(Reader photo, last Thursday night)
Five days after 36-year-old Aren Oleson was arrested after allegedly firing a gun repeatedly in his South Admiral apartment, investigators say he’s facing misdemeanor charges rather than felony charges.
He was originally suspected of unlawful firearm possession, a felony, but prosecutors say SPD determined that Oleson had had his firearms rights restored (he had been described by SPD as a convicted felon but we still don’t have details of his record), so the six guns found in his apartment apparently were not illegally owned after all. And since no one was injured by the gunfire, police and county prosecutors determined the case was not a matter of felony assault. However, the City Attorney’s Office, according to the jail docket and court file, has charged Oleson with 10 misdemeanors, including obstructing a public officer, possession of a controlled substance, property damage, multiple counts of reckless endangerment, and aiming or discharging a firearm. A spokesperson for the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office says that felony charges could still be considered if additional evidence is found that leads the SPD investigating detective to refer the case. Meantime, the two officers are still talking about the case and, according to the KCPAO spokesperson, “working on what steps they could take for public safety with all available options under the law.” Oleson remains in jail in lieu of $150,000 bail.
