State v. Chavez-Meza ( 2019 )

373
Argued and submitted January 30; affirmed December 18, 2019; petition for
review denied May 21, 2020 (366 Or 493)
STATE OF OREGON,
Plaintiff-Respondent,
v.
JUAN JOSE CHAVEZ-MEZA,
Defendant-Appellant.
Washington County Circuit Court
C153062CR; A164080
456 P3d 322
Defendant appeals from a judgment of conviction for rape in the second degree,
sexual abuse in the first degree, and sodomy in the second degree. Defendant
assigns error to the trial court’s denial of his motion to suppress statements that
defendant made to police, contending that the statements were not made volun-
tarily. Defendant argues that statements that police made to defendant during
an interrogation amounted to promises of leniency. The state argues that the
detectives’ statements were not promises of leniency and that defendant’s state-
ments were made voluntarily. Held: In light of the totality of circumstances of
the interrogation, the state met its burden to demonstrate that defendant’s state-
ments to the police were made voluntarily and that his will was not overborne.
The trial court did not err in denying defendant’s motion to suppress.
Affirmed.
Oscar Garcia, Judge.
Meredith Allen, Deputy Public Defender, argued the
cause for appellant. Also on the briefs was Ernest G. Lannet,
Chief Defender, Criminal Appellate Section, Office of Public
Defense Services.
Patrick M. Ebbett, Assistant Attorney General, argued
the cause for respondent. Also on the briefs were Ellen F.
Rosenblum, Attorney General, and Benjamin Gutman,
Solicitor General.
Before Armstrong, Presiding Judge, and Tookey, Judge,
and Shorr, Judge.
SHORR, J.
Affirmed.
374 State v. Chavez-Meza
SHORR, J.
Defendant appeals from a judgment of conviction
for one count of second-degree rape, one count of first-
degree sexual abuse, and one count of second-degree sod-
omy. Defendant raises four assignments of error. We write
only to address defendant’s second assignment of error, that
the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress state-
ments that defendant had made to the police.1 We conclude
that the state met its burden to demonstrate that defen-
dant’s statements to the police were made voluntarily, and
we therefore affirm the trial court’s denial of defendant’s
motion to suppress.
When we review a trial court’s denial of a motion to
suppress in this circumstance,
“we accept the court’s findings of fact if there is any evi-
dence to support them. If findings are not made on all such
facts, and there is evidence from which such facts could be
decided more than one way, we will presume that the facts
were decided in a manner consistent with the ultimate
conclusion, e.g., voluntariness or lack thereof, made by the
trial court. Whether the facts found by the trial court are
sufficient to sustain the trial court’s ultimate conclusion
regarding voluntariness is a question of law that we review
for legal error.”
State v. Ruiz-Piza, 262 Or App 563, 564, 325 P3d 802 (2014)
(citations, internal quotation marks, and ellipses omit-
ted). We state the facts in a manner consistent with that
standard.
The 12-year-old victim in this case, A, disclosed to
a representative of a child abuse assessment center that she
had been raped. A told investigators that a “Hispanic guy”
raped her in the back of his car, a black Mitsubishi, at a park
in Hillsboro. Later, A told investigators that she had con-
nected with the man on Livelinks, a telephone dating ser-
vice. A gave the man’s phone number to Detective Townsend
of the Hillsboro Police Department, who discovered that that
1
Defendant also assigns error to the trial court’s denial of defendant’s motion
in limine to exclude certain identification evidence and, in a supplemental brief,
to the court’s imposition of restitution following the parties’ stipulated sentenc-
ing agreement. We reject those assignments of error without further discussion.
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 375
phone number was registered to defendant. A’s phone records
showed approximately 170 contacts with that phone number.
A also identified defendant in a photographic laydown. When
A saw defendant’s photo, she said, “That’s him. That’s the
guy,” and that she was “a hundred percent positive.”
After A’s identification, Townsend contacted defen-
dant and asked him to meet for an interview. Defendant
agreed. Defendant arrived “on his own volition” at the
Hillsboro Police Department and met with Townsend and
another detective, Hahn. At the beginning of the inter-
view, Townsend told defendant that he was “not going to
jail, you’re not under arrest, you’re free to leave here at any
point.” Townsend advised defendant of his Miranda rights
and then began asking defendant questions about his home
life and his and his family’s phone and internet habits.
