Oregon Supreme Court ordered a woman released, ruling Gov. Kotek lacked authority under the terms of a commutation to revoke it after the woman's sentences had ended, 2024
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In Brown v. Kotek (decided May 8, 2024), the Oregon Supreme Court held that Gov. Tina Kotek lacked authority under the terms of a conditional commutation to revoke it, because Terri Lee Brown had already finished serving all of her sentences in February 2023; Kotek's revocation order issued in December 2023, stating she had determined in her sole judgment that Brown violated conditions of the commutation, and Brown was arrested and returned to prison in February 2024. The court noted it was undisputed that Brown had violated a condition of her release in 2021 (she received a 30-day jail sanction), said it was assuming without deciding that the state and federal constitutions permit a governor to revoke a commutation after a sentence expires, and rested its holding on the terms of the commutation agreement. It called her imprisonment unlawful, rejected the state's argument that she had waived her right to challenge it, ordered her immediate discharge, and declined to find the state's position frivolous. The Oregon Capital Chronicle reported in May 2024 that a Kotek spokesperson had said the governor would take the court's ruling under consideration in future decisions, and that the governor's office did not answer a question about whether Kotek owes Brown an apology. Brown filed a $10 million civil suit in January 2026 naming Kotek and other defendants; KDRV reported in January 2026 that it received no comment from Kotek's team, and no ruling on the suit was found.
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