Man convicted of setting person on fire sentenced to life

VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to the mandatory term of life in prison without the possibility of parole after a judge found his recent attempted murder and arson convictions counted as a third-strike offense. The Columbian reports a Clark County Superior Court jury convicted Rick Stone in November. Previously he was convicted of arson and kidnapping. Defense attorney Michele Michalek argued that the line on the plea form for the kidnapping conviction stating it was a strike offense was crossed out so it shouldn’t be considered a strike. Judge David Gregerson said the kidnapping conviction is a strike offense in Washington, regardless of whether Stone was informed of that at the time of his plea.