BEND (AP) - A Deschutes County jury sent John Michael Nilles to prison last month for shaking to death a child he considered a son. Now, the county's district attorney wants the man to pay for some of the costs in the case that put him there.

The request may be the first of its kind in the state of Oregon, said Cynthia Stinson, director of the Oregon Department of Justice's Crime Victims' Assistance Section.

District Attorney Mike Dugan said he's never made such a request before. But said he believes the law allows him to make defendants who are found guilty pay for exceptionally high trial costs. Typically, the county only pays a few thousand dollars of such expenses.

But Dugan filed a six-page motion last week in Deschutes County Circuit Court that asks that Nilles pay about $64,500. Almost two-thirds of that total would pay for the medical expenses of the baby, Maxwell William Murphy Moore, who was 16-months old at the time of his death. Another estimated $22,000 would pay the prosecution's expenses for trying the case.

“This is an extraordinary cost,” Dugan said. “A baby killer should pay for it.”

Nilles' defense attorneys stand ready to challenge Dugan's request, arguing that it could strike at the core of the U.S. Constitution's guarantee of due process.

“It can create this chilling effect,” said Bend lawyer Aaron Brenneman, who represented Nilles during his murder trial. “It violates not only the due process clause, but also equal protection of the U.S. Constitution. It sets up a fact where we have someone who has no resources and they're going to have to pay $20,000 of the state's expenses. They're going to be a lot less likely to go to trial than someone who's more well off.”

The Oregon Department of Justice's Crime Victims' Assistance Section said counties often require defendants to reimburse victims for medical bills and other basic expenses.

And Nilles' lawyer said he would not contend the costs of the baby's medical care, counseling services for the mother or money for the Justice Department's Crime Victim's Compensation Fund, which helped pay for the mortuary services of the child.

“That is standard,” he said. “And that is what restitution is for.”

But he challenged Dugan's request that Nilles pay an additional $23,000. That would cover the county's cost of hiring several expert witnesses who testified that shaking babies can kill.

The 16-month old baby collapsed while in Nilles' car. Doctors tried to save the child's life but according to autopsy results presented at the trial, the baby died from closed head trauma and resulting complications.

A jury found Nilles guilty of manslaughter and he was sentenced to 10 years.

Dugan's argument is that the county was an indirect victim by paying for physicians' testimony to rebut Nilles' experts, and should thus be reimbursed.

“I think that we're on firm footing here,” Dugan said.

The issue may be addressed by a Deschutes County judge late this month or early June, Dugan said.

“It will be really interesting to see where this goes,” Stinson said. “This could quietly happen in Deschutes County, or it could be challenged and have some kind of significant outcome.”

Stinson said one possible outcome would be that district attorneys throughout the state could ask for similar payments from defendants in future cases. And, she added, counties could also start asking for reimbursement of even more bills.

“It could open doors to other expenses,” Stinson said.