State v. Unger
333 P.3d 1009
| Or. | 2014Background
- Oregon case on suppression of evidence following consent searches after unlawful police conduct (backyard trespass) and whether consent taint requires suppression.
- Detectives knocked at front then circled to back door; defendant consented to enter and tour; bag with meth found during tour.
- Evidence and statements obtained after unlawful entry were later used to obtain a search warrant and additional evidence.
- Court of Appeals suppressed; State sought review to modify Hall exploitation analysis; Unger majority overruled part of Hall.
- Majority modifies exploitation framework, disavowing Hall's “minimal factual nexus” requirement and emphasizing totality-of-circumstances.
- Concurrences and dissents debate deterrence versus rights-based rationale, with several justices urging deterrence as a factor in suppression.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exploitation analysis framework—whether Hall should be retained or revised | State seeks overruling Hall; adopts Hemenway modifications | Unger defends keeping Hall's approach | Hall's minimal nexus rejected; adopt totality-of-circumstances framework |
| How voluntariness and exploitation interact when consent follows unlawful conduct | State argues consent tainted if exploitation occurred | Unger argues consent can be voluntary despite illegality | Consent must be voluntary and not derived from exploitation to admit evidence |
| Role of purpose and flagrancy in exploitation inquiry | State argues purpose and flagrancy relevant | Defendant argues against tying deterrence to article I, section 9 | Purpose and flagrancy may weigh in; not required per se |
Key Cases Cited
- State v. Hall, 339 Or 7 (2005) (exploitation framework for consent searches; minimal nexus concept scrutinized)
- State v. Hemenway, 353 Or 129 (2013) (modifies Hall exploitation approach (cite summarized))
- State v. Rodriguez, 317 Or 27 (1993) (consent must be independent of illegality; prior cases used Wong Sun approach)
- State v. Kennedy, 290 Or 493 (1981) (consent voluntary; independence from prior illegality analyzed)
- Wong Sun U.S., 371 U.S. 471 (1963) (exploitation concept in federal law)
- Brown v. Illinois, 422 U.S. 590 (1975) (purpose and flagrancy factors in attenuation)
- Johnson, 335 Or 511 (2003) (nexus and burden-shifting in attenuation analysis)
- Ashbaugh, 349 Or 297 (2010) (knocks approach for seizures and encounters under Article I, section 9)