The INDEPENDENT, March 1, 2007
Court of Appeals hears cases at Banks High School
With the icicle and snow
laden scenery for Banks High
School’s production of Snow
Angel in the background, the
cafeteria didn’t look like a court-
room. But a courtroom is exact-
ly what it was February 21,
when four cases were heard by
the Court of Appeals for the
State of Oregon. A panel of
three judges heard the cases.
One was Darleen Ortega who
has seen the cafeteria many
times before; Ortega graduated
from Banks High School (BHS)
as valedictorian in 1980.
This year’s seniors were re-
quired to attend the court ses-
sion as part of their government
studies. Social Studies teacher
Doug Ainge arranged the op-
portunity for them. The session
was also open to the public.
Since 1997, the Court of Ap-
peals has operated a program
to hear cases in all parts of the
state, instead of just in Salem.
Most of the hearings have been
in local high schools. This al-
lows Oregon citizens, particu-
larly students, to better under-
stand Oregon’s court system,
as well as allowing local
lawyers to present their ap-
peals in a more convenient lo-
cation.
Bailiff Jill Howell opened the
session by explaining that the
cafeteria was no longer a cafe-
teria and that the rules of the
courtroom applied. These rules
included no eating, drinking or
gum chewing, no wearing of
hats, no talking, no sleeping, no
cell phones and no slouching.
After turning off a few cell
phones, students complied with
Page 13
Banks Fire wins
special award
the rules and were ready with
questions during the question
and answer period held after
the first two cases.
The Court of Appeals hears
approximately 2000 cases per
year, with each three-judge
panel hearing one-third of
them. Ortega said that the court
usually will hear 10-14 cases in
one day. Opinions are written
for all cases that are reversed.
If the decision is upheld, an
opinion may or may not be writ-
ten. Occasionally, complicated
cases may require the opinion
of all ten judges on the court.
The outcome of Wednesday’s
cases won’t be known for about
45 days.
The Court of Appeals differs
from lower courts in that it
makes no findings of fact. The
facts of each case are estab-
lished by the initial trial. What
the court looks at is interpreta-
tion of points of law. In the first
case heard at BHS, the admissi-
bility of evidence gathered dur-
ing a traffic stop was debated.
Other cases looked at public
space definitions, admissibility
of voice recordings and the limi-
tations of a wrongful death suit.
Three of the cases were crimi-
nal and lasted 30 minutes; one
civil case lasted 60 minutes.
Banks Fire District #13 was
awarded the 2007 Outstanding
Special
District
Program
Award, on February 10, by the
Special District Association of
Oregon (SDAO).
The SDAO provides an ex-
tensive range of services to
special districts all through the
state. The SDAO award pro-
gram commemorates the inge-
nuity, creativity, and diversity of
the members involved.
The Outstanding Special
District Program Award identi-
fies ground-breaking pro-
grams, exceptional safety, pub-
lic information, public participa-
tion in a district decision-mak-
ing process, and outstanding
project/ achievement.
Banks Fire District received
this honor for the high school
student firefighting program es-
tablished in 2001. Since the
program started, Banks Fire
has graduated over 50 stu-
dents. Students of the program
have the opportunity to earn
the equivalent of 30 college
credits. This curriculum teach-
es students the skills to be-
come career firefighters and
emergency medical techni-
cians. Nine students have
gone on to receive degrees in
fire science or paramedics.
MARCH TUNE UP SPECIAL !!
Food collected by Banks Elementary students during the
week of February 12 was unloaded on February 21, prior to
being delivered to Sonrise Church.
Get Ready For Spring
With Our
MARCH TUNE UP SPECIAL
Bring in your
outdoor power equipment
for a tune up
and receive a
CASH SAVING DISCOUNT
of 10% off the price
of tune up parts!
PRECISION OUTDOOR
POWER EQUIPMENT
Banks Hardware
503-324-5221 • 150 N. Main Street, Banks
• Mon - Fri 8am to 6pm
• Saturday 8am to 5pm
• Sunday 10am to 4pm