the state bears the burden of proving that a defendant is or may be able to pay fees). Defendant points out that, at the time of sentencing, he was 64 years old, that he was sentenced to 186 months of imprisonment, and that no evidence was adduced that he had an ability to pay the fees. We agree with defendant that the trial court in this case committed plain error. See State v. Coverstone, 260 Or.App. 714, 320 P.3d 670 (2014). Furthermore, for the reasons set forth in Coverstone, 260 Or.App. at 717, 320 P.3d 670, we conclude that it is appropriate to exercise our discretion to correct the error in this case.
Portion of judgment requiring defendant to pay attorney fees reversed; otherwise affirmed.