Case Title: Doell v. Myers

Citation: 

Docket Number: S44882

State: oregon

Court: Oregon Supreme Court

Date: 1998-03-18T00:00:00Z

Document:
Filed:  March 19, 1998

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF OREGON

STEVE DOELL,		

	Petitioner,		 

	v.			

HARDY MYERS, Attorney General,	
State of Oregon,	

	Respondent.

(SC S44882)

	On petition to review a ballot title.

	Argued and submitted February 24, 1998.

	John A. Bennett, of Bullivant, Houser, Bailey, Pendergrass &
Hoffman, P.C., Portland, argued the cause and filed the petition
for petitioner.

	John T. Bagg, Assistant Attorney General, Salem, argued the
cause and filed the memorandum for respondent.  With him on the
memorandum were Hardy Myers, Attorney General, and Michael D.
Reynolds, Solicitor General.

	Before Carson, Chief Justice, and Gillette, Van Hoomissen,
Graber, Durham, Kulongoski, Justices.

	GILLETTE, J.

	Ballot title certified as modified.  This opinion shall
become effective in accordance with ORAP 11.30(10).

		GILLETTE, J.

		In this proceeding to review the Attorney General's
ballot title for a proposed initiative measure, petitioner(1)
challenges the legal sufficiency of the caption, the result
statements, and the summary portions of that ballot title.  For
the reasons that follow, we modify the summary portion of the
Attorney General's ballot title and, as modified, certify it.

		The proposed measure, entitled the "Mandatory Minimum
Sentencing Repeal Act of 1998," would eliminate aspects of
present law that require mandatory minimum sentences for persons
convicted of certain felony crimes.  Those aspects were
themselves part of a measure adopted by the people in 1994 as
Measure 11.  The proposed measure further would require that
those persons who have been sentenced under the former statutory
rules be resentenced.

		The Attorney General certified the following ballot
title for the proposed measure:

"REPEALS MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES FOR
CERTAIN FELONIES, REQUIRES RESENTENCING

		"RESULT OF 'YES' VOTE: 'Yes' vote repeals
mandatory minimum sentences for certain violent and
other felonies, requires resentencing.

		"RESULT OF 'NO' VOTE: 'No' vote retains mandatory
minimum sentences for certain violent and other
felonies, maintains existing sentences.

		"SUMMARY: Laws approved in 1994 as 'Measure 11'
(now, ORS 137.700 and 137.707, as amended) require
minimum sentences for certain violent felonies,
conspiracy and attempt to commit certain felonies,
committed after April 1, 1995.  Statutes require
persons convicted to serve full sentence, with no
reduction of imprisonment for post-prison supervision,
temporary leave.  Statutes require offenders aged 15 to
17 when crime committed to be prosecuted as adults. 
Measure repeals these statutes, requires persons
sentenced under them to be resentenced under Oregon
Criminal Justice Commission sentencing guidelines."

		As noted, petitioner challenges the adequacy of the
Attorney General's caption and the result statements.  We have
considered petitioner's arguments, but hold that the caption and
the result statements comply substantially with the requirements
of ORS 250.035(2)(a), (b) and (c).  See ORS 250.085(5) (requiring
that the caption and result statements in the ballot title
conform to that standard).  Petitioner's arguments to the
contrary, and our reasons for finding those arguments to be
unpersuasive, are case-specific.  Discussing them further in
these pages would not benefit bench, bar, the public, or future
challengers to ballot titles.

		We turn to the Attorney General's summary.  The summary
must summarize the measure and its major effect (or effects). 
ORS 250.035(2)(d).  Petitioner makes three arguments concerning
the summary.  First, he asserts that the public should be
informed in some fashion that "the proposed law is more lenient"
than the law that it would replace.  We disagree that such a
statement belongs in the ballot title.  Placing the word
"lenient," or some similar term or phrase, into the ballot title
would involve inserting a value-laden evaluative term into a
summary that is supposed to be impartial.  ORS 250.035(2)(d);
see, e.g., Hamilton v. Myers, 326 Or 44, 53-54, 943 P2d 214
(1997) (inappropriate to add words to a ballot title that
essentially take sides in the debate over the measure).  

		Petitioner next argues that the Attorney General's
summary does not adequately outline what petitioner styles as
"the [proposed] measure's multiple effects."  Again, we disagree. 
We hold that, given the restrictions inherent in the 85-word
limit placed on the summary by ORS 250.035(2)(d), the Attorney
General's summary substantially complies with the requirements of
law in this respect.  ORS 250.035(2)(d); 250.085(5).

		Finally, petitioner argues that the Attorney General's
summary contains a factual inaccuracy that must be corrected: The
summary incorrectly suggests that, under present law, a person
convicted of a pertinent crime must serve the entire sentence
when, in fact, the convicted person is required to serve only the
entirety of the specified minimum sentence.  The Attorney General
concedes his error.  It appears that, by twice deleting the word
"to" and by substituting the word "existing" for the longer
phrase, "Oregon Criminal Justice Commission," in the Attorney
General's summary, we can make room to correct the error. 
Accordingly, we direct that the summary be modified to read as
follows:

		SUMMARY: Laws approved in 1994 as "Measure 11"
(now, ORS 137.700 and 137.707, as amended) require
minimum sentences for certain violent felonies,
conspiracy and attempt to commit certain felonies,
committed after April 1, 1995.  With limited
exceptions, statutes require persons convicted serve
full minimum sentence, with no reduction of
imprisonment for post-prison supervision, temporary
leave.  Statutes require offenders aged 15 to 17 when
crime committed be prosecuted as adults.  Measure
repeals these statutes, requires persons sentenced
under them to be resentenced under existing sentencing
guidelines.

		In accordance with the foregoing discussion, we certify
the following ballot title for the proposed measure to the
Secretary of State:

REPEALS MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES FOR
CERTAIN FELONIES, REQUIRES RESENTENCING

		RESULT OF "YES" VOTE: "Yes" vote repeals mandatory
minimum sentences for certain violent and other
felonies, requires resentencing.

		RESULT OF "NO" VOTE: "No" vote retains mandatory
minimum sentences for certain violent and other
felonies, maintains existing sentences.

		SUMMARY: Laws approved in 1994 as "Measure 11"
(now, ORS 137.700 and 137.707, as amended) require
minimum sentences for certain violent felonies,
conspiracy and attempt to commit certain felonies,
committed after April 1, 1995.  With limited
exceptions, statutes require persons convicted serve
full minimum sentence, with no reduction of
imprisonment for post-prison supervision, temporary
leave.  Statutes require offenders aged 15 to 17 when
crime committed be prosecuted as adults.  Measure
repeals these statutes, requires persons sentenced
under them to be resentenced under existing sentencing
guidelines.

		Ballot title certified as modified.  This opinion shall
become effective in accordance with ORAP 11.30(10).

1. 	Petitioner is a person who, pursuant to the provisions
of ORS 250.067(1), timely submitted written comments respecting
the Attorney General's proposed ballot title for the proposed
measure.  Petitioner therefore is entitled to maintain the
present proceeding.  ORS 250.085(2).