PORT ANGELES — A Port Angeles man who returned from a two-day jail furlough one day late has been sentenced to 6½ months on a first-degree escape charge.
Cory Joe Stokes, 31, was sentenced Sept. 6 after being convicted by a jury in August, the Clallam County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office announced.
Stokes, who had been serving a three-month sentence for identity theft, was released from custody at 2 p.m. March 15 to attend the birth of his child in Seattle, according to the affidavit for probable cause.
He was ordered to return by 2 p.m. March 17 and failed to do so, investigators said.
Clallam County Corrections Sgt. Don Wenzl asked Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Sarah Acker to seek a bench warrant at 7:40 a.m. March 18, court papers said.
Stokes appeared in the jail lobby to return from his furlough at 9:49 p.m. March 18, court papers said.
Stokes testified at trial that his ride had fallen through and that he did not have an alternative plan in place, Acker said in a news release.
A Clallam County jury convicted Stokes on Aug. 10 after a three-day trial.
Stokes had previous felony convictions of taking a motor vehicle and third-degree assault, giving him a standard sentencing range of 13 to 17 months in prison, Acker said in a news release.
Clallam County Superior Court Judge Erik Rohrer imposed a 6½-month jail sentence as an exceptional sentence below the standard range, Acker said.
Stokes is serving his sentence in the Clallam County jail.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsula dailynews.com.
