By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – The Washington State Supreme Court issued an opinion yesterday disqualifying a local judge from presiding over a resentencing that has twice been ordered in a drive-by shooting committed by a former Centralia High School student at age 16.
Guadalupe Solis-Diaz Jr. is serving a nearly 93 year sentence imposed by Lewis County Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt.
Guadalupe Solis-Diaz Jr.
In 2012, the Washington State Court of Appeals ordered the local court to conduct a new hearing, referencing various matters that it believed should have been handled more thoroughly, given the defendant was a juvenile. In 2014, Judge Hunt held the hearing, criticizing the appeals court decision calling some of their conclusions insulting and ludicrous.
He sentenced Solis-Diaz for the second time to 1,111 months in prison.
The case grew out of an incident in the summer of 2007.
Solis-Diaz Jr. was arrested after gunfire was sprayed along the east side of South Tower Avenue in Centralia, missing six bar patrons. Witnesses testified it was gang-related. Solis-Diaz maintained he was innocent.
Judge Nelson Hunt
He was tried as an adult and convicted of multiple offenses, including one count of first-degree assault committed with a firearm for each bullet that was fired.
The six assault counts were ordered to be served consecutively and each carried a mandatory extra five years because they were committed with a firearm.
Judge Hunt was asked to consider an exceptional sentence downward, but Hunt maintained several reasons why he should not do that.
This past spring, a different three-member panel of the appeals court stated the sentencing court must conduct a meaningful, individualized inquiry into whether Solis-Diaz’s youth should mitigate his sentence. That hearing has yet to be held.
However, they declined to disqualify the sentencing judge and Solis-Diaz went to the Supreme Court about that.
In its opinion issued yesterday the state Supreme Court stated the law requires more than an impartial judge, it requires the judge to also appear to be impartial.
Hunt would be asked to exercise discretion of the propriety of a sentence he has already imposed and, “the record reflects that he not only has strong opinions on sentencing generally and juvenile sentencing in particular, but also suggests he has already reached a firm conclusion about the propriety of a mitigated sentence in this case and may not be amenable to considering mitigating evidence with an open mind,” the court wrote.
Judge Hunt retired last Friday after 12 years on the bench.
The opinion was issued by the court as a whole without a named author.
•••
For background, read “Former Centralia high school student wins a second appeal of virtual life sentence” from Tuesday May 17, 2016, here
Read the Washington State Supreme Court decision here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
I think that he got a raw deal for what he did. Compared to what others have done, and got far less for.
I nor none of you probably sat at the trial or read through the court proceedings, but you have an opinion on what looks like a harsh punishment. This criminal was a danger to the public and now he’s off the streets. We should be thankful that our community is safer and sending out a good message to gang members. Zero tolerance.
Honorable Judge Hunt is a wise and fair man. He reads through all of the pre trial paperwork and knows the details and evidence to be shown before any trial begins. I believe the punishment was done in accordance to the evidence and attitude presented. And i can only imagine the attitude and lack of respect Judge Hunt had to put up with before handing out a harsh sentence to this young man. If he didn’t learn it before “he was gonna learn today!!” Case closed!!
Thank you for your service, Mr Hunt.
I also grew up with JR. he was like an older brother, but for you to say you hope his family hurts more then anything, you are a dispicable person. I hope karma gets to you, you seem like a hateful person. prosecutor of the trial said as long as their still in office they are not going to lighten the sentence and both the judge the prosecutor just laughed. People get mixed with the wrong group, so much of the youth are drug addicts just for that reason, 16 year olds into hard drugs, 13 year olds smoking weed. what about the adults in that car? What kind of charges did they get for instigating him to pull the trigger? Yes he deserved to pay for his crime but that sentence is just injustice.
Hunt should be as impartial as the defendant was when he was impartially shooting at innocent people on the sidewalk.
Hes been in prison since he was barely 16, its been a decade, I’m not excusing what he did but damning a kid for 93 years is just wrong.
