Wells v. Peterson

Petitioner in this case is a juvenile offender who was remanded to adult court for trial. Convicted of murder there, he was sentenced to life in prison with a 20-year minimum sentence. That minimum sentence took the form of a 10-year minimum sentence under ORS 163.115(3)(b) and an additional 10-year sentence under ORS 163.115(3)(c). He petitioned for post-conviction relief, 1 claiming that the sentences imposed on his plea of guilty to intentional murder were illegal “mandatory minimum sentence[s]” that a court is prohibited from imposing on a remanded juvenile under ORS 161.620. That statute…