State v. Olsen

309 P.3d 518, 175 Wash. App. 269
Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided June 27, 2013·No. No. 42135-6-II·Published·Cited by 8 cases

Opinion

Quinn-Brintnall, J.

¶1 On December 21, 2010, a jury found Edward Olsen not guilty of attempted first degree murder but guilty of attempted second degree murder, first degree burglary, and felony harassment, all with domestic [274] violence aggravators, for pouring gasoline on and threatening to kill Bonnie Devenny while she was in bed.1 The trial court sentenced Olsen to an exceptional sentence of 360 months in light of the crimes having occurred in the presence of Devenny and Olsen’s 12-year-old son, J.E.O. Olsen appeals his conviction and sentence, arguing that (1) the trial court improperly admitted evidence of incidents of past domestic violence in Olsen and Devenny’s relationship; (2) the trial court’s “to convict” instruction for felony harassment omitted an essential element of the crime; and (3) the trial court erred in concluding that for calculating Olsen’s offender score, a California conviction for “terrorist threats” was comparable to felony harassment in Washington.

¶2 Because the trial court properly admitted evidence of Olsen and Devenny’s relationship and in State v. Allen, 176 Wn.2d 611, 627-28, 294 P.3d 679 (2013) (plurality opinion), our Supreme Court held that the definition of “true threat” need not be provided in a trial court’s “to convict” instructions, we affirm Olsen’s convictions. And finding no error in the trial court’s calculation of Olsen’s offender score, we affirm his sentence.

FACTS

Background

¶3 Around 4:00 am on November 29, 2009, Devenny was awakened by Olsen, the estranged father of her three children, dousing her bed in gasoline while threatening that she was going to die. Devenny “struggled and jumped up out of bed screaming.” 5 Report of Proceedings (RP) at 626. J.E.O., who had fallen asleep in Devenny’s room while watching television earlier in the evening, awoke to his mother’s screaming. J.E.O. grabbed Olsen and “tried to get him as far away as possible from [Devenny].” 5 RP at 586. J.E.O. forced Olsen into the hallway, while Devenny made it [275] into the bathroom across the hall and escaped through the bathroom window. Devenny ran across the street to the Wyatt House Retirement Center where J.E.O. later ran to meet her.

¶4 Wyatt House caretaker Terrance Black let Devenny and J.E.O. inside the secured facility and because Devenny “was just screaming that the gasoline was burning her” called 911. 3 RP at 231. During the call, Devenny relayed that Olsen had broken into her home and thrown gasoline on her and that she was worried that “he’s coming after me.” Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 176. Bainbridge Island Police Officer Michael Tovar responded quickly to the scene where he observed that Devenny was “hyperventilating,” “looked scared,” and had “obvious redness to her legs.” 3 RP at 242-44. Devenny told Tovar that “she was lying in bed when she was awoken by a male pouring gas on top of her ... who she identified as Mr. Olsen.” 3 RP at 246. Devenny also told Tovar that while pouring the gasoline, Olsen “was saying something to the effect of: ‘Die, bitch. Die.’ ” 3 RP at 246. Bainbridge Island Police Officer Lloyd Berg arrived in time to hear Devenny tell Tovar about the altercation. Berg could smell the gasoline on Devenny.

¶5 Officers Berg and Tovar then left the Wyatt House to see if Olsen was still at Devenny’s home. Berg and Tovar entered through the open front door and performed a sweep of the residence. Tovar immediately smelled gasoline once inside. Both Tovar and Berg noticed that the gasoline smell was strongest in the master bedroom, and both noticed a red gasoline can near the foot of the bed. Completing the sweep, Berg and Tovar checked the perimeter of the house but did not find Olsen. They noted that the front passenger window of Devenny’s car was broken.

¶6 Bainbridge Island Police Detective Trevor Ziemba responded to a call about the incident at approximately 5:00 am. Even though Devenny had changed her clothes, Ziemba could still smell gasoline. After interviewing Devenny and J.E.O., Ziemba went to Devenny’s home. Upon entering, he [276] immediately smelled gasoline and the odor “was just unbelievable.” 4 RP at 330. The gasoline smell in the master bedroom was “so strong” that it made Ziemba “nauseous,” and he “could only spend a limited amount of time in the room.” 4 RP at 331. Ziemba noticed a lighter on the night stand near the bed, which he collected as evidence. Police were unable to locate Olsen at the time but were able to corral the family dog, which had run off during the incident. They did not notice any gasoline smell on the dog.

¶7 Toward the end of January, Olsen turned himself in to law enforcement in Arizona. Detectives Ziemba and Christian Hemion flew to Arizona to bring Olsen back to Washington. After transporting Olsen to Washington, Hemion advised Olsen of his Miranda2 rights. Olsen waived those rights and spoke with the detectives about the incident. Olsen told the detectives that on the night of the incident, he broke out the window of Devenny’s car with a large rock so that he could open the home’s garage door with the opener in the car. Olsen then said that he “drank some alcohol,” “had a casserole and ... watched some TV.” 4 RP at 352. Sometime later, Olsen needed to use the bathroom, but “there, was a dog in there” that was denying him access to the bathroom. 4 RP at 352. Then,

because he had to use the bathroom so bad ... he tried to use the casserole to coax the dog out of the bathroom, and when that didn’t work he then went into the garage and took a can of gasoline, went into the bathroom and poured gasoline — or started pouring gasoline on the dog as the dog ran into the bedroom and then jumped on the bed, which was occupied by [Devenny] and [J.E.O.].

4 RP at 353. Olsen told the detectives that he did not believe Devenny was in the house as these events transpired and that the dog jumping on the bed was “why there [was] gasoline in the bedroom.” 4 RP at 425.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

State v. Olsen, 309 P.3d 518, 175 Wash. App. 269 (Wash. Ct. App. 2013).

309 P.3d 518 (State v. Olsen) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

State of Washington v. John Louis Vassallo Jr.
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2026
State Of Washington, V. John M. Davis
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2022
State Of Washington, V. Joseph Nicholas Sliwinski
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2022
State Of Washington, V Daniel P. Bakker
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2021
State Of Washington v. Edward Mark Olsen
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2019
State Of Washington v. Jaspal Singh Gill
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2017
State Of Washington, Resp v. Emyll S Matos-ramos, App
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2017
State v. Olsen
Washington Supreme Court, 2014
State Of Washington, V Dedrick Demond Thomas
Court of Appeals of Washington, 2014