Oregon Statutes 131.505 – Definitions for ORS 131.505 to 131.525
As used in ORS § 131.505 to 131.525, unless the context requires otherwise:
Terms Used In Oregon Statutes 131.505
- Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Person: includes individuals, corporations, associations, firms, partnerships, limited liability companies and joint stock companies. See Oregon Statutes 174.100
- Plea: In a criminal case, the defendant's statement pleading "guilty" or "not guilty" in answer to the charges, a declaration made in open court.
- Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
(1) ‘Conduct’ and ‘offense’ have the meaning provided for those terms in ORS § 161.085 and 161.505.
(2) When the same conduct or criminal episode violates two or more statutory provisions, each such violation constitutes a separate and distinct offense.
(3) When the same conduct or criminal episode, though violating only one statutory provision, results in death, injury, loss or other consequences of two or more victims, and the result is an element of the offense defined, there are as many offenses as there are victims.
(4) ‘Criminal episode’ means continuous and uninterrupted conduct that establishes at least one offense and is so joined in time, place and circumstances that such conduct is directed to the accomplishment of a single criminal objective.
(5) A person is ‘prosecuted for an offense’ when the person is charged therewith by an accusatory instrument filed in any court of this state or in any court of any political subdivision of this state, and when the action either:
(a) Terminates in a conviction upon a plea of guilty, except as provided in ORS § 131.525 (2);
(b) Proceeds to the trial stage and the jury is impaneled and sworn; or
(c) Proceeds to the trial stage when a judge is the trier of fact and the first witness is sworn.
(6) There is an ‘acquittal’ if the prosecution results in a finding of not guilty by the trier of fact or in a determination that there is insufficient evidence to warrant a conviction. [1973 c.836 § 26; 1983 c.509 § 1; 2001 c.104 § 42]