"We knew there was no way this law would be fixed by Jan. Instead of a sentence of 10 to 18 years for murder, Strano faced between 6-½ and 8-½ years. His right to a speedy trial meant they only had until Jan. Because of the timing, they could not pursue a felony-murder charge against him. Strano's prosecutors said they had no choice but to reduce the charge to manslaughter. The Legislature vowed to fix the problem but didn't have the chance until the session now under way. The ruling threatened to overturn hundreds of murder cases statewide. In October, while the case against Strano was pending, the state Supreme Court ruled that state law, as written, doesn't allow second-degree felony-murder charges against people who commit assaults that end in the death of the victim. Andrews died two days later, a day shy of his 34th birthday.
Strano and another skateboarder had apparently cut off Andrews as he was driving, and Andrews got out of his car to confront the young men. Strano struck Andrews over the head with his skateboard during an altercation on University Way Northeast. Strano was originally charged with second-degree murder in the April slaying of Andrews, a real-estate agent, Mercer Island High School graduate, and father of a two sons in a tight Greek-American family. Strano and once by the justice system," said Andrews' tearful mother, Rothopi Andrews.
"I feel my son has been murdered twice - once by Mr. It's a situation that was hard to fathom yesterday for an emotional crowd of family and friends of the man Strano killed, Demetri Andrews, as they gathered in King County Superior Court to eulogize and ask for justice. In receiving his sentence for first-degree manslaughter, Strano joins only a handful of recent killers statewide who will gain years of freedom thanks to a controversial state Supreme Court ruling last year that barred them from being charged with second-degree murder.Īnd the state Legislature's passage this week of a bill fixing the loophole won't matter. It could have been a lot worse for Timothy R. Despite his plea for leniency and a promise to straighten up his life, a 23-year-old man was sentenced yesterday to 7-½ years in prison for beating a man to death with a skateboard last spring in Seattle's University District.
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