First of Clemmons Seven Found Guilty
 On June 10 a jury found LaTanya Clemmons guilty on two out of four counts of Rendering Criminal Assistance in the First Degree for aiding Darcus Allen, the alleged getaway driver for her brother Maurice Clemmons, who gunned down four Lakewood Police officers at a coffee shop in Parkland on November 29, 2009.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys Kevin McCann and Steve Penner prosecuted Clemmons, who the jury found guilty of aiding Allen after the murders. Clemmons transported Allen to a motel where he could lay low until the situation blew over and gave him money to rent a room there.
The jury also returned special verdicts, finding that LaTanya Clemmons' actions affected others aside from the victims and that the crimes were aimed at law enforcement officers. The presence of these aggravating factors allowed for a sentence outside the standard range of six to 12 months in jail. On June 17 Clemmons was sentenced to five years in prison.
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Four Charged in Craigslist Homicide
 Prosecutor Mark Lindquist charged Clabon Berniard, Kiyoshi Higashi, Joshua Reese and Amanda Knight with Murder in the First Degree, Robbery in the the First Degree (two counts), Assault in the Second Degree (two counts), and Burglary in the First Degree for the April 28 home invasion robbery in Edgewood that resulted in the death of 43-year-old James Sanders.
According to charging documents, the foursome showed up at the Sanders home to purchase a ring that was advertised on Craigslist. Armed with a handgun, the defendants zip tied Charlene and James Sanders with their hands behind their backs. One defendant retrieved the Sanders' sons, ages 14 and 10 years old, from the upstairs while the others assaulted the husband and wife. The 14-year-old son tried to intervene and the gunman pistol whipped him, causing a concussion. James Sanders broke free from the zip ties to protect his son and was shot three times.
Four days after the murder, Higashi, Reese and Knight were arrested during a traffic stop in California. Knight bailed out of jail but turned herself into Sumner Police on May 4. A nationwide arrest warrant was issued for Berniard, who turned himself into the King County Jail on May 6. All are being held on $2 million bail pending trial.
On June 16, Jenna Ford, Higashi's girlfriend, was arraigned on three counts of Rendering Criminal Assistance in the First Degree. According to charging documents, Ford helped Higashi dispose of evidence and clean his car after the robbery and murder.
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Gang Conspiracy Case
 In February Prosecutor Mark Lindquist charged 36 people as criminal conspirators in gang-related crimes occurring from December 2008 through January 2010. The Tacoma Police Department in conjunction with the South Sound Gang Task Force, an organization made up of local and federal law enforcement agencies, investigated this case. The Prosecutor's Office and law enforcement worked closely together on this large scale effort to reduce gang violence.
Greg Greer (pictured at left) and Tom Howe, both DPAs in the Gang Unit, continue to prosecute cases against alleged Hilltop Crip gang members charged with conspiracy and various other crimes. Of the three dozen men originally charged, 12 have pleaded guilty to crimes arising from the conspiracy, including robbery, drive-by shooting and unlawful possession of firearms. So far six gang members have been sentenced to a combined 483 months in prison. On June 1 a jury convicted Randall Embry, Bryant Morgan and Andre Parker of Attempted Murder in the First Degree and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm for the February 2009 shooting of a man at McCabe's Bar and Grill. They face sentences ranging from 30 to 60 years in prison.
On June 9, another jury convicted Christopher Simms and Adrian Broussard of Attempted Robbery in the First Degree. It is the third strike for Simms, who faces a mandatory life sentence. Greer, a 16-year veteran of the office who is well known for his prowess in the court room, handled the back-to-back trials. He is a guest speaker at the Pierce County Gang Training Conference in Tacoma this month.
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Ed Murphy Appointed to Superior Court Bench
 On May 11 the Governor appointed DPA Edmund Murphy
to the Pierce County Superior Court. Murphy started working in the Prosecutor's Office as a legal intern in 1983 while attending law school at the University of Puget Sound. He
rose quickly through the ranks to become an accomplished trial attorney and leader in the office. Murphy prosecuted all types of cases during his 26-year career, including the men responsible for killing five people and wounding five others during the infamous Trang Dai massacre in 1998.
'Deputy Prosecutor Ed Murphy brings 26 years of experience in the Prosecutor's Office to our Superior Court bench,' said Prosecutor Mark Lindquist. 'I'm confident he will carry the value of the Prosecutor's Office - hard work, accountability, teamwork, and the pursuit of justice - to the bench.'
Murphy served in numerous supervisory roles in the office and helped establish the Pierce County Drug Court. Since last July, Murphy has been a Civil Division attorney - serving as a legal advisor to Pierce County agencies. At a going away luncheon on May 14, Murphy spoke of the guiding principle that earned him a reputation as a fair, ethical and hard working deputy prosecutor. 'Always strive to do the right thing, to the right person, for the right reasons.' Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor echoed the sentiments of many who have worked with Murphy over the years. 'Three qualities stand out in the character of Ed Murphy...integrity, a strong work ethic, and the understanding that justice is ultimately about fairness.'