Defendant provided information about his wife and chil-
dren, their phone numbers, their internet habits, and other
general background information, such as how long he and
his wife had been married and what she did for a living.
Townsend and Hahn also inquired about defendant’s vehi-
cles and his familiarity with Livelinks.
Townsend showed defendant A’s photograph and
told him that A had identified him in a photographic lineup
as the man who had sexually assaulted her. Defendant said
that he did not recognize A, and he denied having sex with
her. Townsend asked defendant if he would take a polygraph
test and provide a DNA sample. Defendant agreed, and said
he was “pretty sure” he would pass. Then the following col-
loquy ensued between Townsend and defendant:
“DET. TOWNSEND: So—so what I’m looking for is
some honesty about what happened.
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah.
“DET. TOWNSEND: —what happened. And if you just
made a mistake, it’s not like I’m going to call your wife and
ruin your life, okay?
“[DEFENDANT]: No, no, no.
“DET. TOWNSEND: I just want to know what hap-
pened and I want to have some honesty that we can pass
along to the court instead of all denials.
376 State v. Chavez-Meza
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah.
“DET. TOWNSEND: You know?
“DET. TOWNSEND: And if it happened, it happened,
it was a mistake, we’ll move on.
“* * * * *
“DET. TOWNSEND: But what I’m saying is for the
outcome of this case, for the district attorney or the judge or
whoever that’s going to be reviewing this case, they have the
one side of this story that the victim provided, right?
“[DEFENDANT]: Mm-hm.
“DET. TOWNSEND: Which is very clear and accu-
rate. And then we have your side of the story that you’re
giving, which is all denial about what happened. And so I’m
just saying, it would be better for you to tell us what really
happened so we can—we can consider both sides of the story.
And right now I only have one side of the story. You know?
“[DEFENDANT]: About what really happened about
what?
“DET. TOWNSEND: With this gal, because I know
that you met up with her and something happened. If what
she’s saying actually didn’t happen, then you need to tell
me that. Just say, ‘I met with her and nothing happened,’
or something. But by you saying you don’t know her, you’ve
never seen her, met her, anything, I don’t—I don’t believe
that.
“[DEFENDANT]: Like I already told you, I mean, I’m
telling you the truth.”
(Emphases added.)
Hahn then began to interrogate defendant about
why he expressed doubt about passing a polygraph test.
Defendant explained that sometimes his English was not “a
hundred percent.”
“DET. HAHN: But that doesn’t have anything to do
with a lie detector test, right? That’s not what she’s ask-
ing you. This is about your confidence in whether or not
you would pass it. And you—your answer was that you’re
not confident you’re going to pass it. Which is why—why
Detective Townsend is telling you that you need to be
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 377
honest, because it’s very apparent that something hap-
pened and you’re just not coming clean about it. And again,
I think that now is probably the best time for you to just say
like, ‘This is what happened.’ I mean, she already told you
you’re going to walk out of here today.
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah, but I mean—
“DET. HAHN: And it doesn’t matter—
“[DEFENDANT]: Okay.
“DET. HAHN: —that you have a daughter who is thir-
teen, fourteen years old. Sometimes people have urges that
they can’t control. And even if they have a wife and kids,
like, they can’t control it and they go beyond that.
“[DEFENDANT]: No. That’s not okay. And I’m being
honest to you guys. I mean—
“DET. TOWNSEND: And like she’s saying, this is the
time for you to tell us what happened. And, you know, this
gal is saying, [defendant], that you raped her. Okay? If you
didn’t rape her and it was just you guys made out or there
was just a little bit of this and a little bit of that and not the
full thing that she’s saying, we need to know that informa-
tion because it does make a difference.
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah.
“DET. TOWNSEND: Okay? And so that’s why this—
this is the time, you know, because you’re not going to jail.
You came here yourself to tell us.
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah.
“DET. HAHN: To meet with us today. And so that’s—
we gave you this opportunity to talk about what really,
really happened.
“DET. TOWNSEND: And this girl, she’s not just going
to randomly pick some dude and magically know, ‘I should
tell them this phone number and I should tell them this
description of the car and I should tell them this descrip-
tion of the person and, gee, I sure hope that all the stars
align and everything is exactly right,’ because it just doesn’t
work that way.
