Just back from King County Superior Court, where former Huling Bros. salesperson Paul Rimbey 
was sentenced less than an hour ago for 1st-degree theft, after a jury found him guilty last month for his role in a scheme to steal from a mentally unstable dealership customer. His lawyer wanted the basic maximum, 3 months; the prosecutor asked for 18 months; the judge made it 9 months, with work-release provisions so Rimbey can continue at the fulltime job he says he just finally got after a year of trying to find work. He cried while pleading for leniency, and supporters/relatives in the courtroom cried too. 2:31 PM UPDATE: Here’s our full report:
“I’m 40 years old and I’ve never been in trouble for anything,” Rimbey told Judge Nicole MacInnes. “I’m the father of a 15-year-old daughter and a 4-year-old boy. … I’m the kind of guy who would help anyone. I’m trustworthy and stable.”
His plea for leniency came after the judge heard from several others, including a brief tearful plea from a woman described as his “significant other” and the mother of his children: “I’ve known him for 31 years … he’s never done anything bad. This is a person who takes other people’s kids everywhere … this isn’t a person who would ever turn around and hurt someone.”
From the prosecutor: “The defendant was keenly aware of (the victim’s) vulnerability … (Rimbey) could have stopped the exploitation of the victim but instead continued it, by going to the psych ward and having him sign an unconscionable contract. There aren’t many victims more vulnerable than (this) — what he went through in 2006 is unbearable, and what the defendant did to him is unacceptable.”
The victim himself was in court too, with a woman identified as his legal guardian, and made a short statement, contending that Rimbey “had no business” doing what he did.
Rimbey’s lawyer Tony Savage immediately accused the victim of lying and also suggested the prosecution asked for the extra-long sentence because of “the presence of media” to cover the case (TV crews as well as writers including us). Of his client, he said, “I think he’s a good man who made a bad mistake.”
After hearing from all parties, the judge began her pronouncement by saying, “This is a difficult case in which to determine the appropriate sentence. Mr. Rimbey, I don’t doubt you’ve led the life you say you have — but with no prior contact with this victim, you took advantage of a situation you were well aware of, pursuing him, enticing him to sign a contract, then continuing that behavior with no expectation you were helping him. This was all for yourself. You simply took advantage of an opportunity that arose … a very predatory action.”
She then went on to note the “balancing” factors she saw in his background, including his lack of prior criminal history, in deciding to sentence him not to state prison as prosecutors had requested, but instead to 9 months in the King County Jail, with the work-release provision allowing him out to go to his job. She also ordered him to pay a $500 “victim penalty assessment” and $450 in court costs; any other restitution would be decided at a later hearing. And she granted Savage’s request that Rimbey be able to stay out of prison on “personal recognizance,” rather than the prosecution’s request for a $100,000 bond. “Does the prosecution really think he is going to flee his family and his job?” Savage asked.
He is tentatively scheduled to report to jail February 4th, but that could change depending on what happens with a potential appeal in his case, which would have to be filed within the next 30 days. Meantime, the other two ex-Huling sales staffers charged in the case, Adrian Dillard and Ted Coxwell, are awaiting trial, possibly starting as soon as next Thursday (that’s the newest date, just set after another postponement yesterday).
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