What the District of Oregon is
The District of Oregon is the federal trial court for the entire state. Congress made it a single district in one sentence: "Oregon constitutes one judicial district." There is no Eastern or Western Oregon district, so a federal arrest in Portland, Bend, Pendleton or Klamath Falls ends up in the same court. It is one of the courts covered on our federal courts hub, and its appeals go to the Ninth Circuit.
The same statute, 28 U.S.C. § 117, says where the court sits: "Court shall be held at Coquille, Eugene or Springfield, Klamath Falls, Medford, Pendleton, and Portland." Federal trial courts hear criminal cases because 18 U.S.C. § 3231 gives them "original jurisdiction, exclusive of the courts of the States, of all offenses against the laws of the United States." That is why a drug, fraud, firearms or immigration charge in Oregon is brought here and not in a state court.
The statute lists more places than the court actually uses day to day. The court's local rules say it "is open to receive filings in Portland, Eugene, and Medford." The court does not publish an explanation of how Coquille or Klamath Falls are used in practice, so the papers in your case are the reliable guide to where you must appear.
Four divisions, 36 counties
The court's local civil rule, LR 3-2, sets up four divisions. The rule says they exist "to identify divisional venue, distribute the judicial work, and to align counties for juror management purposes." The court's division map page lists the same counties. Find the county where the events in your case happened:
- Portland Division: Clackamas, Clatsop, Columbia, Hood River, Jefferson, Multnomah, Polk, Tillamook, Wasco, Washington and Yamhill. That is 11 counties.
- Pendleton Division: Baker, Crook, Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Malheur, Morrow, Sherman, Umatilla, Union, Wallowa and Wheeler. That is 12 counties.
- Eugene Division: Benton, Coos, Deschutes, Douglas, Lane, Lincoln, Linn and Marion. That is 8 counties.
- Medford Division: Curry, Jackson, Josephine, Klamath and Lake. That is 5 counties.
The county lists are in the court's own rule, but that rule sits in the civil procedure rules. The criminal local rules contain no separate county table. The civil rule does reach criminal filings, because it requires the filing party to identify the division where divisional venue lies in the caption of "all charging documents." Divisional venue means the division where a substantial part of the events giving rise to the claim occurred, or where a substantial part of the property involved is located.
Two cautions follow. First, the divisions also line up counties for juror management, so the county grouping tells you where jurors come from as well as where a case is assigned. Second, the court keeps flexibility. Its rule says cases are tried in the assigned division "Unless otherwise directed by the Court," and it adds that the court may order a case tried at any other place within the district. If your papers name a different courthouse than the map suggests, follow the papers.
Courthouses and the Clerk's Office
These are the court locations as the court lists them:
- Portland: Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse, 1000 Southwest Third Avenue, Portland, Oregon 97204. The Clerk's Office is in Suite 740, phone 503-326-8000.
- Eugene: Wayne L. Morse U.S. Courthouse, 405 East Eighth Avenue, Eugene, OR 97401. The Clerk's Office is in Suite 2100, phone 541-431-4100.
- Medford: James A. Redden U.S. Courthouse, 310 West Sixth Street, Medford, Oregon 97501. The Clerk's Office is in Suite 201, phone 541-608-8777.
- Pendleton: John F. Kilkenny U.S. Post Office and Courthouse, 104 Southwest Dorion Avenue, Pendleton, Oregon 97801.
The Pendleton courthouse carries a warning on the court's page: "NOTE: THIS COURTHOUSE IS NOT STAFFED. All in-person filing must be done at the Portland Division." The Pendleton page lists the Portland Clerk's Office number, 503-326-8000, for questions. If your case sits in the Pendleton Division, confirm with your lawyer or the Clerk's Office exactly where each hearing will take place.
The Portland, Eugene and Medford Clerk's Offices list the same hours: "Monday-Thursday: 8:30 am - 4:30 pm" and "Friday: 9:30 am - 4:30 pm". The court's calendar pages cover Portland, Eugene, Medford and Pendleton, along with holiday closures.
Who prosecutes cases in Oregon
Federal crimes in the district are prosecuted by the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon. It says it "serves the entire State of Oregon, a population of more than 4 million people," and says it has three locations: the main office in Portland and branch offices in Eugene and Medford. The main office is at 1000 SW Third Ave Suite 600, Portland, phone (503)727-1000. The Eugene branch is at 405 E 8th Ave. Suite 2400, and the Medford branch is at 310 West Sixth.
The office's Criminal Division says it "is charged with the responsibility of enforcing federal criminal laws in the District of Oregon" and "has a total of 44 prosecutors posted across the District." Its work includes appeals, asset recovery, civil rights, computer crimes and child exploitation, environmental and wildlife crimes, fraud and corruption, immigration crimes, narcotics and violent crime, and terrorism and national security. The office's own pages name its units a little differently, so do not read too much into one label. One unit's focus is on "transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), drug trafficking organizations (DTOs), and violent criminal enterprises," which is where many drug trafficking cases are handled. Another handles immigration crimes, including illegal reentry.
The office also describes working with "the nine federally recognized tribal nations in the District of Oregon," and it works with federal grand juries. If you are under investigation and have not been charged, read about the grand jury and target letters before you speak to any agent.
The Federal Public Defender and appointed counsel
If you cannot afford a lawyer, the Federal Public Defender is the first route to appointed counsel. The office says it "operates under authority of the Criminal Justice Act of 1964 (CJA), 18 U.S.C. § 3006A" and "provides legal defense for those who have been charged with a federal offense but cannot afford an attorney." The court, not the defender, decides eligibility.
