Detrick L. Johnson and Anthony R. Newell appeal their sentences for delivery of cocaine. They both contend that their prior juvenile adjudications were not convictions, and the trial court improperly found that those adjudications precluded sentencing them under the Drug Offender Sentencing Alternative (DOSA). Johnson also argues that his prior juvenile conviction washed out, and Newell asserts a new statute eliminating the tripling provisions for drug offenses and reducing the seriousness level of his offense should apply retroactively to him. Because Johnson and Newell are no longer subject to the statutes governing juvenile offenses, we reject their arguments based on the Basic Juvenile Court Act (chapter 13.04 RCW). We also conclude that the legislature intended the amended statute be prospective only and affirm both sentences.
FACTS
Detrick Johnson was charged by information filed on January 12, 2001, with one count of delivery of cocaine. He entered a guilty plea, and both the State and defense recommended a 41-month sentence, the low end of the standard range. Johnson requested an alternative sentence under the DOSA statute.
In November 2000, Anthony Newell entered a guilty plea to delivery of cocaine. He also requested an alternative sentence under the DOSA statute, but the trial court found that his prior juvenile adjudication for second degree assault with a deadly weapon made him ineligible for a DOSA
DISCUSSION
1. Prior Juvenile Adjudications
The mutual issue in these consolidated cases is whether Johnson’s and Newell’s prior juvenile adjudications were convictions at all. Both agree that, if the adjudications are convictions for purposes of applying the DOSA sentencing alternative, they are not eligible for DOSA sentences. But they contend that RCW 13.04.240 mandates that a juvenile adjudication never be treated as a conviction, and thus their prior juvenile adjudications may not be used to exclude them from DOSA eligibility. RCW 13.04.240 states that
An order of court adjudging a child delinquent or dependent under the provisions of this chapter shall in no case be deemed a conviction of crime.
This language appears only in the Basic Juvenile Court Act (chapter 13.04 RCW). There is no comparable provision in the Sentencing Reform Act of 1981, chapter 9.94A RCW, (SRA). The adult and juvenile statutes govern only sentences within the system to which the respective statutes apply.
Johnson and Newell rely on several cases to buttress their argument. But In re Pers. Restraint of Frederick
State v. Cheatham
This reasoning applies to these cases as well. Johnson and Newell are no longer juveniles and are not subject to the Juvenile Court Act. When they became adults and committed adult crimes, application of the SRA was triggered. The SRA unambiguously includes juvenile adjudications under Title 13 RCW in the definition of criminal history, so the rule of lenity cannot apply.
At oral argument, Newell contended that the reasoning of Apprendi v. New Jersey
2. Washed-Out Juvenile Convictions
Johnson contends the trial court erred in considering his prior washed-out juvenile conviction to determine whether he was eligible for a DOSA sentence. Under a previous statutory definition, a juvenile adjudication washed out when the individual reached age 23.
In Smith and State v. Cruz
In State v. Deman,
3. Tripling Provisions
Newell contends that the recent statutes eliminating the tripling provisions of RCW 9.94A.525(12) and reducing the standard range for drug crimes should be applied
CONCLUSION
Affirmed.
Grosse and Ellington, JJ., concur.
Review denied at
Notes
Former RCW 9.94A. 120(6) (2000).
In re Pers. Restraint of Smiley,
In re Bet. of Swanson,
State v. J.H.,
To be convicted of the crime, the defendant must have a prior felony conviction. RCW 9.41.040.
State v. Cheatham,
Id. at 275.
RCW 9.94A.030(12)(b) (1996); see State v. Smathers,
Apprendi,
Tighe,
State v. Gore,
Former RCW 9.94A.030(12)(b) (1996).
State v. Smith,
State v. Deman,
Id. at 102.