“I mean, she’s given enough detail to—that it all goes
together. So she is describing exactly your car, she is
describing exactly your phone number, she is describing
378 State v. Chavez-Meza
exactly you and she picked you out of a lineup. And there’s
no way—
“* * * * *
“—that she’s just randomly doing that and guessing cor-
rectly on all that information.
“Which, again, tells us, we’re trained investigators, that
something happened. That you met up with her and maybe,
like Detective Townsend said, maybe you didn’t rape her,
but there was some contact. I—the evidence is very—
“[DEFENDANT]: No.
“DET. TOWNSEND: —obvious, there was some con-
tact between the two of you. And it will look better for you
in the future if you are honest about that contact now than if
you don’t come clean about it now.
“* * * * *
“DET. HAHN: And it’s probably really hard for you to
talk about. We totally get that. But you—it will be better
for you to get it off your chest and just let it out. It appears
to me that you’re struggling. I can see it in your face that
this is hard for you.
“[DEFENDANT]: You know, if somebody told you the
same thing to you, something you didn’t do, do you feel
comfortable?
“* * * * *
“DET. HAHN: [This is a] solid case and there’s no
doubt in my mind that this is going to be prosecuted.
“[DEFENDANT]: Mm-hm?
“DET. TOWNSEND: We have many cases like this
where we have very little evidence. It’s kind of like a ‘he
said/she said’ kind of thing. We have a ton of evidence
in this case. And so that’s why, you know, I’m repeating
myself, but that’s why we—we like people to tell us their
version of the story so we can forward that on. And—but
the court doesn’t like to see denials when the evidence is so
clear cut.
“* * * * *
“DET. TOWNSEND: The problem * * * is you are con-
tinuing to deny and we have the evidence that shows that
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 379
you had contact with her. So it’s better for you just to tell
us, ‘This is what happened.’ Like, we can deal with mis-
takes. People make mistakes all the time, and you still live
your life. It’s just like you said, you got a DUI and you did
exactly what they asked of you, and look, you’re running a
business, you are successful.
“[DEFENDANT]: Mm-hm.
“DET. TOWNSEND: This doesn’t have to mean that
everything is done and over with, but you have to be
responsible, like the person that you clearly are, you’re a
responsible person and you need to take responsibility for
this. Because you connected with her. I mean, there’s no
doubt you connected with her. So it would just be a really
good idea for you to just tell us, ‘This is how we met and
how we talked and this is what happened,’ and get it out.
“* * * * *
“[DEFENDANT]: * * * I don’t know what you want me
to tell you.
“DET. TOWNSEND: Well, we just want the truth.
That’s all. We want—we want the version of what really
happened, and right now, in our minds, the only version
we have is what she said. And so usually we have one story
and then we have another one and the truth is kind of
somewhere in the middle there. And when we don’t have
two stories, we don’t—we can only believe the one that we
have.
“So, you know, like we’ve already said a thousand times,
you know, what can you tell us, if something didn’t—not as
serious happened as what she’s saying, this is the only time
we’re going to find that out, you know, because what she’s
alleging is very serious. You know, it’s a Measure 11 crime.
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah.
“DET. TOWNSEND: Yeah, and she’s twelve.
“[DEFENDANT]: I know.
“DET. TOWNSEND: Right? So if she’s—if rape—
“* * * * *
“DET. TOWNSEND: If rape didn’t occur and it was
something a lot less than that, we’re never going to know
380 State v. Chavez-Meza
that and never going to be able to consider that unless we
talk about it right here, right now.”
(Emphases added.)
Soon after that line of questioning, the detectives
left the room to “talk about scheduling” a polygraph exam.
Townsend returned and explained that the polygrapher was
unavailable. The interrogation resumed. Townsend told
defendant that neither she nor Hahn believed defendant’s
denials. Townsend asked if A “agree[d] to have sex” with
defendant and suggested that he did not “really rape her.”
Townsend said, “I can’t see you as being the kind of guy that
would hold her down and rape her.”
Similarly, Hahn told defendant, “You’re not a vio-
lent guy,” and, “[y]ou don’t want to go to jail—for a really
long time.” Hahn also said, “This is a consensual thing,” and
then added, “If this was a consensual thing, that’s—that’s a
completely different story, okay?” Hahn asked, “Did she tell
you that she was eighteen? Did she say, ‘Hey, I’m eighteen,’
and—I mean, if you were, if you believed that she wasn’t
twelve, that’s important for us to know. That’s really import-
ant.” (Emphasis added.)
