State v. James Faire October Status Hearing

Okanogan County, WA:  James Faire, along with his attorney of record, Attorney Stephen Pidgeon, appeared in Okanogan County  Superior Court on Monday, October 23, 2017 for a previously scheduled status conference. This was a telephonic appearance; Judge Henry Rawson presided and the newly appointed prosecutor for Okanogan County, Branden Platter, represented the state.

 

Family, friends and supporters of James Faire had anticipated that the court would set a special set hearing to hear several motions that have been filed in the case. However, it was determined that the trial court does not have jurisdiction of the case.

SCOTUS, USPS and the WRIT OF CERTIORARI

On May 16, 2017, a box containing 40 copies of a Petition for a Writ of Certiorari along with a $300 money order to cover filing fees was sent to the Supreme Court of the United States, Washington D.C. The writ was sent to the clerk of Okanogan County Superior Court as well as Karl Sloan.

 

In mid August, Attorney Pidgeon learned that the writ did not make it to the high court. A lost package complaint was filed with USPS. Since the money order was purchased thru the USPS, a tracer was put on the money order to determine if the instrument had been cashed. USPS determined that the money order had not been cashed and on September 9, 2017, the Faires received a check for $300.  Of course, the money spent on producing the copies of the writ is unrecoverable as extra insurance was not purchased and priority mail covers $50 loss.

 

All indicators point to the fact that the box of writs is lost and will never make it to the high court. Furthermore, the 90 day response window from the time the Washington State Supreme Court ruled on the appeal had now expired. On September 20, 2017, Attorney Pidgeon filed a declaration regarding the status of the appeal in Okanogan County Superior Court. At this time, it is believed that Okanogan County Superior Court has jurisdiction.

 

NOT SO FAST!

It turns out SCOTUS did receive the writ and has asked for additional information. The high court has also extended the deadline to file the writ to Novemeber 15, 2017.  Once the revised petition is filed, it can take up to 90 days for SCOTUS to decide whether to accept the petition.

 

Meanwhile, as of October 16, 2017, the United States Post Office continues to search for the “lost” package.

 

Faire’s next status hearing is scheduled for Monday, December 18, 2017. As of this writing, it is anticipated that this hearing will be telephonic.