- Court: Oregon Court of Appeals
- Area(s) of Law: Criminal Procedure
- Date Filed: 03-19-2014
- Case #: A150874
- Judge(s)/Court Below: Ortega, P. J., DeVore, J., and De Muniz, S.J.
Defendant appeals conviction of second-degree child neglect. Defendant's child was found wandering the street unsupervised on June 1 and June 17, 2011. Both times Defendant was cited with second-degree child neglect. Defendant worked with DHS to create a safer environment for the child after the first citation. Defendant moved for a judgment of acquittal at trial. The trial court denied the motion and the jury found the defendant guilty based on the June 17 citation. Defendent claimed the state failed to establish a "gross deviation" from the standard of care a reasonable person would exercise. Under a totality of the circumstances, the evidence was insufficient to prove gross deviation. This prevented a reasonable factfinder from finding the essential elements of the crime proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Reversed.