A man who was sentenced to more than 50 years in prison for the attempted murder, robbery and kidnapping of an Oregon man near Vancouver Lake will be resentenced, a Washington appeals court ruled Tuesday.
The appeals court determined that during sentencing, the trial court improperly added one point to Pedro “Junior” Godinez Jr.’s offender score — points accrued based on past criminal history to guide sentencing decisions.
Godinez was convicted March 12, 2014, following a jury trial, of first-degree attempted murder, kidnapping, robbery and unlawful possession of a firearm. The jury also found Godinez committed the crimes with deliberate cruelty and lack of remorse, both aggravating factors that allowed for a longer-than-normal sentence.
Retired Clark County Superior Court Judge Barbara Johnson sentenced Godinez to 50 years and seven months in prison in April 2014. A mandatory five years was added to both the attempted murder and kidnapping portions of Godinez’s sentence because he committed the crimes with a firearm.
The victim, Freddie Landstrom, then 39, of Beaverton, Ore., was lured to the apartment of Godinez’s then-girlfriend, Joanna Speaks, on Nov. 28, 2012. At the apartment, Godinez abducted Landstrom, someone he’d never met before, at gunpoint. Godinez led Landstrom to believe he would live — until the point when Landstrom gave him his ATM PIN numbers. Godinez shot Landstrom five times.
A wounded Landstrom escaped by fleeing in the darkness through a swamp and field until he stumbled upon Kadow’s Marina, a cluster of houseboats on Northwest Lower River Road. He sought help at one of the residences, and a woman inside called 911 because she thought he was an intruder.
On appeal, Godinez argued that the trial court improperly admitted hearsay statements from Landstrom and erred when it allowed a witness to testify during his trial wearing prison attire. He also argued that the court committed two sentencing errors.
Although it agreed with the one sentencing error, the appeals court ruled against Godinez’s other arguments.
It upheld his convictions but ordered he be resentenced at a later date.
