State v Akerman

Under ORS 137.106(1), the state must provide sufficient evidence of: (1) criminal activities, (2) damages, and (3) a causal relationship between the two.

Defendant was detained by law enforcement when it was discovered that he was on the victim’s property with some stolen items and in possession of methamphetamine. Defendant was indicted for unlawful possession of a controlled substance and for burglary in the first degree. He plead guilty and was convicted of unlawful possession of a controlled substance, and in return for his guilty plea, the State dismissed the burglary charge. The trial court ordered Defendant to pay $12,641 in restitution for items that he stole and for similar items that were stolen from the victim’s house over a two-year period. Defendant assigned error to the trial court’s ruling that there was a sufficient causal connection between Defendant’s criminal activities and the items stolen. Under ORS 137.103(1), criminal activity is any offense with respect to which a defendant is convicted of, or any other criminal conduct admitted by the defendant. A defendant “cannot be required to pay restitution for [economic] damages arising out of criminal activity for which he was not convicted or which he did not admit having committed.” The Court concluded that the trial court erred when it ordered restitution for the stolen property that was not causally related to the burglary charge that Defendant admitted to. Remanded for resentencing, otherwise affirmed.