Filed Washington State Court of Appeals Division Two May 21, 2019 IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON DIVISION II STATE OF WASHINGTON, No. 52570-4-II Appellant, PUBLISHED OPINION vs. TOMMY ROSS, JR., a.k.a. TOMMY McDONALD, TOMMY CARTER, TOMMY WALLACE, MARVIN JOHNSON, ANTHONY JOHNSON, Respondent. MAXA, C.J. – Both the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and article I, section 22 of the Washington Constitution guarantee a criminal defendant the right to a speedy trial, which is a fundamental constitutional right. State v. Iniguez, 167 Wn.2d 273, 281-82, 217 P.3d 768 (2009). The United States Supreme Court has made clear that “the primary burden” falls “on the courts and the prosecutors to assure that cases are brought to trial.” Barker v. Wingo, 407 U.S. 514, 529, 92 S. Ct. 2182, 33 L. Ed. 2d 101 (1972). If the State violates a defendant’s speedy trial right, we have no choice but to dismiss the charges no matter how horrendous the charged crimes may be. See Iniguez, 167 Wn.2d at 282. Here, the State charged Tommy Ross in Clallam County with aggravated first degree murder in 1978. But the State did not pursue prosecution of that charge for over 38 years. Instead, the State allowed Ross to be extradited to Canada for trial on another murder charge No. 52570-4-II without ensuring that he would be returned for trial in Clallam County. And then while Ross was incarcerated in Canada the State made no meaningful effort for decades to obtain his return to the United States for trial. The trial court ruled that the State violated Ross’s constitutional right to a speedy trial by not prosecuting the murder charge against him for over 38 years, and the court dismissed that charge. Applying the four-part balancing analysis set out in Barker, we also conclude that the extraordinary delay in prosecuting Ross violated his speedy trial right. Accordingly, we are constrained to affirm the trial court’s dismissal of the murder charges against Ross. FACTS Arrest, Removal to Canada, and Conviction On June 10, 1978, the State charged Ross in Clallam County with aggravated first degree murder, and the court issued a warrant for his arrest. Ross was accused of the April 24, 1978 killing of a woman in Port Angeles. Canadian authorities also had issued a warrant for Ross’s arrest for the May 14 murder of a woman in Victoria, British Columbia. Law enforcement in Los Angeles arrested Ross in December 1978 on both warrants as well as on California attempted rape and burglary charges. Clallam County prosecuting attorney Craig Ritchie left office on January 8, 1979 and was replaced by Grant Meiner. In a meeting before Meiner took office, Ritchie informed Meiner that “under no circumstances, should he relinquish the County’s jurisdiction over [Ross] and let him go to Canada to stand trial first” on the Canadian murder charge. Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 484-85. Ritchie gave Meiner all the reasons he could think of why Canada would never return Ross and ...
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