Defendant then admitted that he had met A at a
party, that he gave her his phone number, and that they
talked on the phone after the party; however, defendant con-
tinued to deny that he had sex with A. Townsend and defen-
dant exchanged the following:
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Okay, so we’re making
progress.
“[DEFENDANT]: Okay.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Right? Because at the
beginning you said, ‘I don’t know that girl and I don’t have
anything to do with her and we don’t know each other and I
don’t know how,’ right? So you were lying in the beginning,
right? And we’re getting a little bit closer to the truth.
“* * * * *
“Right? But we’re not quite there yet, because at some
point in time, the two of you met up and you had sex.
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 381
“[DEFENDANT]: No.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: And I believe that it was
probably consensual, she wanted to have sex with you and
you wanted to have sex with her, and you were still of the
belief that she was older than eighteen.
“[DEFENDANT]: She—she looked like it.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: There you go. But you
have to be honest about what happened. So how—did this
party really happen?
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: So did you meet up with
her after the fact, and that’s when you guys had sex? Was it
after the party or was it at the party?
“[DEFENDANT]: No, no.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: It was after? After the
party?
“[DEFENDANT]: (No verbal response.)
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Okay. So tell us about
how—she called you. And what did she say? Like, ‘Hey let’s
hook up?’ Like, how did that go?
“* * * * *
“[DEFENDANT]: (No verbal response.)
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Okay.”
(Emphasis added.)
The interview continued for a while, and defen-
dant started to admit some further contact with A by phone
and discussed a missed meeting at a local shopping mall.
Following further questions, defendant stated that he had
met with A at a local park and A had initiated kissing, but
defendant denied further sexual contact. After further ques-
tioning, defendant admitted to taking A to a hotel approxi-
mately a week after the meeting in the park. Defendant at
first consistently denied having sexual intercourse with A
but admitted to kissing A and receiving oral sex from her in
the hotel room.
382 State v. Chavez-Meza
Defendant also initially stated that he was too
scared to engage in sexual intercourse with A, but later
admitted to the following:
“[DEFENDANT]: I got scared.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: So—
“[DEFENDANT]: I got scared, I got scared because,
you know, I don’t—I haven’t been with somebody else since
my wife.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Right.
“[DEFENDANT]: In sixteen years and I’m like, see, I
feel weird.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah.
“[DEFENDANT]: I feel totally weird. I’m like don’t.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Right.
“[DEFENDANT]: And then I start.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah.
“[DEFENDANT]: I started it.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: So did you actually put
your penis inside of her for a couple seconds and then be
like, ‘Okay, this is—
“[DEFENDANT]: No.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: ‘—done’?
“[DEFENDANT]: No, not even. I was like—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Was it a shorter time
than that?
“[DEFENDANT]: I wanted to, I was about to.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Well.
“[DEFENDANT]: A little bit in.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Sounds like you proba-
bly did for a second and then you were done.
“[DEFENDANT]: I got scared.
“DETECTIVE HAHN: No, he just said he put a little
bit of it in.
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 383
“[DEFENDANT]: A little bit in.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah, a little bit in and
then—
“[DEFENDANT]: I got scared.”
The interview continued, and defendant admitted
some further details about his sexual conduct with A but
vigorously disputed some other details about his method of
communicating with A. After next stating that he “almost”
penetrated A with his penis, the interview continued with
the following discussion:
“[DEFENDANT]: Because at first I didn’t even know
her and she told me like stop, (indiscernible) my reasons,
whatever, to tell her about my life, so I don’t feel that (indis-
cernible), so, but that’s what happened.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Okay.
“[DEFENDANT]: I’m telling you the truth. And, actu-
ally I feel more comfortable now because I’m telling you.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: I told you you’d feel
better. I told you you’d feel better. Everyone does. I’m not
kidding you. I wouldn’t joke about something like that.
Everyone feels better because they get it off their chest.
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah, I mean, I feel, you know, at
first I was like nervous and everything.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah.
“[DEFENDANT]: But now I feel really different
because I’m telling you the truth. I mean, it is the truth.
You know, and she can say whatever she wants that hap-
pened, and I told you exactly what—what happened. I made
out with her, I never came here to Hillsboro. She’s the one
who was going over there everything and everything, so.
“DETECTIVE HAHN: I don’t have anything else.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: No, I don’t think so.
“[DEFENDANT]: You don’t have any more questions?
