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PUBLIC SAFETY Tractor driver guilty of DUII Man with revoked license claimed right to drive farm vehicle Comment By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Follow @@VickieAldous MailTribune.com By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Follow @@VickieAldous Posted Jul. 6, 2016 at 4:38 PM Updated Jul 6, 2016 at 5:26 PM By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Follow @@VickieAldous Posted Jul. 6, 2016 at 4:38 PM Updated Jul 6, 2016 at 5:26 PM » Social News A Sams Valley man who argued he could drive his tractor on roads despite having a revoked driver's license from multiple DUII convictions has been found guilty of driving under the influence of intoxicants and criminal driving with a revoked license. With no case law on the tractor issue to guide the outcome, Jackson County Circuit Judge Lorenzo Mejia ruled Wednesday that Christopher Clay Charley was guilty of the two charges. Charley, 63, of the 500 block of Glass Lane, was accused of driving his tractor after drinking beer May 5 and intentionally running into the back of a vehicle driven by Jacob Register, with whom he has had ongoing disputes. A 7-year-old boy was also in the vehicle with Register. Mejia said the prosecution didn't prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Charley had intentionally collided with Register. Mejia found Charley not guilty of two counts of recklessly endangering another person, second-degree criminal mischief and unlawful use of a weapon — the tractor. Charley habitually drove the tractor on Glass Lane and Highway 234 in Sams Valley. Witnesses during the one-day bench trial testified he used the tractor almost daily, and would venture out about once a week on Highway 234 to reach Rainey's Corner Market, a feed and hardware store near the intersection of the lane and the highway. Oregon law about the use of tractors complicated the case. A person without a driver's license is allowed to temporarily drive a farm tractor. Charley told a Jackson County Sheriff's Office deputy who responded to the May 5 incident that he could drive the tractor on Glass Lane and Highway 234 despite having a revoked license because it was a farm implement, according to court testimony. But Jackson County Deputy District Attorney Marco Boccato argued Charley continuously and consistently drove the tractor. "This is not a temporary issue. This is everyday driving on a road that is open to the public," Boccato said. "The Oregon Legislature didn't intend to have people use a tractor as a vehicle replacement." Boccato also pointed to a section of Oregon law that says driving privileges, including the right to drive a tractor, are subject to suspension and revocation. Charley refused to perform field sobriety tests or take a breath test to measure his blood alcohol level after being arrested May 5. He smelled of alcohol, had bloodshot and watery eyes and his speech was slurred at times. He said he drank a couple of beers three hours before the incident with Register, a deputy testified. Charley is due to be sentenced July 18. He faces up to a year in the Jackson County Jail. Defense attorney Carl Caplan said he was happy Charley was not convicted of unlawful use of a weapon, criminal mischief and recklessly endangering. Caplan argued Register provoked a confrontation by driving slowly in front of Charley and stopping his vehicle. Register was filming the incident with a camera, and at one point asked the boy to unbuckle his seat belt and film the tractor driving behind the vehicle. "He didn't drive away because he wanted to provoke a confrontation," Caplan said. Caplan disputed whether the tractor and vehicle had ever collided. He said the vehicle had only minor damage, which may not have been caused by the tractor, and a collision between the 12,000-pound tractor and vehicle would have resulted in substantial damage. Charley was previously convicted of harassment for subjecting Register to offensive physical contact in 2013, according to court records. That same year, court documents show, Glass Lane neighbor Raymond Churba filed a civil lawsuit against Charley because Charley allegedly said he had the right to drive on Glass Lane drunk and without a valid license because the lane is a private road. "Were his position to be upheld, he would be allowed to drive unlicensed and intoxicated on a road regularly used by the general public for walking, riding horses and bicycles and driving vehicles," Churba argued in the lawsuit. Churba asked that Glass Lane be declared a highway within the meaning of the Oregon criminal code. He said because of uncertainty about the status of the lane, the Sheriff's Office had declined to charge Charley for driving under the influence of intoxicants there. In a response to the lawsuit, Charley's attorney at the time asked for Glass Lane to be declared a private road. The lawsuit was dismissed in 2014. Charley was convicted of driving under the influence of intoxicants in 1997, 2001 and 2003, and of driving with a suspended license in 2003 and 2009, according to court records. Staff reporter Vickie Aldous can be reached at 541-776-4486 or [email protected] . Follow her at www.twitter.com/VickieAldous . By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Follow @@VickieAldous MailTribune.com By Vickie Aldous Mail Tribune Follow @@VickieAldous Posted Jul. 6, 2016 at 4:38 PM Updated Jul 6, 2016 at 5:26 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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