State v. Collins

The state appeals a pretrial order excluding evidence of a prior crime committed by defendant. ORS 138.060(3). The issue is whether that evidence is admissible under OEC 404(3) to prove the identity of the perpetrator of the murder involved in this case. We hold that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in excluding the evidence and affirm.

Defendant was indicted for the murder of Ruth Maury. A hunter discovered her body on November 13, 1982, in a clearing in a heavily wooded area 20 miles east of Salem. Except for a pair of cotton socks, the body was nude below the waist. Her blouse…