State v. Watkins

Defendant appeals his convictions for aggravated murder, ORS 163.095, murder, ORS 163.115, and burglary, ORS 164.225, all of which arose out of the same criminal episode, in which one person was killed. Defendant was sentenced to life in prison with a ten-year minimum term for murder and to life in prison with a 20-year minimum term for aggravated murder. The trial judge found that the burglary conviction merged into the other offenses.

Defendant challenges the trial court’s failure to merge his murder and aggravated murder convictions. 1 The state correctly concedes that the failure to merge…