- Court: Oregon Court of Appeals
- Area(s) of Law: Remedies
- Date Filed: 12-22-2016
- Case #: A155896
- Judge(s)/Court Below: Egan, J. for the Court; Armstrong, P.J.; & Hadlock, C.J.
Defendant appealed a judgment of conviction for second-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon, and third-degree assault. Defendant assigned error to the trial court’s imposition of a $5,000 compensatory fine, contending that the fine did not reflect “economic damages” that the victim “necessarily incurred.” Compensatory fine statutes come into play in the injured victim has a remedy by civil action for the injuries he suffered as a result of the crime. ORS 137.101(1) specifies that the trial court may impose a fine as a “penalty,” and that the court may order the defendant to pay “any portion” of the tine as a compensatory fine. A compensatory fine requires that the victim must have a remedy by a civil action for the injuries he suffered as a result of Defendant’s crime and that punitive damages have not been previously decided in a civil case arising out of the same act and transaction. Since those requirements are met in this case the judgment is affirmed.