Had Richard Anthony Peltier been a more introspective man, he might have avoided 210 days in jail.

But when the judge asked him what led him to his lifetime of petty crime and bad behavior, Peltier didn't have much of an answer.

"I've been that way my whole life," Peltier told Clackamas County Circuit Judge Douglas Van Dyk.

Peltier, 54, pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts of interfering with public transportation. His plea agreement called for 90 days in jail.

Prosecutor Stacey Borgman began listing Peltier's criminal history, reading a few entries from a three-page list of his convictions for small-time crimes: threatening behavior, harassment, numerous counts of disorderly conduct, unlawful entry.

Peltier landed back in court after a run-in with a TriMet bus driver in May 2013. He boarded a bus with an expired ticket and the driver ordered him off the bus. Peltier tried to pry the door open and the driver feared she would be attacked.

When police arrived, Peltier urinated on himself, called the arresting officer racially offensive names and "spit all over the backseat (of the police car) on the way to jail," Borgman said.

"He had a bad day," said Peltier's attorney David Viuhkola.

Van Dyk repeatedly asked Peltier why he engaged in such behavior.

"Who behaves that way, Mr. Peltier," Van Dyk said. "No member of civil society acts that way."

"Tell me what the problem is. Is it alcohol or mental health or drugs or maybe a brain injury, Van Dyk asked.

"If it's alcohol, get control of it. If it's mental health, figure it out," Van Dyk said.

Help is available, he said.

Peltier offered a narrow explanation: It's just the way I am.

Van Dyk said he found Peltier's lack of insight exasperating. "You seem to have no motivation to change," the judge said.

Van Dyk then departed from the plea deal, which is a judge's right.

The 90-day sentence "is too light; it's way too light," Van Dyk said. "If you can't figure out what your problem is ... I need to protect people from you."

Then he gave Peltier 300 days in jail - 210 days more than Peltier had bargained for.

-- Steve Mayes

503-294-5916; @ocmayes