Judge gives career criminal another chance to change

EVERETT — Heath Mitchell dodged a bullet Wednesday.

On Oct. 8, 2013, he was on the run, bleeding from a head wound after being pistol-whipped during an attempted robbery in a south Everett motel room where he’d been selling drugs.

Somehow, he’d managed to get control of the would-be robber’s weapon.

Somehow, a single shot was fired, and the man who’d clobbered him staggered outside to die in the parking lot.

Mitchell, 39, slipped into the night. He dumped the gun behind a nearby apartment building. He was still battered and bloody when police caught up with him as he tried to reach his home. He was carrying enough heroin to leave little doubt that he’d been dealing drugs.

With nine prior felonies, mostly for property and drug crimes, along with nearly three dozen misdemeanors, Mitchell swiftly found himself locked up and under investigation for homicide. He was looking at decades behind bars.

But murder charges were not filed after the Everett police investigation found evidence supporting his claims that he had acted in self-defense.

And Mitchell caught an even bigger break Wednesday, when a Snohomish County judge decided to gamble that the longtime criminal is finally ready to make a change.

Instead of following a deputy prosecutor’s recommendation that Mitchell head to prison for about a decade, Judge Richard Okrent ordered an alternate sentence that will mix incarceration and drug treatment.

If Mitchell adheres to the rules of the drug offender sentencing alternative program, he’ll likely spend about five years behind bars undergoing chemical dependency treatment and the same amount of time under community supervision and monitored sobriety.

That was the result Mitchell’s parents and his lawyer, Mark Mestel, implored the judge to consider.

Under a plea agreement, the longtime Everett defense attorney had negotiated for his client to admit to violating firearms laws and drug trafficking in connection with the October 2013 incident as well as an auto theft committed while Mitchell was out on bail.

The defendant apologized for his role in the death of Robert Scott, 39, a man he’d met while in prison. Scott had served time for shooting a man in the groin while trying to collect an unpaid drug debt.

“It’s a tragedy and I’m sorry,” Mitchell said of the shooting. He then asked the judge to give him a chance to make a change.

Before announcing his decision, Okrent read from a state Department of Corrections report that recommended against cutting Mitchell a break.

It described his diligence in pursuit of illegal activity, and a demonstrated history of “criminal mind-set and poor lifestyle choices.”

Okrent said there were plenty of reasons to toss Mitchell aside, but he wondered if with treatment the man could redirect the energy he’d spent on crime into building a productive life.

He’s 39, the judge noted. If not now, when?

“I’m taking a great risk on Mr. Mitchell,” Okrent said.

If Mitchell ever again faces sentencing, the judge said, he was certain there would be no second chance.

Scott North: 425-339-3431; north@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @snorthnews.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

The Washington State University Snohomish County Extension building at McCollum Park is located in an area Snohomish County is considering for the location of the Farm and Food Center on Thursday, March 28, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Year-round indoor farmers market inches closer to reality near Mill Creek

The Snohomish County Farm and Food Center received $5 million in federal funding. The county hopes to begin building in 2026.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Police: Teen in stolen car flees cops, causes crash in Lynnwood

The crash blocked traffic for over an hour at 176th Street SW. The boy, 16, was arrested on felony warrants.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.