Blog Archives

Washington v. Rowland

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Docket No. 86117-0 (from Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 64262-6)  Facts:  Petitioner Michael Rowland was convicted of first degree murder and taking a motor vehicle without permission in the Superior Court for Snohomish County.  Based upon the judge’s finding of deliberate cruelty, Rowland was sentenced to an exceptional sentence.  Rowland subsequently filed a personal restraint petition in the Washington Court of Appeals challenging the calculation of his offender score.  After the state of Washington conceded that Rowland’s offender score had been improperly calculated, the Washington Court of Appeals remanded the case for resentencing.  On remand, the superior court imposed a standard range sentence corresponding to the reduced offender score and reimposed the sentence enhancement for deliberate cruelty.  Rowland appealed his sentence, asserting that a jury finding was required to support the exceptional sentence under the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Blakely v. Washington. Continue reading →

Washington v. Siers

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Docket No. 85469-6 (from Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 63697-9)  Facts:  Respondent Brian Siers was charged with two counts of second degree assault after stabbing two men, one of whom was attempting to break up a fight between Siers and another person, outside of a Seattle restaurant.  Although no aggravating circumstances were alleged in the information, the state of Washington notified Siers prior to trial of its intent to seek a good Samaritan aggravator on one of the counts.  After the state and Siers had each rested their case, Siers objected to the state’s proposed jury instructions on grounds that the good Samaritan aggravator had not been charged in the information.  The trial court overruled Siers’ objection and Siers was found guilty of both charges.  The jury also returned a special verdict finding that Siers assaulted one of the victims while they were acting as a good Samaritan.  Siers appealed his conviction and the Washington Court of Appeals reversed on grounds that the state’s failure to plead the good Samaritan aggravator in the information functionally undermined the jury’s verdict on the substantive crime of second degree assault. Continue reading →

Washington v. Griffin

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Docket No. 84554-9 (from Court of Appeals Division II Case No. 38705-1)  Facts:  Petitioner James Griffin was convicted of residential burglary in the Superior Court for Grays Harbor County and sentenced to an exceptional sentence after the trial court found the aggravating circumstance of rapid recidivism in a fact-finding hearing convened pursuant to Washington Revised Code §9.94A.537.  Griffin appealed his sentence, asserting that the trial court erred in relying upon inadmissible hearsay to find the aggravating circumstance.  The Washington Court of Appeals affirmed Griffin’s sentence, holding that the rules of evidence do not apply to sentencing. Continue reading →

Washington v. Gordon

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Docket No. 84240-0 (from Court of Appeals Division I Case No. 63815-7)  Facts:  Respondent John Gordon was convicted of murder in the Superior Court for Pierce County and sentenced to an exceptional sentence pursuant to the jury’s finding that the aggravating factors of deliberate cruelty and particular vulnerability of the victim were present.  Gordon subsequently appealed his sentence, asserting that the trial court’s failure to instruct the jury as to the legal elements of deliberate cruelty and particular vulnerability of victim constituted error of constitutional magnitude that could be raised for the first time on appeal. Continue reading →

Washington v. Mutch

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Docket No. 82029-5 (from Whatcom Case No. 94-1-00117-8)  Facts: Petitioner Richard Mutch was convicted of five counts of second degree rape and one count of second degree kidnapping in the Superior Court for Whatcom County and sentenced to life imprisonment as a persistent offender.  Upon appeal, Mutch’s sentence was vacated on grounds that one of his prior convictions was not a “strike” for purposes of deeming him a persistent offender.  The trial court subsequently resentenced Mutch to an exceptional sentence, Continue reading →

Washington v. Alvarado

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Docket No. 81069-9 (from Whatcom Case No. 06-1-01271-5)  Facts: Petitioner Alexander Alvarado was convicted of two counts of burglary, one count of first degree theft, two counts of first degree possession of stolen property, and one count of second degree possession of stolen property in the Superior Court for Whatcom County. The trial court subsequently imposed an exceptional sentence upon Alvarado Continue reading →