A Vancouver man serving more than 50 years in prison for the attempted murder, robbery and kidnapping of an Oregon man near Vancouver Lake has won a small reduction in his sentence.
Pedro Godinez Jr., 22, appeared Monday in Clark County Superior Court to be resentenced after the Washington Court of Appeals ruled in December that the trial judge improperly added a point to his offender score during sentencing. Offender scores are points accrued based on criminal history and are used to guide sentencing decisions.
Godinez was convicted in March 2014 following a jury trial of first-degree attempted murder, kidnapping, robbery and unlawful possession of a firearm. The jury also found that Godinez committed the crimes with deliberate cruelty and lack of remorse — aggravating factors that allowed for a sentence outside the standard sentencing range.
Retired Clark County Superior Court Judge Barbara Johnson had sentenced Godinez to 50 years and 7.75 months in prison, which included mandatory five-year sentences added to the attempted murder and kidnapping convictions because he committed the crimes with a firearm. Monday, she resentenced him to 50 years in prison.
Godinez abducted Freddie Landstrom, then 39, of Beaverton, Ore., at gunpoint after Godinez’s then-girlfriend, Joanna Speaks, lured the man to her apartment on Nov. 28, 2012.
Godinez made Landstrom believe he would let him live, but after Landstrom gave him his PIN number for his bank card, Godinez shot him five times. Landstrom survived, however, and fled in the darkness through a swamp and field.
On appeal, Godinez argued that the trial court improperly admitted hearsay statements from Landstrom and erred by allowing a witness to testify while wearing prison attire. He also argued the court committed two sentencing errors.
The appeals court only agreed with the one sentencing error and upheld Godinez’s convictions.
Johnson had added one point to Godinez’s offender score for attempted first-degree murder and unlawful possession of a firearm because he was on community custody at the time. However, the appeals court found this was an error because Godinez’s prior conviction of fourth-degree assault, a gross misdemeanor, didn’t require community custody.
During Monday’s resentencing, the prosecution asked Johnson, who returned to the bench for this case, to sentence Godinez the same way she had before — the high end of the range, with the firearm enhancements, and run the attempted murder and kidnapping convictions consecutively and the unlawful possession of a firearm conviction consecutive to that.
Deputy Prosecutor Dan Gasperino asked for 600.5 months — 7.25 months less than Godinez’s original sentence. He argued that the appeals court did not overturn Godinez’s longer-than-normal sentence.
The victim also addressed the court and urged Johnson to exercise due diligence.
“Well, I didn’t think I was going to be here again,” Landstrom said. “I can never forget that horrible day and horrible night.”
Landstrom said he still suffers physical complications from his wounds but said even more than that, he doesn’t understand how someone can try to take another person’s life.
Godinez’s attorney, Charles Buckley, asked Johnson to reconsider giving Godinez an exceptional sentence. He argued that the crimes themselves were egregious and cruel, which is why Godinez should be sentenced at the top of the standard range. Buckley said a 44-year sentence would be sufficient.
Johnson said nothing in the case had changed, apart from the one offender score point, so she found no reason to significantly depart from Godinez’s original sentence. She sentenced Godinez to 600 months.
