A San Juan Island man who survived a violent high-speed crash earlier in the year, which claimed the life of his dog, was sentenced to five days in jail for a misdemeanor weapons offense.
On Sept. 12, Jared Jeffrey Wold, 22, pleaded guilty in San Juan County Superior Court to one count of second-degree attempted unlawful possession of a firearm, a gross misdemeanor. He was ordered to serve 365 days in jail with 360 days suspended for two years, and to pay $1,200 in fines and fees.
He was allowed to serve five days on work crew in lieu of jail.
According to court documents, Wold had been prohibited from possessing a firearm by court order following a conviction for felony vandalism in Eastern Washington seven years ago. Convicted as a juvenile at that time, Wold attorney Thomas Pacher said the record is unclear as to whether court orders in that case all were satisfied, including the payment of fines, and whether the firearm restriction still applies.
Nevertheless, a 12-gauge shotgun was discovered in the wreckage of a single-car crash near the intersection of Cattle Point Road and Golf Course Road in early April. His dog died at the scene.
Initially, Wold had been charged in June with unlawful possession of a firearm in the second degree, a Class C felony carrying maximum penalties of five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both. He was also ticketed for reckless driving, a misdemeanor; that case has yet to be resolved.
Pacher said the plea agreement and sentence strike a reasonable balance.
“They get something out of it and my client avoids the possibility of some serious jail time,” he said.
Investigators believe Wold was driving south on Mullis Street at a high rate of speed when he missed a curve at Golf Course Road, drove into a ditch, launched out of it and crashed into a field at the intersection. His 1993 Lincoln reportedly traveled through the air at about 50 mph, cleared the road and some power transformers, and clipped a tree before landing in the field, leaving a trail of debris in its wake.
Investigators believed alcohol may have factored into the crash, but a law enforcement officer at Harborview Medical Center failed to give Wold an “implied consent warning” before administering a blood test. Absent that warning, results of a blood-alcohol exam cannot be admitted as evidence at trial.
Disoriented and injured, Wold was found walking on the road, attempting to flag cars down for help, when deputies arrived at the scene. He was flown to Harborview for treatment.
