State v. Davis

A defendant commits the crime of escape in the third degree when he escapes custody either "during the course of an arrest or when police attempt to restrain that person pursuant to their authority to make such an arrest." Police officers yelling, "Stop, police!" is akin to a stop and not an arrest.

Defendant appealed conviction for third-degree escape, arguing that the police officers yelling, “Stop, police!” did not place him in constructive custody for the purposes of the crime of escape. He argued that, therefore, the trial court erred in denying his motion for judgment of acquittal.

The Oregon Supreme Court held that under ORS 162.145(1), in order to commit the crime of third-degree escape, the defendant must escape custody “during the course of an arrest or when police attempt to restrain that person pursuant to their authority to make such an arrest.” The Court therefore held that the police officers yelling “Stop, police!” was not enough to show that Defendant escaped during arrest or during the police’s attempt to restrain Defendant. The Court equivocated the police officers yelling, “Stop, police!” to a stop, a “temporary restraint on a person’s liberty,” rather than an arrest. State v. Ashbaugh, 349 Or. 297, 308- 09, 244 P.3d 365 (2010). The Court therefore held that the trial court erred in denying Defendant’s motion for judgment of acquittal because Defendant did not escape “during the court of an arrest” or during a police attempt to restrain him. Reversed and remanded.