Opinion ID: 1154942
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 14

Heading: propriety of the exceptional sentence

Text: Garibay maintains next that his exceptional sentence was based on insufficient findings of fact and conclusions of law. He is incorrect. The stipulated facts on which the trial court relied were lengthy and detailed police reports describing the circumstances under which he was arrested. Garibay also maintains that, even assuming size is a factor in determining whether a drug operation warrants an exceptional sentence, nothing in the stipulated record below established this was anything other that an ordinary instance of possession. This argument likewise fails. [13] The trial court imposed an exceptional sentence based on the following conclusions of law: Garibay occupied a high position in the drug distribution hierarchy, RCW 9.94A-.390(2)(d)(iv); the offense involved a high degree of sophistication or planning or the offense involved a broad geographic area of disbursement, RCW 9.94A.390(2)(d)(v). Those conclusions were based on the following findings, which are supported in the record: nearly 2 pounds (846.1 grams) of cocaine were found in the home; the standard amount for street level use of cocaine is one-half gram. Given these findings the assertion that this quantity of cocaine represents a fairly typical instance of possession is unwarranted.