State v. Logston

Defendant appeals a judgment of conviction for two counts of first-degree sexual abuse, ORS 163.427, asserting that an improper closing argument by the prosecutor violated his right to a fair trial. The conviction rested largely on the complainant’s testimony describing the abuse, with corroboration by other witnesses to whom she had reported it. At trial, three defense witnesses—relatives of defendant and the complainant—provided opinions that the complainant was untruthful and had a reputation in their family for untruthfulness. During rebuttal closing argument, the prosecutor stated that…