He nearly beat someone to death during a burglary. Why was he sentenced for manslaughter?
Two men nearly beat a 67-year-old to death during a burglary near Gig Harbor. They’ve now both been sentenced.
The attack and burglary took place Oct. 2, 2020 at the victim’s home on 112th Street Northwest.
Back in March 2021, Pierce County prosecutors charged the two men, 27-year-old Taylor Miles and 23-year-old Samuel Stacy, with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault, first-degree burglary and first-degree trafficking in stolen property.
On Friday, Aug. 4, Miles had his sentencing hearing.
Miles agreed to plead guilty to one count of second-degree manslaughter and second-degree trafficking in stolen property.
He was sentenced to 15 years in prison, court records show.
Defense attorney Laura Carnell declined to comment.
Some may wonder why Miles pleaded guilty to manslaughter if the victim is still alive.
Adam Faber, spokesperson for the Pierce County’s Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, said it was an “In Re Barr” plea, where the defendant pleads to an offense they did not commit.
“Our aim and the plea agreement was to get significant felony convictions with the strike offense and substantial prison time, which is what that plea deal gave to us,” Faber told the Gateway. “The prosecution and defense jointly recommended statutory maximum consecutive sentences for those two charges that added up to 15 years.”
Stacy was sentenced to almost 38 years in June of this year.
He received a larger sentenced due to multiple charges he was facing for other incidents that followed the attack.
The October 2020 attack near Gig Harbor
Doctors told detectives the victim suffered a traumatic brain injury, fractured sinuses, crushed bones in his nose and cheeks, as well as significant bruising to his hips and chest, according to court documents.
He lived next to a family-owned business he managed, according to court records.
The morning after the attack, Pierce County Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to do a wellness check at the victim’s home, because he wasn’t answering calls from his family.
When deputies went inside, they found the victim laying on the floor in the bathroom, according to court documents.
“The victim had multiple lacerations and significant trauma to his head,” court records said. “Because he was having trouble breathing, they intubated him and transported him to Tacoma General.
Before he was transported, the victim coded and was resuscitated by CPR, court documents said.
“Fire Department personnel advised that the circumstances surrounding the victim’s injuries were suspicious, and the subsequent investigation revealed that the victim’s house had been burglarized, and the victim severely assaulted during the course of the burglary,” court documents said.
“[He] cannot take care of himself anymore and will likely never be able to again,” the victim’s niece wrote in a statement to the court in March 2021.
The niece wrote the court that he was in a coma for six weeks, he relearned how to walk, talk and swallow, he had surgeries — including for his heart — and his eyesight was affected, the Gateway previously reported.
The victim was released from the hospital in Jan. 2021. Doctors said the victim would need a caregiver for the rest of his life.
News Tribune archives contributed to this report.