Outside of the Prosecutor's Office, Murphy has been an active volunteer in his community, serving as school commission chair at St. Charles Borromeo Catholic School since 2005. Murphy was formally sworn in to Department 9 of the Pierce County Superior Court on June 10.
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Prosecutors Reduce Superior Court Backlog The pilot project involving the pre-assignment of Class A Special Assault Unit (SAU) cases continues to be a success. Overall the backlog is more than 500 cases, or about 25%, from a high of 2,146 in April 2009 to 1,605 in June 2010. Access to justice has increased as the backlog has decreased. The judges involved in the pilot project are the Honorable James Orlando, Kitty-Ann van Doorninck, Bryan Chuschcoff and John McCarthy. Judge Lisa Worswick participated in the original planning.
An increased number of cases are resolving sooner because of the immediate availability of courtrooms, which makes defendants choose to plead guilty or go to trial. Prosecutor Lindquist said, 'I look forward to further collaboration with Superior Court and expansion of the project so that we can deliver justice in a more timely fashion.'
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What a Nuisance Civil Division attorneys have been working to reduce the impact of public nuisances since the 'dirty dozen' cases in 2002. In 2007, we partnered with Pierce County Responds and the Sheriff's Department to bring property owners to court when they failed to removed junk vehicles. Civil Division attorneys drafted an ordinance now used to challenge a wide variety of public nuisances. While most property owners voluntarily clean up their property after notice from the Health Department, occasionally legal action is required to enforce the law.
Since the ordinance was enacted in 2008, the Civil Division has filed seven court cases. Unless the filing itself achieves compliance, Pierce County seeks a court order allowing it access to the property to remove the accumulated solid waste. The County then obtains a judgment against the property owner to recover the clean-up costs, and an order prohibiting the property owner from further violations. The abatement program is a joint effort involving Pierce County Responds, the Health Department, the Sheriff's Department and the Prosecutor's Office. The lead attorney is DPA Cort O'Connor.
 The accompanying photos are from a court-ordered entry in March 2010. Workers removed nearly 20 tons of solid waste from the private residence. According to the Health Department, it would take a typical household more than 25 years to generate the amount of waste removed from this one property. The accumulation of waste can be a breeding ground for rats and mosquitos, create odor, impact the functioning of septic systems and pollute the drinking water supplies.
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Partners in Fighting CrimeProsecuting Attorney Mark Lindquist chairs the Law & Justice Council, a committee comprised of Sheriff Paul Pastor, Lakewood Police Chief Bret Ferrar, Tacoma Police Assistant Chief Bob Sheehan, WA State senators Debbie Regala and Mike Carroll, State Representative Jeannie Darneille, County Council member Dick Muri, representatives from the Department of Corrections and many others who work in various capacities within or related to the criminal justice system. Members of the Law & Justice Council meet regularly to work on issues related to public safety and law and justice in Pierce County.
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Community Involvement DPA Kevin McCann, Team Chief of the Property Crimes Unit, was one of several Prosecutor's Office employees who donated blood aboard the Cascade Regional Blood Services bloodmobile on February 12. A blood donor since high school, McCann recently passed the three gallon mark.
Staff from the Appeals Unit spent a cold Saturday in Ashford serving up hot meals to volunteer construction workers at the home of Pierce County Sheriff's Deputy John Heacock and his wife Peggy. Their 20-year-old daughter Richelle was paralyzed from the chest down after driving off the road on her way home from college to attend the memorial service for Deputy
Kent Mundell. Hundreds of volunteers, including daughter of legal assistants Therese Kahn and Heather Johnson pictured here, and other Prosecutor's Office staff, helped renovate the home to make it more comfortable and wheelchair accessible.
 Kristen Tateishi, former legal intern in the Juvenile Division, was crowned Miss Pierce County on March 6. Tateishi, who won the Miss Seafair title in 2008, is a third year student at Seattle University School of Law.
Prosecutor's Office employees raised over $1,000 for the American Cancer Society during its Daffodil Days campaign.
 Lakewood Police Lt. Steve Mauer, Sumner Asst. Chief Brad Moericke, Sumner Chief John Galle, Mark Lindquist and deputy prosecuting attorneys all donned women's shoes in anticipation of the 5th Annual Walk A Mile In Her Shoes event, scheduled for April 30 in downtown Tacoma. Staff from the Prosecutor's Office participate every year in this fundraiser for the Sexual Assault Center of Pierce County. Lindquist will be the keynote speaker.
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Community Speaking EventsMark Lindquist enjoys attending and speaking at community events. If you would like to invite Mark or a representative from the Prosecuting Attorney's Office to speak to your group, please contact us.
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