Aaron Hirschman

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Charge:	Offering to purchase election ballot
Sentence:	$200 fine & 40 hrs community service
Years Imprisoned:
Year Crime:	2010
Year Convicted:	2013
Year Cleared:	2016
U.S. State or Country of Crime:	Oregon
County or Region of Crime:	Deschutes
City of Crime:	Bend
Result:	Judicially Exonerated
Summary of Case:	"Aaron Hirschman was wrongly convicted in 2013 of the misdemeanor of making an “offer to purchase, for money or other valuable consideration, any official ballot,” in Bend, Oregon in late October 2010. Hirschman "posted an advertisement on Craigslist stating that on the weekend before the election he would be at a downtown Bend parking lot, and he would give $20 to a person who would bring the person’s official ballot to defendant, let defendant complete it, then sign the person’s own name and submit the ballot to an elections volunteer." Craigslist deleted the ad within 30 minutes of it being posted, a Bend police officer who went to the parking lot didn't see Hirschman or any unusual activity, and no one responded to the ad. However, the Oregon Secretary of State was notified and an investigation was begun by the Oregon Department of Justice. When Hirschman was interviewed by two DOJ agents he admitted posting the ad, and he told them "he had not purchased or attempted to purchase official ballots. Instead, he contended that he “was basically making a mockery of the system, and more so than anything, playing around, goofing around on the Internet."" He told the investigators, "There’s a lot of vulgarity there, and then people’s political opinions, and I felt like I needed to chime in." Hirschman was charged byway of an information with violating ORS 260.715 by offering to purchase an official ballot. The trial judge denied Hirschman's motion to dismiss the charge on the basis the statute unconstitutionally violated his right to the freedom of expression under the Oregon Constitution's Article I, Section 8. Hirschman waived his right to a jury trial, and after a bench trial he was found guilty. The judge sentenced Hirschman to pay a $200 fine and 40 hours of community service. Hirschman appealed. On July 8, 2016 the Oregon Court of Appeals reversed Hirschman's conviction on the basis that "we also conclude that the statutory prohibition on making an “offer to purchase” a ballot is facially unconstitutional because, by its terms, it criminalizes expression and is not wholly contained within a well-established his historical exception to the protections of Article I, section 8." (All quotes from, State v. Hirschman, 279 Or App 338, (Ore. Ct. of Appeals, 7-7-2016)"
Conviction Caused By:	Trial judge erred by denying pre-trial motion to dismiss.
Innocence Proved By:	"On July 8, 2016 the Oregon Court of Appeals reversed Hirschman's conviction on the basis that "we also conclude that the statutory prohibition on making an “offer to purchase” a ballot is facially unconstitutional because, by its terms, it criminalizes expression and is not wholly contained within a well-established his historical exception to the protections of Article I, section 8." (State v. Hirschman, 279 Or App 338, (Ore. Ct. of Appeals, 7-8-2016))"
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Sex:	Male
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Information Source 1:	"State v. Hirschman, 279 Or App 338, (No. A153610) (Ore. Ct. of Appeals, 7-8-2016) (Reversing conviction on basis ORS 260.715(9) unconstitutionally violates the freedom of expression.)"
Information Location 1:	http://www.publications.ojd.state.or.us/docs/A153610.pdf
Information Source 2:	"Court overturns conviction of man who offered to buy ballots, By Steven Dubois (Associated Press reporter), KATU-TV (Portland, Ore.), July 7 2016"
Information Location 2:	http://katu.com/news/local/court-overturns-conviction-of-man-who-offered-to-buy-ballots
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Aaron Hirschman

Charge:

Offering to purchase election ballot

Sentence:

$200 fine & 40 hrs community service

Years Imprisoned:

Year Crime:

2010

Year Convicted:

2013

Year Cleared:

2016

U.S. State or Country of Crime:

Oregon

County or Region of Crime:

Deschutes

City of Crime:

Bend

Result:

Judicially Exonerated

Summary of Case:

Conviction Caused By:

Trial judge erred by denying pre-trial motion to dismiss.

Innocence Proved By:

Defendant Aided By:

Compensation Awarded:

Was Perpetrator Identified?

Age When Imprisoned:

Age When Released:

Sex:

Male

Skin/Ethnicity:

Information Source 1:

"State v. Hirschman, 279 Or App 338, (No. A153610) (Ore. Ct. of Appeals, 7-8-2016) (Reversing conviction on basis ORS 260.715(9) unconstitutionally violates the freedom of expression.)"

Information Location 1:

http://www.publications.ojd.state.or.us/docs/A153610.pdf

Information Source 2:

"Court overturns conviction of man who offered to buy ballots, By Steven Dubois (Associated Press reporter), KATU-TV (Portland, Ore.), July 7 2016"

Information Location 2:

http://katu.com/news/local/court-overturns-conviction-of-man-who-offered-to-buy-ballots

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