Legal Question in Criminal Law in Washington

Re: Title 14 excessive bail

A gross misdemeanor may be prosecuted up to two years after its commission. A misdemeanor may be prosecuted up to one year after its commission. The period is tolled when one is not residing in Washington, and during the period of any warrant which is issued following the filing of charges. I am not aware of a seven year "catch all" statute of limitation; it seems to me that such a "catch all" would reward those who are successfull in avoiding warrants for long enough, which would be inconsistent with other such laws. The bail does seem excessive; my best advice for avoiding having to sit in jail in lieu of $30K cash is to turn yourself in, which demonstrates you are not a flight risk. The only basis for imposing bail is (1) if a person is a flight risk or (2) they present a danger to the community. Given the length of time that has passed, it is unlikely you will be found a danger to the community. Bail could be lowered if you convince the judge. I do not recommend trying to wait out the warrant. Good luck, and feel free to call if you care to discuss further. David Ruzumna 206-985-8000

(3) If, before the end of a period of limitation prescribed in subsection (1) of this section, an indictment has been found or a complaint or an information has been filed, and the indictment, complaint, or information is set aside, then the period of limitation is extended by a period equal to the length of time from the finding or filing to the setting aside.

Re: Title 14 excessive bail

Another issue about your warrants is whether they are actually valid. The Supreme Court has said that the state must make reasonable efforts to bring you within its jurisdiction. The State cannot just ignore your presence and then claim that you�ve been unlawfully at large on your warrants all this time. This is called the �Striker� rule, because of the so-named case of State v. Striker. If you can prove frequent and public contacts with the state and the State�s lack of pursuit, you may be able to invalidate the warrants. But this requires complex legal work, so you should consider hiring an attorney to represent you in these matters. The tasks will include quashing the warrants, reducing the bail amounts, and determining whether the speedy trial rule applies to your cases. From what I read into your question, I cannot tell. But right now the two-year prosecutorial statute of limitations is tolled, and once the warrants are quashed, the 90-day speedy trial rule kicks in. You can e-mail me directly if you have any more questions.