EVERETT — An Everett man was sentenced to three years in prison after accepting a plea deal in a shooting that injured one man outside an Everett bar late last year.
Francisco Cuahutemoc Vazquez, 24, pleaded guilty in April to first-degree unlawful firearm possession. Prosecutors initially accused Vazquez of two counts of first-degree assault and the firearm charge. Under state sentencing guidelines, Vazquez, who has a violent criminal history, faced up to 50 years in prison if convicted of the original charges.
Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Jon Scott gave Vazquez three years in prison.
The shooting, outside the Player’s Sports Bar and Grill at 10730 19th Ave. SE, left one man with a gunshot wound to his hip, according to court documents.
In the early morning hours of Dec. 17, 2022, a boyfriend and girlfriend were inside the bar when Vazquez approached the woman, arguing with her, according to charges filed in Snohomish County Superior Court.
The boyfriend intervened. Vazquez reportedly confronted him in the bathroom and pressed a handgun into his stomach, court documents said.
Detectives believed Vazquez followed them to the parking lot, firing at their car as the couple drove away, according to the charges. The bullets penetrated the passenger door, and the man was hit in the hip. His girlfriend took him to Swedish’s Mill Creek campus. Police later arrested Vazquez.
Deputy prosecutor Matthew Hunter amended the charges in April. After filing the original affidavit, prosecutors obtained video footage showing both Vazquez and someone in the car firing at each other, according to court papers.
While there was alleged evidence Vazquez was the initial aggressor, the evidence would come from the testimony of the boyfriend, and would be compromised because he had claimed he didn’t have a gun, court documents said.
According to court documents, the footage showed “mutual gunfire” being exchanged between Vazquez and the car. It was unclear who shot first.
“The likelihood of the State disproving legally justified self-defense, beyond a reasonable doubt, is substantially less than suggested by the written reports alone,” Hunter wrote.
The Daily Herald’s policy is to follow cases through sentencing if the suspect has been named in a previous story. Herald reporters recently discovered the paper had not followed up on the outcome of this case.
Court records show Vazquez had a felony history, including first-degree assault as a minor and first-degree attempted robbery as an adult.
When he was 15, Vazquez shot a young man on West Casino Road in apparent retaliation for a gang dispute, according to charging papers. The man was wounded in both legs and survived the injuries.
At 17, Vazquez was convicted of attempted first-degree robbery when he and an accomplice pretended to be interested in buying cannabis from two men, then tried to rob them, according to charging documents. The sellers ran away, shooting at the would-be robbers. Vazquez was hit twice and survived — his accomplice was killed.
Before the recent sentencing, Vazquez’s brother wrote a letter to the court, showing his support:
“Frankie, I love you and I plan on checking up on the kids and dropping off gifts on your behalf to remind them that their dad is still here, still loves them and still thinks about them 24/7.”
Vasquez has been serving his time at the Coyote Ridge Corrections Center east of Othello.
Jonathan Tall: 425-339-3486; jonathan.tall@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @EDHJonTall.
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