A sex offender convicted of telephone harassment and intimidating sheriff’s deputies will spend nearly five years in prison, a judge ruled Thursday.
Willie Jay Russell, 47, told Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Charles French that lawyers, judges and police were out to get him because he is a convicted sex offender.
"They don’t let us get our criminal history behind us. They don’t let us get on with our lives," Russell said.
The sentence, about the middle of the sentencing range for his crimes, was far less harsh than what deputy prosecutor Chris Dickinson sought. Dickinson asked the judge to find grounds for an exceptional sentence because of Russell’s history of criminal misdemeanors.
During his adult life, Russell has committed crimes that jeopardize the safety of others, Dickinson said.
Russell said he’s been dogged by deputies, and he blames the deaths of his wife and mother on the pressure deputies caused over the last year.
"This has been the worst year of my life," Russell told the judge. "They have taken away my life. They have taken away my wife. They’ve taken away my mom."
Dickinson replied that Russell’s position is "utterly breathtaking" and his "mind-set demonstrates why he should get an exceptional sentence."
French said Russell tends to minimize his actions and maximizes the effects other people’s actions have on him.
The judge said he couldn’t find sufficient reason for an exceptional sentence, but added, "I certainly appreciate people’s concerns about Mr. Russell and his volatility."
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