Washington V. Ortega-Martinez

UTTER, J. -- Petitioner Alejandro Ortega-Martinez seeks reversal of an unpublished Court of Appeals decision affirming his conviction for second degree rape. A jury unanimously convicted Ortega-Martinez of second degree rape, but did not specify by which of two alternative means he committed the rape. Ortega-Martinez appealed, arguing he was entitled to a showing the jury unanimously agreed on the means by which he committed the rape. The Court of Appeals affirmed his conviction, reasoning under the authority of a recent United States Supreme Court decision that a defendant is not entitled to a showing of unanimity on the underlying means of committing the crime, notwithstanding Washington case law which has recognized such a right in some situations. Ortega-Martinez seeks review of whether a defendant has the right to a unanimous determination regarding the underlying means. Our law does recognize such a right when insufficient evidence supports a finding that a defendant committed a crime by any of the alternative means submitted to the jury; however, because sufficient evidence supported both alternative means submitted to the jury in this case, jury unanimity as to the means by which Ortega-Martinez committed the rape is not required. We therefore affirm Ortega-Martinez's conviction.