The office has three locations: Portland at 101 SW Main Suite 1700, (503) 326-2123; Eugene at 859 Willamette St. Suite 200, (541) 465-6937; and Medford at 15 Newtown St. Suite 100, (541) 776-3630. When the office cannot represent a defendant, for example with more than one defendant or a conflict, it says it will ask the court to appoint private attorneys known as panel attorneys. The court does not post a separate panel page, so ask the court or the defender how appointment works in your case.
Pretrial Services and Probation
The first contact many defendants have with the court after arrest is a pretrial services officer. The court describes the role this way: the officer "will gather information about the defendant through interviews and record checks" and reports to the judge, "so the judge can decide whether the defendant can be released on pretrial supervision or should be detained." Be truthful and careful in that interview, and talk to your lawyer first when you can.
Pretrial Services has offices in Portland (Suite 440 of the Hatfield courthouse, (503) 326-8500), Eugene (Room 1800, (541) 431-4080) and Medford (Room 106, (541) 608-8766). The court says supervision "usually lasts a few months, during which time a probation officer may start the defendant's presentence investigation." The Probation Office has locations in Portland, Eugene, Medford and Salem. After a sentence, the court will sentence a defendant "to probation or to a term of incarceration followed by a term of supervised release." The district also runs a Reentry Court, established in 2005.
The first days of a federal case
After an arrest or a summons, the first stop is the initial appearance before a magistrate judge. The judge tells you the charge and your rights, and the question of release comes up. Detention is decided under 18 U.S.C. § 3142, and a judge may order it only if "no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the appearance of the person as required and the safety of any other person and the community." Our detention hearing page explains how that hearing works. The Federal Public Defender's own guidance is blunt: "Bail is not automatically set for federal defendants."
Felony charges usually come by indictment, followed by an arraignment where you enter a plea. Local rules affect this stage. Under Crim. LR 43-1, with the defendant's consent, video conference is authorized for initial appearances under Fed. R. Crim. P. 5 and arraignment under Fed. R. Crim. P. 10, and Crim. LR 43-2 requires notice through counsel to the Clerk's Office and the United States Marshal at least ten days before the hearing.
Local criminal rules that change what you do
The court's criminal rules are cited as "Crim. LR" followed by the number, as in Crim. LR 32-1. The court's page is titled "Local Rules of Criminal Procedure" and the current set is dated September 3, 2024. The set is short, with eight rules covering sealed charging papers, pleas, subpoenas, sentencing, video proceedings, electronic filing, redaction and petty offenses. The local criminal rules have no rule on discovery, motion deadlines or detention, so those come from the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure and the judge's scheduling orders.
The rules that matter most to a defendant:
- Crim. LR 5: the government may give your lawyer a copy of a sealed complaint, indictment or information before the initial appearance. You may not share its contents with anyone except your attorney, spouse, registered domestic partner or parent or parents.
- Crim. LR 11-1: plea agreements may include stipulations on factors that affect the guidelines computation, set out as Sentencing Commission Policy Statement 6B1.4 prescribes.
- Crim. LR 17: defense counsel for a defendant who cannot pay may file an ex parte request for blank subpoenas for unnamed witnesses. The rule reaches witnesses in this District and directly adjacent counties in Washington state, and returns of service are kept under seal until the witnesses have testified.
- Crim. LR 32: sentencing is set at or after 84 calendar days after a plea or verdict. The probation officer gives the presentence report to both sides at least 35 days before sentencing, and the final report is filed no later than ten days before. Objections not made within the 14 day period in Fed. R. Crim. P. 32(f) may be raised at sentencing only for good cause. The report is confidential, and you may not give a copy to anyone except your attorney, spouse, registered domestic partner or parent or parents.
- Crim. LR 58-1: for some petty offenses, a person may forfeit preset collateral to the Central Violations Bureau instead of appearing, and the court says that "shall not constitute a criminal conviction or an admission of guilt."
See our pages on the presentence report and federal sentencing for how that stage works.
Appeals go to the Ninth Circuit
Oregon is in the Ninth Circuit, along with Alaska, Arizona, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Washington, Guam and Hawaii. The statute sends appeals "From a district court of the United States to the court of appeals for the circuit embracing the district;" so a conviction in Portland, Eugene or Medford is reviewed by the Ninth Circuit.
The deadline is short. Under Federal Rule of Appellate Procedure 4(b)(1)(A), a defendant's notice of appeal in a criminal case must be filed in the district court within 14 days after the later of the entry of the judgment or order being appealed, or the filing of the government's notice of appeal. See our federal appeals page.
A note on penalties
Penalty figures on this site are statutory maximums or guideline ranges. They are not predictions. Drug quantity, loss amount, criminal history and the judge's view of the facts all change the real result in a case, and a mandatory minimum may apply to some charges.
Talking to a lawyer about a case in the District of Oregon
Before a first conversation, gather what you have. Bring any summons, complaint, indictment, target letter or release order, because those name the charge, the division and the courthouse. Write down the county where the events happened and the date of each event. Collect proof of where you live and work, family ties, and any treatment or medical records, since those matter at a detention hearing. Keep any search warrant paperwork you were given, and note the names of the agencies involved without discussing the facts with anyone else.
Do not speak with agents or prosecutors about the facts before you have talked to a lawyer, and do not share charging papers or a presentence report beyond the people the local rules allow. If you cannot afford a lawyer, contact the Federal Public Defender. If you want to talk about your options, request a consultation.
Federal representation outside California is subject to applicable court admission requirements. Pro hac vice admission and association with local counsel may be required.