‘Hard Time’ Law Stretches Staff

A new state law aimed at keeping violent criminals behind bars means Spokane County prosecutors will have to work harder.

Or the prosecutor’s office will have to find money to hire another prosecutor to handle the extra load, said county Prosecutor Jim Sweetser.

State legislators approved the citizen-sponsored “Hard Time for Armed Crime” initiative Thursday.

The new law imposes longer prison sentences for crimes committed while in possession of a deadly weapon. It also eliminates early release of such inmates.

It also imposes the death penalty for fatal drive-by shootings and slayings committed to win membership in gangs.

Sweetser said he supports the initiative, but expects it will mean more time in court for his staff.

“Any time there are longer sentences associated with offenses, the other side’s (attorneys) fight harder.

“The harder they work in court, the harder we have to work,” Sweetser said.

The law was drafted by Washington Citizens for Justice, the same group that wrote the nation’s first “Three Strikes, You’re Out” law.

Because it started as a citizens’ initiative, the bill becomes law 90 days after the session ends. It does not need the governor’s signature.

Sweetser predicted he’d need to hire one more deputy prosecutor to handle the added work.

If that extra person cannot be hired, he said the impact will be giving lower priority to crimes with lesser penalties.

“More serious cases would be our first concern. But like any business, we’d have to manage by setting priorities,” said Sweetser.

Spokane Police Chief Terry Mangan said he believes the new law is a result of mounting concerns in the state about gangrelated violence.

He said he hopes the courts will impose the sentence enhancements in the new law.

Too often, he said, federal and state laws do give the courts the ability to impose stiffer sentences, but that doesn’t happen.