Oregon Supreme Court ruling has state reviewing, recalculating prison sentences – and 17 released inmates back behind bars
KTVZ
(Update: Video Added)
SALEM, Ore. (KTVZ) — Sentences are being recalculated for hundreds of current or former Oregon prison inmates after a state Supreme Court clarification prompted a Department of Justice review – and that includes over a dozen released inmates who have been returned to custody.
The court’s clarification to its July 10 decision in the case of Torres-Lopez v. Fahrion has prompted a review of DOJ guidance to the Oregon Department of Corrections on the topic of sentence recalculation, impacting hundreds of adults in custody and many who have already been released, DOC officials said late Tuesday.
“We recognize that the Oregon Supreme Court’s decision to change sentence calculations has significant and immediate impacts on victims, survivors, the formerly incarcerated, and their families,” DOC spokesperson Amber Campbell said.
“As we implement these changes, the Department of Corrections remains firmly committed to public safety, accountability, and full transparency throughout every step of this process,” she added in a news release that continues in full below:
In close consultation with the Governor’s Office, DOJ, and out partners in public safety, DOC has brought back some formerly incarcerated individuals into custody because of a recalculation of their release date per this recent Supreme Court ruling and DOJ guidance. DOC is also actively recalculating the sentences of several hundred adults who are currently in custody.
The role of DOC in the criminal justice system is to obtain sentencing judgments from the courts, accurately provide all affected parties with a release date, incarcerate those individuals for their full sentence, and partner with counties to oversee those who are released on parole and probation.
The Oregon Supreme Court’s Torres-Lopez v. Fahrion decision significantly constrained DOC’s discretionary authority in the sentence calculation process. DOC’s legal counsel, the DOJ, gave advice that a literal interpretation of court judgments was the correct course of action. This resulted in a hand review of almost 11,000 sentences whose judgments could be affected by Torres-Lopez v. Fahrion.
Many judgments were unclear. For instance, Case No. 20CR08127 in Jackson County had several counts in one sentencing document. Each count specified, “Defendant shall receive presentence incarceration credits pursuant to ORS 137.370(4) from 6-10-21.”
Before the Oregon Supreme Court’s Torres-Lopez v. Fahrion decision, DOC would have only applied credit for time served to one count, despite what the documentation indicates. However, in this case, the formerly incarcerated person’s release date was reduced by several years due to duplicate applications of “Time Served Credit” in the judgment. Other examples of unclear sentencing documentation may be seen at: Judgment Examples.
After the Oregon Supreme Court’s clarification on Nov. 14, the DOJ supplied new advice to DOC, prompting another recalculation for a subset of these affected cases.
For those judgments containing consecutive sentences within a single case, DOC is now applying Time Served Credit to the sum of the consecutive sentences. These recalculations found that 20 formerly incarcerated individuals owe additional time, of which 17 have been returned to custody.
DOC said it wishes to thank Oregon State Police, county parole and probation officers, county sheriffs, and local law enforcement for their assistance in bringing these individuals back into custody safely.
Crime victims who want to receive updates about an offender’s recalculated release date should subscribe to VISOR (Victim Information System in Oregon), if they haven’t already. You can also visit the Victim Information System in Oregon to receive alerts about changes to an offender’s current location, custody status, and release date.
DOC has recommended that district attorneys and defense attorneys review judgments with their courts, to ensure the sentencing documentation matches the agreements made between the parties.
To ensure clarity and support for everyone impacted, DOC has established several ways for affected parties to ask questions about changes to sentences. For updated information, you can subscribe to DOC Sentence Recalculation.