WILLMAR- Jose Armando Padilla, the man currently serving 18 years of prison time for his role in two July 2005 drive-by shootings in Willmar, appeared in court Monday to argue for a lesser sentence.
Padilla, 34, of Granite Falls, is currently serving his sentence at Oak Park Heights in Stillwater, 166 months for a charge of first-degree assault and 52 months for drive-by shooting of an occupied residence. Padilla is serving a consecutive sentence on these charges, meaning that he is required to complete one sentence before starting the other.
Padilla and Padilla’s attorney, Rochelle Winn, argued during Monday’s hearing that the court made an error during his sentencing. Winn said Padilla should have only been sentenced to 17 years of prison time.
Winn argued that the drive-by shooting occurred before the assault. Referencing state sentencing guidelines, she said the court must sentence offenses in the order in which they occurred.
If Padilla was sentenced first for the drive-by shooting charge and then for the assault charge, the total prison sentence would have totaled about 17 years, Winn said.
“Since there was an error in sentencing, you can’t really take it out on me,” Padilla said.
Padilla has appealed his sentence multiple times. Originally sentenced in 2005 to 30 years in prison, Padilla appealed his sentence in 2007 and was granted his current 18-year sentence. He appealed that sentence unsuccessfully in 2009.
County Attorney Shane Baker argued during the hearing Monday that Padilla knew of the claim, but did not raise this issue during his last appeal.
Baker also argued that the crime of first-degree assault could have occurred before the crime of drive-by shooting or could have occurred simultaneously.
“What’s not to say the injury didn’t happen with the first bullet? The victim could have been hit first with multiple shots afterwards. Thus, the first-degree assault would have occurred first,” Baker stated in a court document filed this October.
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