Paulsen Facing Unfair Scrutiny, Attorney Says Fellow Cocaine Dealer May Get Lesser Jail Term For Same Crime

A confessed cocaine dealer says he’s facing harsh punishment because he’s from a prominent and wealthy Spokane family.

Clarence “Cip” Paulsen III says it’s unfair he faces 12 years in prison, while his former dopedealing buddy, James Larsen, is in line for only eight years.

The two Spokane men headed separate factions of a cocaine ring that sold hundreds of pounds of dope before two dozen arrests last August in Operation Doughboy.

Both Paulsen, 35, and Larsen, 37, have pleaded guilty to various conspiracy and cocaine-dealing charges.

Prosecutors are recommending the lighter sentence for Larsen because they say he’s helped them more. The sentencing recommendations are included in formal plea agreements filed with the court.

The two men are in separate jail cells, awaiting sentencing next month.

“Mr. Paulsen has done as much or more than Mr. Larsen” to help investigators, Paulsen’s attorney, C.K. Carlton, said in a newly filed legal brief.

Paulsen pleaded guilty Nov. 16 to conspiracy, two counts of distributing cocaine and a fourth count of possession with intent to distribute the drug.

His plea agreement says he accepts responsibility for the distribution of 50 to 110 pounds of cocaine.

For those offenses, Paulsen faces a standard sentence of 135 to 168 months in prison.

Larsen pleaded guilty on Nov. 7 to conspiracy, 11 distribution counts, one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine and a moneylaundering charge.

His plea agreement says Larsen accepts responsibility for 110 to 330 pounds of cocaine, as much as three times more than Paulsen.

Larsen’s standard sentencing range, like Paulsen’s, is 135 to 168 months in prison.

But the prosecutor said he’d recommend 96 months because of the “substantial assistance” Larsen provided investigators.

Paulsen also provided “substantial assistance,” helping authorities develop other cases, his attorney argued.

But Paulsen isn’t being given enough credit for his help by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Carlton said.

“The pervasive publicity about Mr. Paulsen being a member of a prominent and wealthy Spokane family triggers judicial scrutiny,” her motion said.

She also said Paulsen’s “social and economic status triggers a higher degree of scrutiny” by prosecutors who have “singled him out for special treatment.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tom Rice disputes that argument.

“There really isn’t a discrepancy here,” Rice said of the plea bargain sentences for Larsen and Paulsen.

“Each of these defendants is being treated fairly, based upon their respective crimes,” the federal prosecutor added.

Prosecutors wouldn’t elaborate on what help Larsen and Paulsen provided because it concerns active investigations.