Spokane man gets life in prison for three separate assaults over 18-year period
A Spokane man on Friday was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after a jury convicted him of his third strike.
A Spokane County jury convicted Jesse S. Johnson, 39, last month of two counts of second-degree assault, one count of first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and two counts of possession of a controlled substance, according to a Spokane County Prosecuting Attorney's Office news release.
The charges stem from June 2024 when police contacted Johnson, who had a warrant out, inside Burlington Coat Factory on Division Street in north Spokane, according to court documents. Johnson pulled a pistol, which was reported stolen, from his waistband and pointed it at two Spokane police officers.
The officers wrestled Johnson to the floor and arrested him. Johnson was found with about 50 fentanyl pills and methamphetamine.
Prosecutors argued at Friday's hearing that Johnson qualified as a persistent offender under Washington's Persistent Offender Accountability Act and must be given a life-without-parole sentence under the law, the release said.
"Anything but holding you to the utmost level of accountability would be a disservice to the community," Spokane County Superior Court Judge Rachelle Anderson said in the release.
Johnson had eight prior adult felony convictions, including two second-degree assault convictions in 2008 and 2009 that qualified as "strike offenses," according to the prosecutor's office. Johnson stabbed a man in the 2008 assault and beat his girlfriend in the 2009 assault, according to court documents.
The assaults against the officers at Burlington marked his third strike.
Johnson was sentenced to prison in 2014 for vehicular assault, possession of a stolen vehicle and attempt to elude police, according to court documents.
Julie Humphreys, prosecutor's office spokeswoman, said Johnson was released from prison one year before he pulled a gun on police at Burlington.
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This story was originally published April 17, 2026 at 7:17 PM.