Other LanguagesSPOKANE — A Spokane County jury has decided that repeat sex offender James Jones is a dangerous predator and must be confined to the State’s Special Commitment Center on McNeil Island. In the interest of public safety, prosecutors from Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s Sexually Violent Predator (SVP) Unit have been fighting since February 2013 to prevent Jones’ release into the community.
Jones, 62, was convicted of two counts of second-degree rape by forcible compulsion and one count of unlawful imprisonment against a 14-year-old girl in 1996. He was later convicted of third-degree assault in 2011, less than a year after being released from prison for his 1996 crimes.
He was scheduled for community release in February 2013 before the Attorney General’s Office filed for his civil commitment. Since then, he has been detained at the Special Commitment Center awaiting trial.
The trial began on Oct. 6 and ended yesterday, with the jury’s decision that Jones is a Sexually Violent Predator.
“The Attorney General’s Office works hard to protect our communities from sexually violent predators,” said Ferguson. “I’m especially proud of the entire prosecution team for their dedication to this case over the past year and a half.”
Under Washington’s civil commitment law, prosecutors had to demonstrate Jones suffers from specific mental abnormalities and/or personality disorders that cause him to have serious difficulty in controlling his dangerous behavior and make him likely to engage in predatory acts of sexual violence unless confined to a secure facility.
In 1990, Washington became the first state in the nation to pass a law permitting the involuntary civil commitment of sex offenders after they have served their criminal sentence. The Attorney General’s SVP Unit was established shortly thereafter.
The AGO SVP unit is responsible for prosecuting sex predator cases for 38 of Washington’s 39 counties (King County being the exception). In Fiscal Year 2014, the unit tried 14 cases, won 9 civil commitments and secured one recommitment. Three trials ended in hung juries and one trial involved an offender who was found by the jury to not meet the criteria to be committed as a sexually violent predator.
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The Office of the Attorney General is the chief legal office for the state of Washington with attorneys and staff in 27 divisions across the state providing legal services to roughly 200 state agencies, boards and commissions. Attorney General Bob Ferguson is working hard to protect consumers and seniors against fraud, keep our communities safe, protect our environment and stand up for our veterans. Visit www.atg.wa.gov to learn more.
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Alison Dempsey-Hall, Acting Communications Director