State v. Davis

Defendant appeals from a judgment of conviction after a jury found him guilty of one count of murder, ORS 163.115, and one count of manslaughter, ORS 163.118, for the death of his young daughter. The victim died of internal injuries to her brain and abdomen caused by physical abuse; the jury necessarily concluded that the physical abuse occurred in the hours immediately before the victim’s death while she was in defendant’s care. Defendant contends that the trial court erred in excluding three types of evidence that he claims are relevant to establish that the fatal internal injuries to the…