17-year-old sentenced to 9 years in prison for Logan neighborhood shooting

Garrett Cabeza, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.
·2 min read

Oct. 10—A 17-year-old boy was sentenced last week to nine years in prison for a shooting that seriously injured a 35-year-old man in May in the Logan Neighborhood.

Giovanni Shaules pleaded guilty Oct. 4 to first-degree assault with a deadly weapon before Spokane County Superior Court Judge Michelle Szambelan handed down the sentence, according to court documents.

Ryan Shaules, Giovanni's 33-year-old father, and a 15-year-old boy were also charged in the shooting.

Police responded May 27 to the Gonzaga Family Haven apartment complex on Nevada Street and North Foothills Drive, according to records .

Video surveillance showed three males leaving an apartment unit and approaching the car the victim was in. The driver of a silver Ford Mustang also got out of the Mustang and approached the car.

It appeared an argument ensued while all four males were standing at the car, according to the surveillance footage. The video showed two of the four males shooting into the driver's side window of the car, documents say.

All four of the males ran back to the Mustang and drove away, surveillance showed.

One witness said the men approaching the victim's vehicle yelled at him about owing them money. The witness told police Ryan Shaules and the two others who left the apartment unit had guns.

Spokane Fire Department personnel treated the victim in the driver's seat of the car, which was parked in Hamilton Street with multiple bullet holes in it, police said in documents.

The victim told police, "Ryan Shaules," shot him.

Giovanni Shaules was charged in Superior Court because state law dictates 16- or 17-year-old children are charged as adults if the charge is a "serious violent offense."

Attempted murder, drive-by shooting and unlawful possession of a firearm charges were dismissed as part of Giovanni Shaules' plea agreement, documents say. He will spend three years in community custody when he is released from prison.

Ryan Shaules is also charged with attempted murder, first-degree assault, drive-by shooting and unlawful possession of a firearm, according to court documents. He is set for trial Nov. 27 and remains in the Spokane County Jail .

The 15-year-old boy was booked into the Spokane County Juvenile Detention Center in June on the same original charges as the Shauleses.

Preston McCollam, Spokane County deputy prosecutor, said at the time the 15-year-old was in juvenile court but could be moved to Spokane County Superior Court. McCollam could not be reached by phone Tuesday. It was unclear whether anyone else was charged in the shooting.