I mean, I’m going to—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah. I don’t have any
more questions (indiscernible).
“[DEFENDANT]: Whatever—
384 State v. Chavez-Meza
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: I—I may later on, I
don’t—
“[DEFENDANT]: Whatever you want—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: —(indiscernible).
“[DEFENDANT]: Yeah, whatever you want to ask
me—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Okay.
“[DEFENDANT]: —or if you want me to come and
talk about it. I mean—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Sure.
“[DEFENDANT]: —I’m—I’m—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Appreciate that.
“[DEFENDANT]: (indiscernible) and I feel more com-
fortable. Actually, I feel better. I mean, I don’t feel in my
chest like pushing me or whatever.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah.
“[DEFENDANT]: I don’t feel nervous no more
because—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Right.
“[DEFENDANT]: —it is what it is. I mean—
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah.
“[DEFENDANT]: —it’s the truth.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Right.
“[DEFENDANT]: But, I mean, I made a mistake, like
I told you.
“DETECTIVE TOWNSEND: Yeah.
“[DEFENDANT]: After I see the picture, I feel bad
now.”
Defendant finally discussed how A appeared older
when he met her in person than how she appeared in the
photograph that the detectives showed him. He recounted
how A appeared 19 years old in person. Defendant then
received a call, and Townsend stated, “We’ll walk you out.
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 385
We’re done actually. We won’t hold you up anymore from
work.”
Defendant was later arrested and charged with
second-degree rape, first-degree sexual abuse, and second-
degree sodomy. Defendant waived his right to a jury, and the
case was tried before the court. Defendant moved pretrial
to exclude his statements to detectives during the interro-
gation contending, among other things, that his statements
were not voluntary. Defendant argued that his confession
was made “under duress,” because “[a] reasonable person [in
defendant’s position] would believe that the detectives were
suggesting facts that they want to hear from him and that
if he gave them those facts then his case would be handled
in a lenient manner like the prostitution and the DUI of
a decade ago.” The state responded that defendant had not
been induced by threat or promise, and that the fact that
defendant had continued to deny having any sexual contact
with A during the challenged portion of the interrogation
demonstrated that his will was not overborne.
The trial court concluded that defendant’s will was
not overborne. The court considered that defendant
“appeared voluntarily when he was being interviewed in
this room. He was informed. He was given his Miranda
rights. No question he was free to leave at any time. In
the video, it shows the door is right next to him; it’s not
blocked.”
The court further found that there had been no “threats,
coercion, or promises of leniency” by the detectives, and that
the “language that was used by * * * both the detectives in
this case” did not rise “to that level that would require sup-
pression.” Accordingly, the court denied defendant’s motion.
The trial proceeded, and defendant was convicted on all
three counts.
Defendant now assigns error to the trial court’s
denial of his motion to suppress. Defendant argues that
Townsend made an express promise of leniency that, if
defendant “just made a mistake, it’s not like I’m going to
call your wife and ruin your life.” Defendant also argues
that both detectives impliedly promised him leniency when
they offered him less serious alternatives by implying that,
386 State v. Chavez-Meza
if he confessed to having consensual sex with A or admit-
ted that he thought she was older, it would be a less serious
crime. The state responds that defendant’s confession was
voluntary because detectives made no promise of leniency
and their minimization of his conduct did not amount to
improper coercion.
Defendant’s arguments arise under ORS 136.425
and Article I, section 12, of the Oregon Constitution.2
Both the statute and Article I, section 12, “embody the
common-law rule that confessions made by a defendant in
custody that were ‘induced by the influence of hope or fear,
applied by a public officer having the prisoner in his charge,’
are inadmissible against the defendant.” State v. Jackson,
364 Or 1, 21, 430 P3d 1067 (2018) (quoting State v. Powell,
352 Or 210, 218, 282 P3d 845 (2012) (additional internal
quotation marks and citation omitted)). It is well established
that confessions are presumed to be involuntary. Id. (citing
Powell, 352 Or at 225-26; State v. Stevens, 311 Or 119, 137,
806 P2d 92 (1991)). The burden is on the state to “overcome
that presumption by offering evidence affirmatively estab-
lishing that the confession was voluntary.” Id.; see also State
v. Vasquez-Santiago, 301 Or App 90, 106 n 4, 456 P3d 270
(2019) (“[I]t is not defendant’s burden to prove the confession
was caused by an unlawful police inducement. Rather, the
confession is presumed involuntary. It is the state’s burden
to prove the confession was not the product of an unlaw-
ful inducement.” (Emphasis in original; internal quotation
marks omitted.)). The reason for this presumption is to
ensure that confessions are reliable.
