In re Pers. Restraint of Pitchlynn

• Court: Washington Supreme Court
• Decided: March 16, 2023
• Docket: 100,154-1
• Status: Published

Opinion

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IN THE SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON

In the Matter of the Personal Restraint of ) No. 100154-1 ) JONATHAN PAUL PITCHLYNN, ) En Banc ) Petitioner. ) ) Filed: March 16, 2023

JOHNSON, J.—This case concerns an untimely personal restraint petition

that the petitioner alleges is exempt from the one-year time bar under RCW

10.73.100(5) because the judgment and sentence was imposed in excess of the trial

court’s jurisdiction. We ordered a reference hearing to resolve a material factual

dispute. Based on the factual findings, we conclude the trial court had jurisdiction

to enter the judgment and sentence. Accordingly, we dismiss petitioner’s personal

restraint petition as untimely.

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

In 2018, Jonathan Paul Pitchlynn pleaded guilty to third degree rape,

indecent liberties without forcible compulsion, third degree assault, felony

harassment, and unlawful imprisonment. He filed this second personal restraint For the current opinion, go to https://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/wareports/. In re Pers. Restraint of Pitchlynn, No. 100154-1

petition more than one year after his judgment and sentence became final, arguing

it is exempt from the time bar under RCW 10.73.100(5) because the trial court

lacked jurisdiction to enter the judgment and sentence. Pitchlynn alleged the trial

court lacked jurisdiction because the third degree rape count (count 5) was based

on conduct that occurred in Oregon.

The Court of Appeals recognized this second petition was successive under

RCW 10.73.140, but because it was potentially exempt from the one-year time

limit on collateral relief on the basis that the trial court may have lacked

jurisdiction, the court transferred the petition to this court, where it was not barred

as successive. Ord. Transferring Pet. to Wash. Sup. Ct., In re Pers. Restraint of

Pitchlynn, No. 55320-1-II (Wash. Ct. App. Aug. 31, 2021).

The Washington Supreme Court Commissioner’s Office called for a

response from the State to admit or deny the allegation that one of the sex offenses

to which Pitchlynn pleaded guilty was predicated on an incident that occurred in

Oregon. The State filed a brief agreeing count 5 was based on the Oregon incident,

thus conceding the trial court lacked jurisdiction to enter judgment on that offense.

It then “offer[ed] no additional argument as to the propriety of Pitchlynn’s petition

2 For the current opinion, go to https://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/wareports/. In re Pers. Restraint of Pitchlynn, No. 100154-1

or its timeliness under RCW 10.73.100(5)” and stated the “remaining issue is the

proper remedy.” Suppl. Br. of Resp’t at 4.

We granted review of this petition to determine the proper remedy where a

trial court lacked jurisdiction over one count in a multi-offense, indivisible plea

agreement. Pitchlynn argued the only proper remedy is to allow him to withdraw

his entire indivisible plea agreement. The State requested we remand to the trial

court to determine the proper remedy after considering whether compelling reasons

exist to deny the petitioner’s initial choice of remedy.

After we accepted review, the State retracted its prior admission that the trial

court lacked jurisdiction. It filed a second declaration pursuant to RPC 3.3(c) “to

correct and clarify false statements of fact” in the State’s initial filing. Second

Decl. of Senior Deputy Prosecuting Att’y Luka Vitasovic Submitted Pursuant to

[RPC] 3.3(c) (Second Decl.) at 2. In that declaration, it asserted that “[w]hile

preparing for this case and reviewing Pitchlynn’s first personal restraint petition,

[the prosecutor] encountered information that contradicted the declaration and, as a

result, [the prosecutor’s] admission.” Second Decl. at 1. In this second declaration,

and contrary to assertions made in the first declaration, Senior Deputy Prosecuting

3 For the current opinion, go to https://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/wareports/. In re Pers. Restraint of Pitchlynn, No. 100154-1

Attorney Vitasovic asserted they do not believe Pitchlynn pleaded guilty to any

crime based on conduct alleged to have occurred in Oregon.

In order to clarify the record, we ordered a reference hearing pursuant to

RAP 16.12 to determine whether count 5 was based only on conduct that occurred

in Oregon. The Clark County Superior Court held a reference hearing and, after

hearing testimony and reviewing the record, entered findings of fact. The superior

court found count 5 of the judgment and sentence is a conviction for rape in the

third degree—domestic violence, and count 5 was not based solely on conduct that

occurred in the state of Oregon. The court found the evidence reflects count 5 was

based on conduct that occurred in Washington State.

ANALYSIS

RCW 10.73.090(1) requires that a personal restraint petition be filed within

one year of the judgment becoming final. Pitchlynn’s judgment and sentence

became final on May 14, 2018. See RCW 10.73.090(3)(a). He filed this second

petition on August 19, 2020, more than one year after his judgment and sentence

became final. Unless he shows that his judgment and sentence is facially invalid or

that one of the exceptions to the time bar contained in RCW 10.73.100 applies to

his petition, it is time barred. Pitchlynn argues his petition is exempt from this time

bar under RCW 10.73.100(5), which provides the one-year time limit does not

apply where the sentence was imposed in excess of the trial court’s jurisdiction.

4 For the current opinion, go to https://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/wareports/. In re Pers. Restraint of Pitchlynn, No. 100154-1

Pitchlynn argued that because count 5 was based on conduct in Oregon, the trial

court lacked jurisdiction to enter the judgment and sentence.

Based on the superior court’s finding that count 5 was based on conduct in

Washington, Pitchlynn’s judgment and sentence was not entered in excess of the

trial court’s jurisdiction. Accordingly, his untimely petition is not exempt under

RCW 10.73.100(5).

CONCLUSION

We dismiss the personal restraint petition as untimely.

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