PORT TOWNSEND — Michael J. Pierce’s record is peppered with felony and misdemeanor convictions, but his crimes were never violent enough to warrant a permanent stay in prison.
If he is convicted of double homicide and arson, among other felonies, that will change.
Pierce, 34, of Quilcene, faces 11 felony charges in connection with the murders of Patrick Yarr, 60, and Janice Kay Yarr, 57, and the fire in their home at 780 Boulton Farm Road, off U.S. Highway 101 north of Quilcene, on March 18. He faces a life sentence if convicted.
Pierce was arrested on Saturday night and charged in Jefferson County Superior Court on Monday with two murder charges, arson, two counts of robbery, one count of burglary, two counts of theft of a firearm, two counts of unlawful possession of a firearm and one count of identity theft.
Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney Juelie Dalzell said that although Pierce has 10 felonies and 13 misdemeanors on his record, none were violent acts.
That meant he was never put away for a long period of time.
“People are very unaware of how little time is imposed under the state’s Sentencing Reform Act,” Dalzell said. “It gives the judges very little discretion.”
The state’s sentencing guidelines follow an equation for each crime not considered violent.
Prior offenses are plugged into the equation that determines an offender score. That score gives judges a sentencing range.
“They have to sentence within that range,” Dalzell said.
If Pierce’s convictions had been for violent crimes, the “Three Strikes and You’re Out” law passed by Washington state voters in 1993 might have come into play.
“But none of them were violent crimes,” Dalzell said.
The law requires mandatory life sentences for three-time violent offenders, according to the Washington Policy Center.
The most serious of Pierce’s prior convictions is second-degree felony burglary, a charge he’s been convicted of six times.
Among his other convictions are auto theft, eluding police, theft and possession of stolen property.
Misdemeanors are not factored into the sentencing equation when determining felony convictions, Dalzell said.
“You could have a hundred gross misdemeanors as far as the offender scores go,” Dalzell said.
“It wouldn’t make a difference.”
Even with all of his previous convictions, Pierce served only 30 months for auto theft in 2006 — the last time he was in prison, Dalzell said she believed.
“For nonviolent crimes, [the Department of Corrections] is giving 50 percent good time,” Dalzell said.
“So anything you see on that grid [for the sentencing guidelines], if they don’t commit any infractions while in prison, they will only do half of their sentence.”
If the courts find that Pierce is guilty of killing the Yarrs, burglarizing their home and burning down the house they lived in, the sentencing will likely be much harsher.
“Homicide is definitely a violent crime,” Dalzell said.
Pierce remains in Jefferson County jail on $250,000 bail. His next appearance in Jefferson County Superior Court is set at 8:30 a.m. April 10.
Pierce was identified after a surveillance camera at an automated teller machine at a Quilcene bank allegedly recorded him using the Yarrs’ debit card minutes after the blaze began.
The debit card was found with Pierce when he was pulled over by officers on Saturday, the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said.
Pierce said nothing in court on Monday, but over the weekend he told investigators that he has knowledge of the crimes.
But he said he was not the one who shot the Yarrs or started the fire that night. He said that another person, whom he did not identify, shot the Yarrs and started the fire.
The King County Medical Examiner’s Office has yet to determine the cause of death, but has ruled out the fire.
Jefferson County Sheriff Tony Hernandez said his office continues to investigate the crime and the possibility of a second killer.
Hernandez is asking anyone who has information to contact the Sheriff’s Office at 360-385-3831.
A memorial service for the Yarrs will be at 1 p.m. Saturday in the Oscar Erickson Building of the Jefferson County Fairgrounds, 4907 Landes St., Port Townsend.
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Jefferson County reporter Erik Hidle can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at erik.hidle@peninsuladailynews.com.