Confessions are involuntary, and thus unreliable,
when they are “rendered under circumstances in which the
confessor perceives that he or she may receive some bene-
fit or avoid some detriment by confessing, regardless of the
truth or falsity of the confession.” Jackson, 364 Or at 23. In
2
The state contends that defendant’s argument under the Oregon Consti-
tution is unpreserved because he did not raise it as a basis for his argument
before the trial court. The state, however, maintains that its argument regard-
ing preservation is of “little practical import” to the extent that the statutory
and constitutional analyses are identical “in all respects that bear on this case.”
See Ruiz-Piza, 262 Or App at 572-73 (applying same standard under statutory
and constitutional analysis); State v. Jackson, 364 Or 1, 21, 430 P3d 1067 (2018)
(“[B]oth the statute and Article I, section 12, embody the common-law rule.”).
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 387
Jackson, the Supreme Court provided a “useful approach”
for determining the voluntariness of a defendant’s confes-
sion. Vasquez-Santiago, 301 Or App at 107. The court noted
that it is “helpful to begin with the issue of whether the
officers who interrogated defendant induced him to make
admissions by the influence of hope or fear.” Jackson, 364
Or at 22. The ultimate question is whether the state has
met its burden to show that defendant’s confession was a
product of defendant’s free will. Id. at 27-28. “Those issues
are interrelated and * * * we must look to the totality of the
circumstances in reaching a legal conclusion about the vol-
untariness of defendant’s statements.” Id. at 22.
Using the approach provided in Jackson, we begin
with the question of whether the officers who interrogated
defendant induced him into confessing by the influence of
hope or fear. Defendant argues primarily that (1) detectives
impliedly promised him leniency by telling him that things
would be “better” with the “district attorney or judge or
whoever” if he confessed, (2) detectives expressly promised
him leniency by telling defendant that, if he “just made a
mistake, it’s not like I’m going to call your wife and ruin
your life,” and (3) detectives impliedly promised defendant
leniency by minimizing his alleged crime and advising him
that, if the sexual encounter with A was consensual, or if he
believed she was 18 years old, it would be a lesser crime.
The state argues that the detectives’ statements
that defendant objects to could not be construed as a prom-
ise of leniency because, even assuming they were promises
of leniency, they were not promises of leniency “in exchange
for defendant’s confession.” (Emphasis in original.) The
state distinguishes this case from other cases in which the
defendants had been offered a quid pro quo of leniency in
exchange for a confession. See, e.g., State v. Hogeland, 285
Or App 108, 117, 395 P3d 960 (2017) (holding that the quid
pro quo in detectives’ statements was clear when detectives
told the defendant that he could either admit to the crime
and “start the healing process” or continue to deny respon-
sibility and no one would believe him); State v. Pollard, 132
Or App 538, 549, 888 P2d 1054, rev den, 321 Or 138 (1995)
(holding that a “quid pro quo was apparent” when detectives
told the defendant he could admit what had occurred and
388 State v. Chavez-Meza
get “help” or his case would be taken “to a grand jury” and it
would be “real rough”). The state instead compares this case
to others in which detectives’ urging to a defendant to con-
fess did not amount to a promise, express or implied, that
doing so would result in leniency, because detectives either
told or suggested to the defendant that he would be prose-
cuted, regardless of his confession. See, e.g., State v. Spieler,
269 Or App 623, 632, 346 P3d 549 (2015) (concluding that
detectives’ suggestion that the defendant’s actions may have
been beyond his control and that he needed help or treat-
ment were not promises of leniency when they suggested
that the defendant would be prosecuted); State v. Bounds,
71 Or App 744, 748, 694 P2d 566, rev den, 299 Or 732 (1985)
(concluding that police officer’s statement that the courts
and district attorney would not “crucify” the defendant was
not a promise of immunity when the defendant was told he
would be prosecuted).
“A promise of leniency may be express or implied.”
Hogeland, 285 Or App at 114. “The precise form of words
in which the inducement is presented is immaterial. It is
sufficient if the inducement conveys to a person the idea of
temporal benefit or disadvantage, and that the person’s con-
fession follows in consequence of the hopes thereby excited.”
