STATE v. PRICHARD (2021)

Court of Appeals of Oregon.

STATE of Oregon, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. Gregory Gerald PRICHARD, Defendant-Appellant.

A172883

Decided: April 21, 2021

Before Ortega, Presiding Judge, and Shorr, Judge, and Powers, Judge.

Lindsey Burrows and O'Connor Weber LLC filed the brief for appellant. Ellen F. Rosenblum, Attorney General, Benjamin Gutman, Solicitor General, and Jennifer S. Lloyd, Assistant Attorney General, filed the brief for respondent.

Defendant was convicted by unanimous jury verdict of first-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a minor. On appeal, defendant argues that the trial court erred in instructing the jury that it need not reach unanimous verdicts and contends that, because the erroneous jury instruction constituted a structural error, his conviction must be reversed in light of Ramos v. Louisiana, 590 U.S. ––––, 140 S. Ct. 1390, 206 L. Ed. 2d 583 (2020). The Oregon Supreme Court rejected the structural error argument in State v. Flores Ramos, 367 Or. 292, 319, 478 P.3d 515 (2020). Further, when, as here, the jury returns unanimous verdicts despite the erroneous nonunanimous instruction, such error was rendered “harmless beyond a reasonable doubt” as to all of the verdicts of this case. State v. Ciraulo, 367 Or. 350, 354, 478 P.3d 502 (2020).

Affirmed.

PER CURIAM

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