North Bend Mayor Ken Hearing is not being charged for allegedly hitting his wife with a golf club. The King County Prosecutor’s Office based its decision not to file charges on: (1) the mayor’s wife’s desire not to assist in the prosecution; (2) the wife’s drunken demeanor when police officers arrived on scene; (3) inconsistencies in the mayor’s and wife’s stories; (4) and the wife’s declining health issues. The interesting fact is that in similar cases which do not involve a government official, it often seems that prosecutors generally elect to file criminal charges. This, in turn, often makes the general public feel that favoritism is at play, and has in the past bred animosity between the government and its citizens.
Mayor Hearing was arrested and booked into King County jail on March 26, 2013, after he asked the police to come to his home, saying that his drunken wife was tormenting him and he didn’t know what to do. He allegedly told police that he didn’t want to “lose it again,” as he had two days earlier when she taunted him until he “let her have it.” Allegedly the mayor struck his wife with a 5-iron golf club on March 24, 2013, and a photograph was taken of a 6 inch bruise on her thigh. Mayor Hearing later allegedly claimed that he wielded the golf club to locate a liquor bottle under the covers where his wife was laying in bed. The wife, however, allegedly claimed that the mayor had hit her while they were both standing at their front door.
In a similar “no complaint filed” decision by the King County Prosecutor’s Office, a former Snohomish County District Court Judge was recently arrested for DUI. Upon a review of the police incident report, however, the judge was curiously not charged with DUI or any other crime. Many folks may feel that, especially in the current political climate, a DUI charge would be filed if the incident did not involve a governmental agent, such as a judge. Undoubtedly prosecutors across the state would claim otherwise, and that favoritism is not at play. Therein lies the beauty of our country – we are all free to have our own opinions; the curse is that we are all exposed to the decisions of a few.
If you or a loved one is charged with a criminal offense in Washington State, it is imperative that you seek the assistance of a qualified and reputable Seattle criminal defense attorney. The Seattle criminal attorneys that make up the criminal defense team of SQ Attorneys are highly qualified and reputable Seattle criminal defense lawyers that are dedicated to providing top notch, aggressive representation for those arrested for crime all across Western Washington and the Greater Puget Sound region. The team creates success by working with law enforcement and the prosecuting attorney’s office to ensure that all facts and circumstances related to the criminal allegations are considered in creating the fairest, most equitable and just resolution possible in light of all the surrounding circumstances of the given case.