Opinion

Dunn v. Board of Parole

  • 310 Or. App. 249
  • 487 P.3d 410
Court
Court of Appeals of Oregon
Filed
Mar 31, 2021
Status
Published
On the bench
Armstrong
Cited by
4 cases
Authority
More cited than 65.1%

challenge to post-prison supervision jail sanction mooted by comple- tion of sanction

How later courts described this case

  • challenge to post-prison supervision jail sanction mooted by comple- tion of sanction

Written by the judges who cited it.

The opinion

249

Argued and submitted January 30, 2020, petition for review dismissed as moot

March 31, 2021

DOUGLAS WAYNE DUNN,

Petitioner,

v.

BOARD OF PAROLE AND

POST-PRISON SUPERVISION,

Respondent.

Board of Parole and Post-Prison Supervision

A169830

487 P3d 410

Petitioner, who was serving a period of post-prison supervision after

incarceration for convictions dating from 2002, violated the conditions of his

post-prison supervision by committing new crimes. The Board of Parole and

Post-Prison Supervision imposed a sanction of 120 days’ jail time, revoking peti-

tioner’s post-prison supervision for that same period. The sanction and revoca-

tion had the effect of delaying petitioner’s completion of his remaining super-

vision period. Petitioner, who waived his right to a formal evidentiary hearing

before the board, seeks judicial review of the board’s order, contending that his

waiver was not knowing and voluntary. Held: On the board’s motion, the Court of

Appeals dismissed the petition as moot. Petitioner has since served the 120-day

jail sanction and has since been convicted of the offenses underlying the sanc-

tion. Additionally, petitioner has been sentenced on those convictions to a term

of 120 months in prison and 36 months’ post-prison supervision. The period of

post-prison supervision remaining on petitioner’s prior convictions will be served

concurrently with the period of post-prison supervision on petitioner’s new con-

victions. The court rejected petitioner’s contention that adverse collateral con-

sequences from the outstanding finding of a violation and sanction prevent his

challenge from becoming moot. Thus, reversal of the sanction would be of no

practical benefit to petitioner; hence, the petition for review is moot.

Petition for review dismissed as moot.

Kyle Krohn, Deputy Public Defender, argued the cause

for petitioner. Also on the briefs was Ernest G. Lannet,

Chief Defender, Criminal Appellate Section, Office of Public

Defense Services.

Christopher Perdue, Assistant Attorney General, argued

the cause for respondent. Also on the briefs were Ellen F.

Rosenblum, Attorney General, and Benjamin Gutman,

Solicitor General.

250 Dunn v. Board of Parole

Before Armstrong, Presiding Judge, and Tookey, Judge,

and Aoyagi, Judge.

ARMSTRONG, P. J.

Petition for review dismissed as moot.

Cite as 310 Or App 249 (2021) 251

ARMSTRONG, P. J.

Petitioner, who was serving a period of post-prison

supervision after incarceration for convictions dating from

2002, violated the conditions of his post-prison supervision

by committing new crimes. The Board of Parole and Post-

Prison Supervision imposed a sanction of 120 days’ jail time,

revoking petitioner’s post-prison supervision for that same

period. The sanction and revocation had the effect of delay-

ing petitioner’s completion of his remaining supervision

period. Petitioner, who waived his right to a formal eviden-

tiary hearing before the board, seeks judicial review of the

board’s order, contending that his waiver was not knowing

and voluntary. He further contends that the board’s findings

on the merits of the violations are not supported by substan-

tial evidence.

The board has filed a motion to dismiss the peti-

tion, contending that it is moot, because petitioner has since

served the 120-day jail sanction and has since been con-

victed of the offenses underlying the sanction—possession

of methamphetamine, first-degree robbery, second-degree

robbery, fourth-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon,

first-degree theft, and menacing. Additionally, petitioner

has been sentenced on those convictions to a term of 120

months in prison and 36 months’ post-prison supervision.

The period of post-prison supervision remaining on petition-

er’s prior convictions will be served concurrently with the

period of post-prison supervision on petitioner’s new convic-

tions. Thus, the board contends, a reversal of the sanction

would be of no practical benefit to petitioner; hence, the peti-

tion for review is moot.

Petitioner responds that there are adverse collateral

consequences from the outstanding finding of a violation and

sanction that prevent his challenge from becoming moot.

He notes that his new convictions are pending on appeal

and that, in the event they are overturned, the board’s revo-

cation of post-prison supervision on his former convictions

would have the effect of extending his time under supervi-

sion. Petitioner contends, additionally, that the board’s order

could adversely affect him, because it could be considered in

the impositions of sanctions for future violations. See OAR

252 Dunn v. Board of Parole

255-075-0073(8)(c) (permitting consideration of the history

and nature of violations of post-prison supervision).

