WHAT CONSTITUTES A "DEADLY WEAPON " BY LAW?

In Washington State, a deadly weapon can really be any object. It does not matter so much what the object is as the way you use the object. The Washington statute that defines “deadly weapon” says that a deadly weapon is anything that is likely to produce death, is readily capable of producing death or is likely to produce death from the manner in which it is used. The statute lists certain items that are deadly weapons per se- that is, objects that are automatically considered to be deadly weapons by law. These items include, knives with blades longer than 3 inches, daggers, slingshots, explosives, brass knuckles, razors, and firearms. The prosecutor does not need to prove that these items are readily capable of or likely to produce death; the court will presume that these items are deadly weapons.

But what if there is an assault and someone used a pocket knife with a blade less than 3 inches? Is that a deadly weapon? The answer depends on how it was used. Was it used just as intimidation or did the a person using the knife stab another person in an area of the body that would likely cause death. What if the pocket knife was folded shut? Is it a deadly weapon then? I worked on the appeal of a robbery case that presented this very issue. The trial court had found that because the knife could readily be opened, it fit the definition of deadly weapon under Washington State law.

While working at the California Innocence Project in San Diego, I came across a case in which an inmate was convicted of assault with a deadly weapon after stabbing a prison guard with a pencil. In Washington, we could get the same result under our statute defining “deadly weapon.” Depending on how you use it, even a pencil can be considered a deadly weapon.

All of this is important in determining the degree of the crime that the prosecutor will charge a person with, which in turn, determines the sentence a person will receive if convicted. If you are charged with a simple assault for shoving someone, it is normally 4th degree assault, which is a gross misdemeanor and punishable up to no more than 1 year in the county jail. If you happen to use anything that is considered to be a deadly weapon while shoving another person, it could be charged as 2nd degree assault, which is a class B felony, punishable up to 10 years in state prison. This is a huge difference.

You could also get extra time added to your sentence with a deadly weapon enhancement. Similar results occur with regard to the crimes of burglary and robbery. The police and the prosecutors have a lot of room to allege that virtually any object in your possession during the incident is considered a deadly weapon. It all depends on the specific facts of the case and how the object was used in the incident.