State v. Stookey

Defendant appeals from a conviction of murder. ORS 163.115. The issues are whether the murder victim’s fiance should have been excluded from the courtroom before he testified; whether the trial court erred in denying defendant’s motion for a new trial; and whether the court imposed an unauthorized sentence.

On December 12, 1990, McMinnville police officer Sawyer visited defendant, who was living in a trailer parked on forest land in Yamhill County, near the Flying M Ranch. The following day, defendant removed the trailer from the site. In January, 1991, Sawyer returned to the area and, while…