A Warrenton lady was found guilty by a jury of sharing the contents of a phone conversation on Facebook, but not guilty of illegally recording the encounter.
Emily P. Reyneke, 42, went to an Astoria School Board meeting in October 2022 to contest her dismissal from the district as a bus driver.
She placed her cell phone on a chair and recorded the board members’ interaction with the district attorney, who called in to provide legal guidance, after the board adjourned into executive session and dismissed Reyneke and the public from the room.
The recording was subsequently shared on Facebook, where Reyneke left comments supporting her conduct as lawful.
According to Oregon law, recording radio or phone conversations in which one is not a participant is a crime unless at least one side gives their approval. Additionally, sharing that recording with others is prohibited.
On the testimony stand, Astoria School Board members stated that they did not agree to the recording and were unaware that it had occurred until they were made aware of the Facebook post that contained their private talk.
Five court-appointed lawyers said they couldn’t work with Reyneke, leaving her without legal counsel. Throughout the trial, she defended herself.
Instead of explicitly addressing the charges against her, Reyneke concentrated on trying to discredit the state’s witnesses during her cross-examinations of them, which mostly included members of the Astoria School Board and the Astoria police officers who had looked into the issue.
Prosecutors frequently objected to the cross-examinations, citing hearsay and lack of relevance to the case. Judge Amanda Benjamin, who was visiting, mainly upheld the objections.
Reyneke insisted in her closing argument that she was innocent of the first count since she was unaware that the school district’s attorney would be phoning in.
When the six-member jury issued its judgments on Thursday, it concluded that this was the case. However, prosecutor Alexander Thomas contended that Reyneke was incriminated on the second count since she posted the recording on Facebook. And the jury agreed after three nonconsecutive days of a tumultuous trial.
Thomas informed jurors that there are still laws that provide us with protection and that define private areas where we can converse. For instance, we don’t have to worry about someone like this defendant planting her cellphone to try to get you if we can receive legal guidance from our lawyer.
On Tuesday, Reyneke will be sentenced. Benjamin remanded her into police custody in the interim, noting inconsistent and worrisome conduct during the trial, such as repeated disagreements with the judge and grievances that she wasn’t receiving a fair trial.
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According to The Daily Astorian, Jasmine Lewin
