State v. V.B.

• Court: Oregon Court of Appeals
• Area(s) of Law: Civil Commitment
• Date Filed: 08-13-2014
• Case #: A148684
• Judge(s)/Court Below: Wollheim, J. for the Court; Duncan, P.J.; & Schuman, S.J.

Under ORS 426.100(1), an allegedly mentally ill person must be advised of her statutory rights by the trial court. Failure to do so constitutes a plain error.

V.B. appealed an order of involuntary commitment, asserting that the trial court failed to advise her of the right to subpoena witnesses, and argued that this constituted a plain error which the Court should correct. The state argued that, because V.B. was represented by counsel, the error was harmless, particularly because counsel would have issued any subpoenas. The Court agreed with V.B., holding that failure to provide all information about the requirements for civil commitment “constitutes an egregious error that justifies plain error review.” The Court found this was not a harmless error and exercised its discretion to correct that error. Reversed.

Share Subscribe