Opinion ID: 2590193
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Donald J. Legrone

Text: On October 22, 2002, a jury found Legrone guilty of possession with intent to deliver cocaine for events that occurred on October 19, 2000. In his sentencing memorandum, Legrone's counsel included two prior federal drug convictions as part of Legrone's criminal history but argued that the court should calculate the two convictions as a one in his offender score. The sentencing court rejected Legrone's argument and counted both his federal convictions separately. Additionally, the court imposed three offender score points for each of Legrone's prior felony drug convictions in accordance with former RCW 9.94A.360(3) (2000), the statute in effect at the time Legrone committed his 2000 offense. Thus, the court calculated Legrone's offender score as 12. Legrone appealed to Division One of the Court of Appeals. On appeal, Legrone argued the following: the sentencing court miscalculated his offender score when it failed to require that the State prove by a preponderance of the evidence his federal convictions were comparable to Washington State crimes; insufficient evidence existed to prove that he was guilty of possession with intent to deliver cocaine; the sentencing court erred when it refused to retroactively apply the 2002 amendments to RCW 9.94A.525(12), which eliminated provisions that tripled the number of offender score points for Legrone's prior drug convictions; and, the court's failure to retroactively apply the 2002 amendments to RCW 9.94A.525(12) violated his equal protection rights. In an unpublished opinion, the Court of Appeals rejected Legrone's claims holding that the sentencing court properly included Legrone's prior federal convictions in his offender score, that the State presented sufficient evidence, and that the 2002 amendments do not retroactively apply to crimes committed before the amendments' effective date nor violate Legrone's equal protection rights. State v. Legrone, noted at 117 Wash.App. 1044, 2003 WL 21500733, at -2. Legrone petitioned for review to this court asserting that the Court of Appeals erred when it held that the sentencing court properly calculated his offender score and when the court failed to retroactively apply the 2002 amendments to RCW 9.94A.525(12). We granted review and consolidated his case with Ross' and Hunter's cases.