The most recent status conference in Frank Gable’s wrongful conviction case against the State of Oregon proved what critics told the Oregon Legislature earlier this year — the Oregon Department of Justice is making it all but impossible for those entitled to compensation to receive it.
Gable was wrongly convicted of the 1989 killing of Oregon Corrections Director Michael Francke and served almost 30 years in prison before his conviction was reversed with prejudice in federal court. That means his record was expunged and he cannot be arrested or tried for killing Franke again in any court.
Gable filed a civil suit in Marion County Circuit Court in November 2023 seeking $2 million in compensation under a law passed by the 2022 Oregon Legislature. ODOJ opposed it, arguing Gable has not proven his innocence as required by the law. Advocates for the wrongfully convicted testified this has become a serious problem during a Feb. 29, 2024, informational hearing on the law before the Oregon Senate Committee on the Judiciary. The advocates said that ODOJ was contesting more than 90% of the filings, and also unnecessarily slowing down the proceedings.