Appeals court upholds MAX attacker Jeremy Christian’s convictions
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — An Oregon appeals court upheld the convictions of Jeremy Christian on Wednesday, after the convicted MAX attacker challenged several trial court decisions.
Following Christian’s 2020 sentencing for stabbing three people in the neck during a confrontation on a MAX train in 2017, which killed two of the victims, court documents obtained by KOIN 6 News show Christian raised 16 assignments of error in his appeal, as first reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive.
The assignments of error challenged the court’s denial of his motion to change court venues, his denied motion for acquittal, the court’s refusal to instruct the jury on the duty to retreat, and the court’s decisions during his sentencing.
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The appeal involved two separate incidents. The first, involved Christian throwing a half-full 32-ounce Gatorade bottle at a woman, striking her eye.
The second incident was the MAX attack, which led to his two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole for the murders of Taliesin Namkai-Meche and Ricky Best.
The Court of Appeals for the State of Oregon denied all of Christian’s arguments on Wednesday.
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Among his arguments, Christian said the trial court erred in denying his motion to change the court venue, arguing he was entitled to a change of venue because negative publicity surrounding the case created a presumption of prejudice.
The appeals court denied this argument, explaining the pretrial publicity did not deny Christian a fair trial and that media reports of the case focused on undisputed events that occurred.
Christian’s other assignments of error argued the trial court erred in denying his motion for acquittal for his murder and attempted murder charges.
He argued that the phrasing of the indictment required the state to prove that the murders and attempted murder occurred in a particular order and that the state failed to do so; however, the appeals court denied this argument, explaining the indictment only required proof that Christian caused or attempted to cause the deaths.
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Christian also tried to appeal his assault and unlawful use of a weapon charges from the first incident, but the appeals court found Christian was aware the plastic bottle he threw at the victim’s face was capable of causing injury.
He also appealed his sentencing enhancements, however, the appeals court said Christian showed no remorse, that his crimes were driven by his racial and religious bias, and said he failed to show he has a high probability of rehabilitation.
KOIN 6 News reached out to the Oregon Attorney General’s office and attorneys representing Christian. This story will be updated if we receive a response.
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