Coulee City man sentenced for unlawful gun possession, assault

EPHRATA — A Coulee City man will be spending time in prison for threatening his brother with a rifle during a dispute over a missing bong and throwing a cup full of urine into the face of a corrections deputy.

David Chapman, 29, of Coulee City, pleaded guilty to second-degree assault (poison), second-degree assault (deadly weapon) and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm in Grant County Superior Court. Grant County Superior Court Judge John Knodell followed a joint recommendation between Deputy Prosecutor Carole Highland and defense attorney Robert Kentner and sentenced Chapman to 19 months in prison.

Chapman’s sentence stems from two separate incidents, the first of which occurred on Dec. 11, 2015, when the Grant County Sheriff’s Office received a report of an incident involving a firearm at the Coulee City Trailer Park. The reporting party advised his brother, Chapman, had threatened him with a firearm and fired a shot in the trailer park.

Chapman’s brother claimed the previous night he had been confronted by his brother at a woman’s trailer because he was upset over someone stealing his bong. During the confrontation Chapman pulled a black rifle from a bag he was carrying and was, “ranting and raving and acting like he was going to strike him (his brother) with the butt stock of the rifle,” according to police records.

Chapman threatened to kill anyone and everyone that was involved with stealing his bong. The two brothers resided together in a trailer at the park and upon returning home Chapman’s brother stated Chapman was still holding the rifle and continued making threats toward him and anyone who called police. The victim said he decided to leave for work early the next morning and when he was outside the trailer he heard Chapman fire the rifle.

The suspect was later located at his trailer and taken into custody. Deputies were given permission to search Chapman’s trailer and recovered the weapon Chapman was seen with, an AK-47 with a 30-round magazine. In addition, a single shell casing that was consistent with the rifle’s ammunition was located inside the door of Chapman’s trailer. Chapman’s criminal history revealed a past felony conviction for possession of a stolen vehicle, previous domestic violence related charges and an outstanding warrant for fourth-degree assault.

The second incident occurred while Chapman was lodged in the Grant County Jail on Jan. 3, 2016. Chapman told corrections deputies he was going to kill himself and advised them to get him out of his cell. Chapman was sitting on the floor of his cell with a rope around his neck when he was initially contacted by a deputy.

“I opened the cell door, Chapman jumped up and threw a cup full of urine in my face,” wrote the deputy. “I quickly closed the door because I couldn’t see anything for a couple of seconds.”

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com