×
You have 2 more free articles available this month. Subscribe today.
Oregon Prosecutor’s Son Escapes Mandatory Prison Time for Sexual Assault
Commit sexual abuse in Oregon and you face a mandatory prison sentence of 75 months – unless your father happens to be a prosecutor, apparently.
In December 2011, Jacob Frasier, 17, the son of Coos County District Attorney Paul R. Frasier, and four other co-defendants were arrested on allegations that they had sex with a 13-year-old girl. Jacob claimed that the girl told him she was fifteen and said the sex was consensual.
Under Oregon law, Frasier’s conduct constituted the offense of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree under Measure 11, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 75 months in prison with no sentence reduction eligibility.
Interestingly, however, Frasier escaped the fate of other Oregon offenders who have been sentenced to mandatory prison time for the same type of misconduct. He was instead charged in juvenile court with third-degree rape and two counts of second-degree sexual abuse.
The case was resolved quickly, with Frasier pleading guilty to second-degree sexual abuse in February 2012. Retired Douglas County Circuit Court Judge Charles Luukinen handled the case due to a conflict of interest for Coos County judges, who work with Jacob’s father on a daily basis.
The court accepted Frasier’s guilty plea and sentenced him to a three-year term of probation. And to ensure that his life wouldn’t be ruined – unlike other sex offenders who do not happen to have fathers employed as prosecutors − the judge further ordered that Frasier will not be required to register as a sex offender if he successfully completes his probation.
Judge Luukinen said that Jacob was “a good person,” described his participation in the sex crime as “an isolated incident” and noted that state prosecutors had “stuck their neck out for you.” Ironically, Paul Frasier wrote in a press release that “[e]ven though I am the district attorney, neither myself or members of my family are above the law.”
It’s just that the same law doesn’t apply to them, evidently.
The other four defendants, who did not happen to have family members employed in the district attorney’s office, did not fare as well. Spencer Shimota, 19; Chay Gilbert, 18; Wayne A. Smith, 30; and his brother, William A. Smith, 26, were all indicted on sex offenses related to the same 13-year-old victim.
Wayne Smith pleaded guilty in July 2012 and received a prison sentence with an earliest release date in April 2018. William Smith was sentenced to a 15-month prison term for having sex with the victim and another 13-year-old girl, while Shimota and Gilbert both received 30 days in jail and five years of probation.
Sources: Associated Press, www.salem-news.com, http://theworldlink.com
In December 2011, Jacob Frasier, 17, the son of Coos County District Attorney Paul R. Frasier, and four other co-defendants were arrested on allegations that they had sex with a 13-year-old girl. Jacob claimed that the girl told him she was fifteen and said the sex was consensual.
Under Oregon law, Frasier’s conduct constituted the offense of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree under Measure 11, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 75 months in prison with no sentence reduction eligibility.
Interestingly, however, Frasier escaped the fate of other Oregon offenders who have been sentenced to mandatory prison time for the same type of misconduct. He was instead charged in juvenile court with third-degree rape and two counts of second-degree sexual abuse.
The case was resolved quickly, with Frasier pleading guilty to second-degree sexual abuse in February 2012. Retired Douglas County Circuit Court Judge Charles Luukinen handled the case due to a conflict of interest for Coos County judges, who work with Jacob’s father on a daily basis.
The court accepted Frasier’s guilty plea and sentenced him to a three-year term of probation. And to ensure that his life wouldn’t be ruined – unlike other sex offenders who do not happen to have fathers employed as prosecutors − the judge further ordered that Frasier will not be required to register as a sex offender if he successfully completes his probation.
Judge Luukinen said that Jacob was “a good person,” described his participation in the sex crime as “an isolated incident” and noted that state prosecutors had “stuck their neck out for you.” Ironically, Paul Frasier wrote in a press release that “[e]ven though I am the district attorney, neither myself or members of my family are above the law.”
It’s just that the same law doesn’t apply to them, evidently.
The other four defendants, who did not happen to have family members employed in the district attorney’s office, did not fare as well. Spencer Shimota, 19; Chay Gilbert, 18; Wayne A. Smith, 30; and his brother, William A. Smith, 26, were all indicted on sex offenses related to the same 13-year-old victim.
Wayne Smith pleaded guilty in July 2012 and received a prison sentence with an earliest release date in April 2018. William Smith was sentenced to a 15-month prison term for having sex with the victim and another 13-year-old girl, while Shimota and Gilbert both received 30 days in jail and five years of probation.
Sources: Associated Press, www.salem-news.com, http://theworldlink.com
As a digital subscriber to Prison Legal News, you can access full text and downloads for this and other premium content.
Already a subscriber? Login