"Hard Time for Armed Crime"
Avoiding Add-On Prison Time for Gun Crimes
Prosecutors may use weapon enhancements to bully defendants into bad plea agreements. If I am defending you, I will aggressively challenge these tacked-on charges to seek to avoid the mandatory prison time they represent.
I am Leslie E. Tolzin, a criminal defense lawyer in Tacoma, Washington, with 18 years of experience. Contact me today to discuss your case.
Weapons Enhancements
In 1995, the State of Washington passed a law to discourage the use of weapons in the commission of a criminal act. An assault, robbery or drug deal can quickly turn fatal when guns are involved. Known by the catchphrase "Hard Time for Armed Crime," the law takes a very hard line on gun crimes.
- It increases the penalty for the underlying offense.
- The weapons enhancement is flat time — no reduction for good behavior.
- The enhancement is consecutive time — tacked on the end of any other sentence.
For a Class C felony, the enhancement is 6 months for the use of a deadly weapon or 18 months for the use of a firearm. For a Class B felony, it's 1 year or 3 years, and for a Class A felony 2 years or 5 years. Nearly anything can be considered a deadly weapon: I have had cases involving knives, a baseball bat, a golf club and even a vehicle.
This well-intentioned law is disastrous when applied inappropriately. One client was arrested for drug possession, with no prior convictions. Normally he would face 0 to 6 months in jail, but police found a gun in his car. The gun had no connection to a drug transaction, but he suddenly faced a more serious felony with a mandatory minimum of 51 to 68 months in prison, plus three years for the firearm enhancement — a total sentence of more than eight years for a man who had never been in trouble with the law before!
Another client was charged with first degree murder, first degree assault and unlawful possession of a firearm. He was looking at 15 years of flat time in enhancements on top of those charges. I negotiated for him to plead guilty to second degree murder with just one enhancement — he was very grateful to receive a sentence of 25 years instead of life in prison.
Aggressive, Experienced Gun Crimes Representation
You need to know everything you are facing. I have successfully defended against gun crimes, violent crimes, drug crimes and add-on charges.
Call my Tacoma office at 253-274-9441 for a free initial consultation.
