Dennis James Cramm was 17 on May 30, 2000, when a fistfight between him and another young man at his south Everett home erupted into deadly gunfire.
His 2001 conviction on two murder counts, which led to a 60-year prison sentence, will stand, according to a one-page decision issued this week by the state Supreme Court, the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office said Thursday.
"We think the result is fair and just, and we’re glad the appellate process is finally over," said Charles Blackman, the deputy prosecutor who handled Cramm’s appeal.
Tom Conom, Cramm’s attorney on the appeal, said the case might not be over. A federal court might hear Cramm’s issues.
Conom, of Edmonds, said it was "devastating news" that the high court didn’t accept the case. He expected it to review a lower court opinion because he presented a novel issue and the state Court of Appeals decision was weak.
The state Court of Appeals ruled that Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Linda Krese’s instructions to the jury and the long prison sentence were appropriate. The high court this week declined to review that decision.
Cramm was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder on the basis of extreme indifference to human life for firing through a car’s window with a high-powered rifle.
The car was full of teenagers attempting to leave the scene of the fight after things turned ugly. Jason Thompson and Jesse Stoner of Everett, both 18, were sitting in the back seat. They were both struck by the bullets and killed.
A crowd of young people had gathered at the Cramm home to watch the fight. Most of them scattered when the gunfire broke out.
Cramm and others stockpiled an arsenal of weapons around the property prior to the scheduled fistfight.
Conom argued earlier that Cramm had no intention of shooting Thompson and Stoner. Instead, he was shooting at another person who was using their car as a shield. The other person had a gun, and Cramm argued that he was defending his father, Dale Cramm.
Dennis Cramm fired 10 shots into the car, which contained five young people.
Conom argued that the crime of murder by extreme indifference is constitutionally vague in connection with a person acting in self-defense, as Cramm maintained.
Blackman argued that Cramm was or should have been aware of the risks when he picked up the rifle and fired. He also argued that Cramm’s trial defense attorneys knew that and didn’t object to the instructions given to the jury.
Krese’s sentence, two consecutive 30-year prison terms, also was contested by Conom but was upheld by this week’s decision.
Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or haley@heraldnet.com.
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