Jury OKs harsh sentence for child murderer
A Spokane County jury broke legal ground Friday by authorizing above-standard punishment for child-murderer Robert L. Doney Jr.
The jury found Doney, 29, was guilty of four aggravating factors when he murdered 2-year-old Victoria Ramon because he was angry at her mother.
Beating the toddler to death to hurt her mother was deliberately cruel, jurors said after a morning of deliberation.
The murder occurred Dec. 26, 2003, in an apartment that Doney shared with the victim’s mother. Joan Richards had gone to a neighbor’s apartment to call police when Doney killed her daughter.
The jury also found that the 30-pound girl was especially vulnerable to the 260-pound Doney.
A third aggravating factor was that the victim suffered multiple injuries. Doney admitted slamming the child into a door frame when he unexpectedly ended his own trial Wednesday by pleading guilty to first-degree murder. But Spokane County Medical Examiner Dr. Sally Aitken testified that Victoria suffered at least four major blows.
Finally, jurors said, Doney showed an extreme lack of remorse after the crime. The findings were exactly what Prosecutor Steve Tucker and Deputy Prosecutor Larry Steinmetz asked of the jury in a ground-breaking mini-trial Thursday. Tucker and Steinmetz may now seek an above-standard sentence when Superior Court Judge Jerome Leveque sentences Doney on May 13.
“We will seek as much time as we can get,” Tucker said. “We want to get the message out that killing these kids is not going to be accepted.”
Doney faces a standard range of 20 3/4 to 27 1/2 years in prison, and Leveque is under no obligation to exceed the range. He could, however, impose any sentence up to life in prison.
Doney may appeal any above-standard sentence.
Thursday’s mini-trial on aggravating factors marked the first time a Spokane County judge has agreed to consider an exceptional sentence for an unwilling defendant since the U.S. Supreme Court partially invalidated Washington’s sentencing-guideline law last June.
The Supreme Court said defendants are entitled to have juries decide all facts used to justify above-standard sentences. Before the ruling, judges were allowed to determine aggravating factors on their own.
Several Spokane County judges have declined to present aggravating factors to juries because the Legislature has not yet amended the law to establish procedures.
Leveque required prosecutors to include their alleged aggravating factors in charging documents. He adopted trial rules and jury instructions based on those for regular trials.
“I really commend this judge for going forward and being the first one in the county to do it,” Tucker said. “It’s good to see it starting.”
Defense attorney Tim Trageser objected unsuccessfully on a variety of grounds, including his contention that Leveque lacked authority to retain the trial jury after Doney pleaded guilty.