Id. at 114-15 (internal quotation marks, brackets, and
ellipses omitted). On the other hand, a “mere adjuration”
to tell the truth, [or] a mere statement that it would be bet-
ter to tell the truth” is permissible. Jackson, 364 Or at 24.
The distinction is “whether the language used in regard to
speaking the truth, taken in connection with all the attend-
ing circumstances shows the confession was made under the
influence of some threat or promise.” Id.Applying those standards, we review the detectives’
statements that defendant contends were coercive, and we
consider them both individually and in light of the total-
ity of the circumstances of the interview. Here, the detec-
tives’ statements to defendant at the least suggested that he
would be prosecuted, whether or not he confessed. Hahn told
defendant explicitly that this was a “solid case and there’s
no doubt in my mind that this is going to be prosecuted.”
The detectives also confronted defendant with the evidence,
including phone records between defendant and the victim
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 389
and a photo identification by the victim. The detectives told
defendant that it would be better “for the outcome of this
case for the district attorney or the judge or whoever that’s
going to be reviewing this case” to have both “sides” of the
story, making clear to defendant that the detectives believed
the case would be prosecuted. Those statements also did
not suggest that, if defendant confessed, he might receive
immunity or leniency. As in Bounds and Spieler, the detec-
tives’ statements regarding the court and the district attor-
ney did not imply to defendant that he could do anything
to avoid being prosecuted. Although the statements imply
that it ultimately would be better for defendant to present
his side of the matter to refute the victim’s account, we do
not view the detectives’ statements as an implied promise of
immunity or leniency from the district attorney or court.
Similarly, the detectives’ minimization of defen-
dant’s suspected conduct did not suggest to defendant that
he could avoid prosecution. Defendant takes issue with the
detectives’ suggestions that, if he believed A was older than
18, or if their sexual contact was consensual, that it would
not be a “Measure 11 crime.” First, we do not entirely agree
with defendant’s characterization. The detectives stated
that what the victim had alleged is “very serious” and quali-
fies as “a Measure 11 crime,” which is entirely accurate. The
detectives then proceeded with three possible scenarios that
suggested to defendant that he might be facing less seri-
ous consequences depending on the facts: (1) that if it was
not “rape,” the crime would be less serious, (2) that if it was
not forcible rape, it would be less serious, and (3) if defen-
dant believed that A was not 12 and was 18, it would be less
serious.
The first two of those statements are either accu-
rate or may be accurate depending on the underlying facts
ultimately shared by defendant, but the third statement
could not be accurate. As to the first statement, it is accu-
rate that rape is treated as a more serious and severely
punished crime than other sexual abuse crimes. Compare
ORS 163.375 (rape in the first degree) with ORS 163.427
(sexual abuse in the first degree). See also ORS 137.700 (set-
ting mandatory sentences for first-degree rape and first-
degree sexual abuse at 100 and 75 months, respectively).
390 State v. Chavez-Meza
As to the detective’s second statement, it was accurate to
the extent that a rape that is done by “forcible compulsion”
is first-degree rape punishable by 100 months in prison.
ORS 163.375(1)(a) (defining rape in the first degree); ORS
137.700(2)(a)(K) (setting 100-month mandatory sentence for
first-degree rape). By contrast, sexual intercourse with a
victim younger than 14 (but at least 12) is second-degree
rape without regard to the use of force and is punishable by
75 months’ incarceration. ORS 163.365(1) (defining rape in
the second degree); ORS 137.700(2)(a)(L) (setting forth man-
datory sentence for second-degree rape).
The detective’s third statement, however, could not
be accurate and was deceptive. Because the victim was 12
years old, it would not have been a defense to rape, sodomy,
or sexual abuse if defendant had believed that she was 18.
See ORS 163.325(1) (stating that, in any prosecution for cer-
tain sexual offenses, including rape, sodomy, and sexual
abuse, ignorance or reasonable mistake as to the child’s age
is not a defense if the child is under the age of 16). To the
extent that the detectives suggested otherwise, their state-
ments were deceptive. Generally, “police deception weighs
against a finding of voluntariness.” State v. Cochran, 72 Or
App 499, 512, 696 P2d 1114 (1985). But see State v. Davis,
350 Or 440, 452-53, 256 P3d 1075 (2011) (explaining that,
at common law, police deception did not automatically ren-
der a confession involuntary). We address at the end of our
analysis whether that deception amounted to an inducement
by hope or fear that was sufficient to overcome defendant’s
will and render his statements involuntary.
