State v. Scott

416 P.3d 1182, 190 Wash. 2d 586
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedMay 10, 2018
Docket94020-7
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 416 P.3d 1182 (State v. Scott) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State v. Scott, 416 P.3d 1182, 190 Wash. 2d 586 (Wash. 2018).

Opinions

MADSEN, J.

*1183*588¶ 1 This case addresses the adequacy of the parole remedy available under ROW 9.94A.730, the Miller1 "fix" statute. Consistent with the Supreme Court's decision in Montgomery v. Louisiana, --- U.S. ----, 136 S.Ct. 718, 193 L.Ed. 2d 599 (2016), we hold that RCW 9.94A.730 's parole provision is an adequate remedy for a Miller violation, rendering unnecessary the resentencing of a defendant who long ago received a de facto life sentence as a juvenile.

FACTS

¶ 2 Jai'Mar Scott was convicted by a jury in 1990 of first degree premeditated murder for killing his neighbor, a 78-year-old-woman who suffered from Alzheimer's disease. See State v. Scott, 72 Wash. App. 207, 210, 866 P.2d 1258 (1993), aff'd sub nom. State v. Ritchie, 126 Wash.2d 388, 894 P.2d 1308 (1995). Scott was 17 years old when he committed the murder. The juvenile court declined jurisdiction, and Scott was tried, convicted, and sentenced as an adult.

¶ 3 At sentencing, the parties agreed that the standard range was 240 to 320 months, with 240 months being the *589mandatory minimum sentence that could be imposed. The State requested an exceptional sentence above the standard range. The defense requested the low end of the standard range. The trial court sentenced Scott to an exceptional sentence of 900 months based on four independent findings: (1) that Scott's conduct constituted deliberate cruelty, (2) that his conduct was an abuse of trust, (3) that the crime involved multiple injuries, and (4) that the victim was particularly vulnerable.

¶ 4 On direct appeal, the Court of Appeals held that the 900-month sentence imposed was not clearly excessive because the "aggravating factors are both numerous and individually and collectively egregious." Id. at 222, 866 P.2d 1258. The Court of Appeals also rejected Scott's assertion that his exceptional sentence was improper in light of his youth at the time of the crime. This court affirmed in Ritchie, 126 Wash.2d at 399, 894 P.2d 1308, which held that the sentencing court had properly relied on "four horrid aggravating factors" in imposing the 900-month sentence.

¶ 5 As Scott served his sentence, the law of juvenile sentencing changed dramatically, and in 2012 the Supreme Court decided Miller, 567 U.S. at 465, 132 S.Ct. 2455, which held that a sentence imposed on a juvenile of mandatory life without parole violates the prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Following Miller, this court, in State v. O'Dell, 183 Wash.2d 680, 696, 358 P.3d 359 (2015), held that a trial court must be allowed to consider youth as a mitigating factor when imposing a sentence on a person who was barely 18 years old at the time of his crime. Two months later, Division One held, in State v. Ronquillo, 190 Wash. App. 765, 774-77, 361 P.3d 779 (2015), that Miller applied to juveniles receiving aggregate sentences that resulted in the *590equivalent of life without parole, that is, de facto life sentences.2

¶ 6 In May 2016, Scott filed a motion for relief from judgment requesting a new sentencing hearing. The State asked the superior court to transfer the untimely motion to *1184the Court of Appeals for consideration as a personal restraint petition (PRP) pursuant to CrR 7.8. The court denied the State's motion and granted Scott's motion for relief from judgment. The State appealed.

¶ 7 The Court of Appeals reversed the trial court's grant of a new sentencing hearing, finding, "The constitutional violation identified in the Miller line of cases is the failure to allow a juvenile offender the opportunity for release when his or her crime was the result of youthful traits." State v. Scott, 196 Wash. App. 961, 971, 385 P.3d 783 (2016). The Court of Appeals concluded, "In Montgomery, the Supreme Court expressly approved of statutes that provide the opportunity for parole as remedies for a Miller violation." Id. The Court of Appeals concluded that due to the enactment of "Washington's Miller fix statute," RCW 9.94A.730,3 "Scott is no longer serving a sentence that is the equivalent of life without parole. As such, Miller is not a significant change in law that is material to his sentence." Id. at 972, 385 P.3d 783. Scott sought review, which this court granted. State v. Scott, 188 Wash.2d 1001,

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
416 P.3d 1182, 190 Wash. 2d 586, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-v-scott-wash-2018.