A former Pierce County sheriff's sergeant initially charged in 2018 with assaulting a man and stabbing him in the hands in Tacoma pleaded guilty Monday to felony harassment, which could allow him to avoid further jail time.
Robert Glen Carpenter started working for the Sheriff's Department in 1993 and was fired in December 2018, shortly after he was charged with first-degree assault for his actions in the early hours of Oct. 5 that year. That's when a trip to a marijuana dispensary following a night of drinking with men he met at a bar turned violent.
Charging documents alleged that Carpenter showed his gun to one of the men he went to the dispensary with after he gave them edible marijuana. One of the men said he wanted marijuana he could smoke because edibles didn't get him high. The man reportedly felt threatened by the gun, shouldered Carpenter and took the weapon. The man ran to a vehicle, and Carpenter followed, stabbing him through an open passenger-side window.
In court filings, Carpenter, 52, wrote that he was pleading guilty to take advantage of a plea agreement knowing that proceeding to trial could have resulted in him being convicted of assault, which carries a standard sentencing range of seven years, nine months to 10 years, three months in prison.
Instead, Carpenter likely will see little if any jail time. Prosecutors in Pierce County Superior Court recommended he receive credit for the 28 days he was jailed in 2018 and wrote that he shouldn't serve any more. The standard range for felony harassment sentences is one to three months in prison, with a maximum possible sentence of five years.
The criminal case dragged on for years because debates over potential conflicts of interest in prosecuting it. According to previous reporting from The News Tribune, it started moving forward in 2021 after a state appellate court reversed a decision that would have disqualified the entire Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney's Office from trying the case.
The stabbing resulted in cuts to both of the victim's hands that required 15 stitches. The defendant and his attorney maintain that it was Carpenter who was the victim of a robbery
"I've got verifiable proof the quote victim closed quote pointed a gun at my client's head not once but twice," attorney Bryan Hershman said in a phone call with The News Tribune. "Only Glen Carpenter would threaten to kill somebody when he's weaponless with no defense and somebody is pointing a gun at his head. That's what he pled to."
In May, Hershman told the newspaper that enhanced security video from the dispensary, Natures Recreational Center at 3833 Pacific Ave., showed that Carpenter acted in self-defense. Hershman said Tuesday that Carpenter was also a victim of assault, unlawful imprisonment and theft of a firearm.
"I believe that a jury would have sided with us, I do believe that, I will always believe that, on the one hand," Hershman said Tuesday. "On the other hand, I can't deny on a risk analysis when you're looking at 10 to 12 years and you've got the opportunity to get zero."
Carpenter has two lawsuits pending against Pierce County and the City of Tacoma in federal court over an "incomplete and skewed" investigation into the crime that he contends led to him losing his job and caused him psychological distress. The suits claimed that Carpenter long struggled with alcohol dependency and post-traumatic stress disorder. According to court records, he is seeking $18 million in damages.
It's unclear how Monday's guilty plea will affect these civil proceedings. Records show Carpenter will have to submit a report Nov. 1 about the status of the criminal case. Hershman, who is also representing Carpenter in the lawsuits, did not answer a question about how they would be affected. Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney's Office spokesperson Adam Faber said the county's defense attorney didn't have a comment while litigation was ongoing. The News Tribune was not able to reach the city's defense attorney for comment.