Before doing so, we turn to defendant’s final argu-
ment that his confession was induced by deception. Defendant
argues that the detectives’ statement that they would
not call his wife was an express promise of leniency that
exploited his vulnerability as a husband. We disagree. “The
hope of avoiding prosecution is not * * * the only inducement
that may render a confession involuntary.” Jackson, 364 Or
at 23. We have previously observed that appeals to paren-
tal and family responsibilities can be particularly coercive.
See, e.g., Vasquez-Santiago, 301 Or App at 118 (holding that
a defendant’s confession was involuntary when the defen-
dant “believed that his infant was separated from the child’s
Cite as 301 Or App 373 (2019) 391
nursing mother and being detained by police, was repeat-
edly told that his family was suffering, and was told that
his confession to murder was the key to securing the fam-
ily members’ release and ending that suffering”); Hogeland,
285 Or App at 121 (holding that a detective’s statement to
the defendant that, unless he confessed, she would take the
child away from him and his wife and place the child in
stranger foster care “simultaneously exploit[ed] his vulner-
abilities as a husband and father [and] critically impaired
defendant’s capacity for self determination”); Ruiz-Piza, 262
Or App at 574-75 (holding that detectives’ suggestion that,
unless the defendant confessed to shaking his child, her
medical care would suffer, rendered the defendant’s confes-
sion involuntary).
The detectives’ statement regarding defendant’s
wife here was significantly different from the statements
in Ruiz-Piza, Hogeland, and Vasquez-Santiago. Here, detec-
tives neither suggested nor implied that, if defendant did not
confess, they would call his wife. Rather, the statement that,
if he made a mistake, it was “not like” they would call his
wife and ruin his life was an assurance that, whether defen-
dant confessed or not, the detectives would not call defen-
dant’s wife. To be sure, the statement was a promise, but it
was not accompanied by an implied condition that, in order
for detectives not to call defendant’s wife, he would need to
confess.
We next address an additional part of the inquiry
articulated in Jackson: whether, when considering the total-
ity of the circumstances of the interrogation, the defendant’s
confession was voluntary. Defendant has identified one
statement during the interview that was misleading as to
a legal defense that defendant did not, in fact, have (i.e., the
implication that if defendant believed the victim was older
than 18, the crime would be less severe). Despite the decep-
tive nature of that statement, we conclude that the state met
its burden to show that defendant’s statements were vol-
untary in light of the totality of the circumstances. As the
trial court noted, defendant was not in custody at any time
during the interview. He appeared voluntarily at an inter-
view with two detectives and sat in the room next to the
door. Defendant was told he was free to leave at the outset of
392 State v. Chavez-Meza
the interview, and he was informed that he would be permit-
ted to leave at the conclusion of the interview. The detectives
also informed defendant of his Miranda rights at the begin-
ning of the interview. The interview lasted approximately
two hours. Defendant’s answers do not show that he misun-
derstood the detectives’ questions or appeared to be under
particular duress. Finally, defendant ultimately made his
most damaging admissions during periods of the interview
that were largely in response to fact-based questions about
what had occurred during the times he met with the victim.
After those admissions, defendant expressed great relief
that “I’m telling you the truth. And actually, I feel more
comfortable now because I’m telling you.” He explained that
he no longer felt his chest “pushing me.” Defendant stated
that he was initially nervous in talking with the police, but
“now I feel really different because I’m telling you the truth.
I mean, it is the truth. You know, and she can say whatever
she wants that happened, and I told you exactly what—what
happened.”
Defendant’s confessions were not made in response
to deceptive police statements or as part of any implicit or
explicit exchange for leniency. Rather, defendant appeared
to be relieved that he had unburdened himself by sharing
his side of the events. We affirm the trial court’s conclusion
that the state met its burden to show that, under the total-
ity of the circumstances, defendant’s statements were volun-
tary and not a product of police coercion.
For the reasons stated above, we conclude that, in
light of the totality of the circumstances of the interroga-
tion, the state met its burden in the trial court to show that
defendant’s statements to detectives were made voluntarily,
and his will was not overborne. Jackson, 364 Or at 27-28.
Accordingly, we affirm the trial court’s denial of defendant’s
motion to suppress.
Affirmed.