Written by Janine Robben, OCVLC Legal Director

A serial domestic abuser who had to be re-sentenced because his latest victim was denied her rights to be present and heard at his original sentencing got an additional two years of probation, six months in jail and a stern warning from the judge at his re-sentencing Thursday (Aug. 18).

The victim, who was represented by the Oregon Crime Victims Law Center made state history in May when the Oregon Supreme Court, ruling unanimously, held that re-sentencing a defendant under such circumstances does not violate the constitutional right to be protected against double jeopardy.

 The ruling was the first under a state law that established a framework for the appeal of trial court rulings denying victims’ claims that their constitutional rights had been violated.

 “You’re a very dangerous person,” Washington County Circuit Court Judge Rick Knapp told the defendant, Ivey Wayne Barrett, following statements made by the victim that Barrett – her then-estranged husband – had stalked and threatened her in early February 2011. “This time around, we’re not taking any chances.”

 Barrett’s victim told Knapp that she still suffers fear as a result of Barrett’s conduct,  resulted in the Washington County Sheriff’s Office issuing a press release describing him as “a significant threat” to her with “an extensive criminal history and access to weapons.” Barrett turned himself in after officers from six police agencies, including a SWAT team, were involved in a search for him.

 Knapp expressed regret that he previously had followed the district attorney’s and defense attorney’s recommendations that Barrett receive only probation on his new Stalking conviction and that 16 counts of Violation of a Restraining Order be dismissed. (Knapp did sentence Barrett to 60 days in jail for violating the terms of his probation on a previous conviction involving the same victim.)

 The victim, who had requested notice of any “critical stages” of the proceedings against Barrett, did not receive notice of this sentencing proceeding due to an oversight by the district attorney’s office.

 On Thursday, Knapp again sentenced Barrett to straight probation on the Stalking conviction but added two years to the original three-year term. He also sentenced him to another six months in jail for violating his probation on the previous conviction, with no possibility of work release, for failing to report to his probation officer after his original sentencing.

 Barrett, whose criminal history dates back decades, was convicted of felony assault in Washington County in 2003 and 2005 for domestic-violence crimes against other victims.