(1) Except as otherwise provided in ORS 138.540, any person convicted of a crime under the laws of this state may file a petition for post-conviction relief pursuant to ORS 138.510 to 138.680.
(2) A petition for post-conviction relief may be filed by one person on behalf of another person who has been convicted of aggravated murder and sentenced to death only if the person filing the petition demonstrates by a preponderance of the evidence that:
(a) The person sentenced to death is unable to file a petition on the person’s own behalf due to mental incapacity or because of a lack of access to the court; and
(b) The person filing the petition has a significant relationship with the person sentenced to death and will act in the best interest of the person on whose behalf the petition is being filed.
(3) A petition pursuant to ORS 138.510 to 138.680 must be filed within two years of the following, unless the court on hearing a subsequent petition finds grounds for relief asserted which could not reasonably have been raised in the original or amended petition:
(a) If no appeal is taken, the date the judgment or order on the conviction was entered in the register.
(b) If an appeal is taken, the date the appeal is final in the Oregon appellate courts.
(c) If a petition for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court is filed, the later of:
(A) The date of denial of certiorari, if the petition is denied; or
(B) The date of entry of a final state court judgment following remand from the United States Supreme Court.
(4) A one-year filing period shall apply retroactively to petitions filed by persons whose convictions and appeals became final before August 5, 1989, and any such petitions must be filed within one year after November 4, 1993. A person whose post-conviction petition was dismissed prior to November 4, 1993, cannot file another post-conviction petition involving the same case.
(5) The remedy created by ORS 138.510 to 138.680 is available to persons convicted before May 26, 1959.
(6) In any post-conviction proceeding pending in the courts of this state on May 26, 1959, the person seeking relief in such proceedings shall be allowed to amend the action and seek relief under ORS 138.510 to 138.680. If such person does not choose to amend the action in this manner, the law existing prior to May 26, 1959, shall govern the case. [1959 c.636 §§1,16,17; 1989 c.1053 §18; 1993 c.517 §1; 1999 c.1055 §7; 2007 c.292 §1]
Section: Previous 138.420 138.430 138.440 138.480 138.490 138.500 138.504 138.510 138.520 138.525 138.527 138.530 138.540 138.550 138.560 NextLast modified: August 7, 2008