There was a lot of politics involved here and also they were trying as they have in the past to send a very clear message to gang members to discourage them in their endeavor to take over here. I remember reading about some of this. I am old and take notice of the folks that hate the judges. I have had two experiences with a judge , once as a witness and once as a plaintive and both were fairly positive but the folks I have questioned about their anger at judges usually stem from that person being angry at losing their license or some story. It is always the judges fault , even if the story teller had 6 DUI’s. It does seem like a excessive sentence compared to murder but I know at the time the whole gang thing was involved, and for a time there was a very concerted effort to stem that flood coming in from LA I do believe. I live miles away up in the Mountains where gangs actually started but then it was your Granny who sent you out to beat someone’s ass. Think Hatfield’s and the McCoy’s. Today it is different I know.
Yet when my friend John was murdered in Lewis County in 1996, they gave his killer just three years even tho the man had come back to the scene to mutilate the body. Three years. That’s what the court figured my friends life was worth. My friend was a life long log trucker not a criminal. Apparently the Supreme Court thinks criminals lives are worth more than the citizens lives they take (or attempt to take).
SpottedGrowl he might get out within 20 years but the sad thing is prison has no self betterment programs. Just look at Green Hill when you drive by it. Notice the large green house not in use.
I agree, Bo. The last thing we need to do with people who spray bullets from a passing car at others is lock them up. We’d all be much safer with this guy on the streets again, the sooner the better. By the way, he’s not merely “accused,” he’s “convicted.” There is a difference.
Seriously, I’ve never been very impressed with Judge Hunt and 93 years IS too long for what Solis did. I could live with 20 years so he can return to a productive level of gang-banging at age 36.
Committed the crime do the time has one of the most level heads I have seen when it comes to opinions on this particular case. They are right. What about the victims he shot at? He is soooooooo very lucky that he is a crappy shot or he might be sitting on death row right now awaiting execution rather than just a prison sentence! I do indeed think 93 years is excessive in this case considering he was 16 when he did it. Maybe Judge Hunt figured he would eventually beat that sentence in a higher court because it truly is excessive I believe however, what Judge Hunt did accomplish here was send a HUGE message to the gangsters of Lewis Co and the young man also, that human life is not something to be taken lightly PERIOD! You do something this stupid and you aren’t just going to receive a slap on the hand! I can bet there were MANY gang bangers in Lewis Co that contemplated doing a drive by or capping somebody that thought twice and changed their mind just because of this particular case. Judges aren’t stupid or they wouldn’t have made it to that level. He probably accomplished more towards crime prevention in just this one case than any law enforcement task force, weed and seed, dare program, etc had done in centuries!! Obviously the sentence is excessive and it will take several years at best from sentencing to get it changed but it will most likely indeed get changed. Moral of this story???….Pull something this stupid in Lewis Co. and chances are you aint coming back for a GRAND LLLLLLLOOOOONNNGGGG TIME! KUDOS Judge Hunt! I do hope this young man got the message and no doubt he will receive a reduced sentence in the future but I can bet you he will be a walkin a straight and narrow line when he does get out if he has any brains at all!
I hope that the accused is released soon. I met kids at Green Hill School who shot people in the head and they were only serving 10 years. This guy didn’t even graze anyone and they took his whole life. RIDICULOUS!
How do prevent this type of judge from staying in office so long? If its voters, who are these people?
While I have no sympathy for the shooter, Nelson Hunt is one of the worst things to happen to the Lewis County bench, ever. Considering some of the other judges over the years, that is quite an achievement. Just ask others victimized by this nutjob judge, like the victims in the Toledo Pharmacy holdup. This was a trial that occurred during the worst days of Michael Golden mismanaging the prosecutor’s office and overcharging defendants. Combine a bad judge and bad prosecutor and the results will never be justice. While prison is and was appropriate, 93 years is obviously excessive.
I grew up with Jr and it sucks to see him get so long but he endangered many lives that night. I do not feel bad for him. I think if he wouldn’t have been such a follower he wouldn’t have been put in that position. Anybody who says Jr is innocent and should be released is only saying that because u feel bad for him. Nobody feels bad for the people he shot at and terrified. I hope he rots in jail. And I hope his family is hurting more than anything. So he gets reminded of the pain and bullshit he caused everyday.