Scott Johnson
The Washington State Supreme Court on April 21 reinstated the attempted murder conviction of a Pacific County man who shot a Washington State Patrol trooper in the head in February 2010.
Martin A. Jones shot then-Trooper Scott Johnson at point-blank range while Johnson was impounding a van belonging to Jones' wife, who had been arrested on suspicion of drunken driving. Johnson, remarkably, survived and recovered, and currently serves as Pacific County Sheriff.
A Pierce County Superior Court jury convicted Jones of first degree attempted murder in 2011. The verdict included a firearm sentencing enhancement and the aggravating circumstance that the defendant knew the victim was a police officer who was performing his official duties at the time of the commission of the crime. Superior Court Judge Vicki Hogan sentenced Jones to 50 years in prison.
In 2013, the Court of Appeals vacated Jones' conviction, concluding that his right to a public trial had been violated when a random drawing to select alternate jurors was conducted during a court recess.
The Attorney General's Office, which handled the criminal prosecution and the appeal, filed a petition for review with the state Supreme Court. The high court accepted the petition and heard oral arguments Feb. 23, 2016.
In its decision, the high court concluded that the trial court had not violated Jones' right to a public trial or his right to be present at all "critical stages" of his trial.
"Jones has not provided any historical or legal resources showing that the press and general public have traditionally been able to observe the specific, nondiscretionary, ministerial task of physically drawing the alternate jurors according to a procedure chosen by the defendant that was described both before and after the fact on the record in open court," the decision read.
The Supreme Court case was handled by Deputy Solicitor General Jay Geck together with Assistant Attorneys General John Hillman and Melanie Tratnik, who handled the original trial.