Oak Harbor man goes to prison on cocaine charge

A 35-year-old Oak Harbor man who police originally arrested in connection with a bar fight was recently sent to prison for dealing cocaine.

Island County Superior Court Judge Vickie Churchill sentenced Robert Devon Smith Dec. 6 to one year and eight months in prison on the drug-related charge.

A jury convicted Smith in November of one count of possession of cocaine with intent to deliver.

Deputy Prosecutor Eric Ohme said the jury initially reported that they acquitted Smith on the third-degree assault charge. It wasn’t discovered until after the jury members were released that they were actually hung on the count. That means they couldn’t come to a unanimous decision, which normally means the prosecution could re-try on that count.

But Ohme said he can’t retry the assault charge because of the unusual mistake.

Still, Ohme said he was pleased with the sentence, which was at the top of the standard sentencing range. Smith’s criminal history in another state increased the range.

According to court documents, police officers found a loaded handgun, a baggy of cocaine and $8,414 in cash when they searched Smith after he was accused of striking a bouncer over the head with a beer bottle at a downtown Oak Harbor bar last summer.

Ohme originally charged Smith with assault in the third degree, possession of cocaine with intent to deliver, unlawful possession of a handgun in the second degree and unlawful possession of a weapon in certain places.

But Ohme said he dismissed the two gun-related counts after police discovered that the .22-caliber handgun was not functional.

Contact Whidbey News Times Assistant editor Jessie Stensland at jstensland@whidbeynewsgroup.com or 360.675.6611 ext. 5056.

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