YAKIMA, Wash. (AP) — An 18-year-old Outlook man was sentenced Wednesday to 19 years in prison for a gang-related shooting that wounded a Yakima County sheriff’s deputy.
The Yakima Herald-Republic reports Jacob Almaguer entered a modified guilty plea in Yakima County Superior Court to charges of assault and unlawful possession of a firearm. He had been charged initially with attempted murder, which could have resulted in a 60-year term.
Deputy Bobby Miranda was shot in the right leg while investigating reports of gunshots in Outlook in July 2009. Investigators said the shooting was an ambush staged as a gang initiation for Almaguer.
Defense lawyer Mickey Krom says Almaguer maintains his innocence, but entered the Alford plea in order to avoid the prospect of never leaving prison.