We agree with the board that the petition for judi-

cial review is moot. When a sentence or condition of supervi-

sion has expired, a challenge to the sentence or supervision

condition becomes moot, because there is no effective relief

that may be granted against the expired sentence or con-

dition. See, e.g., State v. Dick, 169 Or App 649, 650, 10 P3d

315 (2000) (dismissing as moot challenge to order revoking

defendant’s probation because defendant had “already com-

pleted his sentence”). Petitioner has completed his 120-day

sanction; thus, our case law guides us to conclude that his

challenge to the sanction is moot.

Collateral consequences can sometimes prevent a

controversy from being moot. Barnes v. Thompson, 159 Or

App 383, 386, 977 P2d 431, rev den, 329 Or 447, (1999). A

collateral consequence “is a probable adverse consequence to

the defendant as a result of the challenged action.” State v.

Hauskins, 251 Or App 34, 36, 281 P3d 669 (2012). Petitioner

contends that an adverse consequence of the sanction is the

extension of his post-prison supervision time on the under-

lying offenses.

Petitioner is currently serving a prison term on his

new convictions, which will be followed by 36 months of post-

prison supervision, with which the remaining post-prison

supervision period on his earlier offenses will be served con-

currently. OAR 213-012-0040 (requiring that multiple PPS

terms be served concurrently). Petitioner will thus serve the

same amount of supervision time post-prison whether or not

the sanction is overturned. The extended post-prison super-

vision time as a result of the sanction therefore will have no

practical effect on petitioner’s rights, thus not saving peti-

tioner’s challenge from mootness. See Brumnett v. PSRB,

315 Or 402, 405-06, 848 P2d 1194 (1993) (“Cases that are

otherwise justiciable, but in which a court’s decision no lon-

ger will have a practical effect on or concerning the rights of

the parties, will be dismissed as moot.”)

Petitioner cites the remaining post-prison supervi-

sion time as a potential collateral consequence if his new con-

victions are overturned on appeal. That contention requires

Cite as 310 Or App 249 (2021) 253

us to speculate that petitioner will succeed on his appeal

in obtaining a reversal of at least some of his convictions,

resulting in a remand for a new trial or resentencing, such

that a future sentence will no longer include post-prison

supervision time of a duration sufficient to subsume the

remaining post-prison supervision time on petitioner’s ear-

lier convictions. That is too remote a possibility to preclude

mootness. See Brumnett, 315 Or at 407 (“The mere possibil-

ity that the state might seek * * * an order at some future

date is not sufficient to make dismissal [for mootness] inap-

propriate.”); Dept. of Human Services v. S. M. S., 281 Or App

720, 722, 383 P3d 991 (2016) (“To preclude mootness, the

asserted consequence ‘must have a significant probability of

actually occurring; a speculative or merely possible effect is

not enough.’ ” (Quoting Oregon School Activities v. Board of

Education, 244 Or App 506, 510, 260 P3d 735 (2011).)).

In State v. Stroud, 293 Or App 314, 318, 428 P3d

949 (2018), we held that the legal detriment of a finding of a

probation violation with respect to possible future probation

sanctions was a collateral consequence that prevented an

appeal from becoming moot. Citing Stroud, petitioner con-

tends that here, similarly, the board’s determination that

petitioner has violated the terms of his post-prison supervi-

sion is an adverse legal consequence with respect to possible

future sanctions for possible future violations of post-prison

supervision. We agree with petitioner that it is possible that

the current sanction could adversely affect future sanctions

if petitioner were ever to violate the terms of post-prison

supervision on his new convictions. But, unlike in Stroud,

where the adverse legal consequence related to possible

future sanctions for violations of the probation the petitioner

was then serving, here, the possible adverse effect relates

to possible sanctions for future violations of post-prison

supervision that petitioner will serve after he completes a

prison term of 120 months on his new convictions. Not only

is that possible adverse consequence speculative, it is one

that would bear minimal significance relative to the seri-

ous nature of the crimes that gave rise to the sanction. We

agree with the state that, as a collateral consequence, it is

one that is of such remote likelihood and minimal effect that

it is legally insufficient to prevent the appeal from being

254 Dunn v. Board of Parole

moot. See State v. K. J. B., 362 Or 777, 786, 416 P3d 291

(2018) (“[W]hen the moving party takes the position that a

case has become moot, the responding party must identify

any collateral consequences that * * * she contends has the

effect of producing the required practical effects of a judicial

decision. At that point, the moving party must demonstrate

that any of those identified collateral consequences either

does not exist or is legally insufficient.”). We reject without

discussion petitioner’s contention that his challenge to the

sanction is one that we should consider under ORS 14.175,

as capable of repetition yet evading review.

Petition for review dismissed as moot.

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.

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