NORTH COAST
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JANUARY 1, 2015
3A
Delay of Jessica Smith trial challenged
District Attorney
argues the
surviving daughter
should be able to
put this behind her
By KYLE SPURR
The Daily Astorian
The dispute continues over the
July 7, 2015, trial date for Jessica
Smith, the mother accused of drug-
ging and murdering her 2-year-old
daughter and attempting to kill her
13-year-old daughter in a Cannon
Beach hotel July 31.
Smith’s defense attorneys have
made it clear they will need more
time to prepare for trial, while Dis-
trict Attorney Josh Marquis is re-
questing the trial date remain set,
especially since the case involves a
surviving child, Alana Smith.
Such disagreement was the fo-
cus of a status hearing Tuesday af-
ternoon in Clatsop County Circuit
Court. Prior to the hearing, Marquis
ALEX PAJUNAS — The Daily Astorian
Jessica Smith, 40, is ushered to-
ward Courtroom 100 of the Clat-
sop County Courthouse by dep-
uties from the Clatsop County
Sheriff’s Office Oct. 7.
trial.
victim and her father and it is their
wish for a trial as soon as possible
and to minimize the disruption to
Alana Smith’s life that the trial be
held, as scheduled, during the sum-
in the motion.
Smith’s defense attorneys asked
motion in writing within 14 days,
which was granted by Judge Cindee
Matyas.
ALEX PAJUNAS — The Daily Astorian
Jessica Smith, alongside her defense attorney Williams Falls, surveys
the scene inside Courtroom 100 on the ground floor of the Clatsop
County Courthouse Nov. 6.
fense co-counsel Lynne Morgan
said.
Matyas set another status hear-
ing for 2 p.m. Jan. 22 to further dis-
cuss the trial date, which remains
set for July 7.
The discovery, or evidence, dead-
line is eight days later on Jan. 30.
Marquis said the prosecution,
which has the burden of proof, has
provided almost 3,500 pages of po-
lice reports, 34 separate CDs and
DVDs and detailed copies of the
defendant’s statements to investi-
gators. So far, the defense has not
submitted any evidence.
At the hearing Tuesday, defense
attorney William Falls handed the
court a 429-page law journal from
Hofstra Law School. The journal
argues that defense attorneys are al-
lowed more time in cases involving
the death penalty.
Smith, 40, of Goldendale, Wash.,
pleaded not guilty Aug. 12 to aggra-
vated murder and attempted aggra-
vated murder. Smith is accused of
drowning her 2-year-old daughter
Isabella Smith and cutting the throat
of Alana Smith in room 3302 at the
Surfsand Resort.
Isabella Smith died of asphyxia-
tion by drowning, according to the
state medical examiner. High level
over-the-counter antihistamine sed-
atives were found in the toddler’s
system.
Due to the aggravated factor in
the charges, Smith faces the possi-
bility of the death penalty.
Smith appeared in court Tues-
day via video link from Tillamook
County Jail, which has an agree-
ment with Clatsop County to offer
rented space. She recently trans-
ferred to Tillamook at the Clatsop
County Jail’s discretion.
She signed a waiver of person-
al appearance prior to the hearing
Tuesday. She remains in jail with-
out the possibility of posting bail.
At a previous hearing, Smith’s
defense attorneys said, they will
both be busy in another aggravated
murder case in Multnomah County
and will not have time for the Smith
trial until 2016.
In his motion, Marquis said, the
convenience of the lawyers should
not be the focus of setting a trial
date. All attorneys have other cas-
es, Marquis said, and the focus
should be on the defendant and the
victims.
her natural mother is accused of
killing her sister and then attempt-
ing to cut her throat, delays are
old child means much more than a
similar delay to someone who is 60
Let state know about ailing birds Astoria transient
Chinook Observer Report
OLYMPIA, Wash. — If
you encounter an afflicted
chicken, tottering turkey, de-
bilitated duck or other feeble
fowl, the Washington and
Oregon departments of Fish
and Wildlife would like you
to give them a call.
Wildlife managers say
they need the public to help
them test waterfowl and
other wild birds for a new
H5N2, that has killed tens of
thousands of chickens and
domestic turkeys in Western
Canada. They are asking any-
one who sees a sick or dead
wild bird to call WDFW at
800-606-8768 or ODFW at
866-968-2600 or email Wild-
lifeHealth@state.or.us.
Scientists are concerned
because this highly conta-
gious strain of avian influ-
enza appears to be spreading
quickly. While it doesn’t ap-
pear to pose a threat to hu-
man health, it can be deadly
to domestic poultry, and it
occasionally kills wild birds
too. It has recently been de-
tected in wild birds in Wash-
ington, and an infected do-
mestic guinea fowl has also
been confirmed in southern
Oregon.
Researchers are particu-
larly interested in gathering
information about waterfowl
and birds such as eagles,
hawks, falcons, ravens, and
gulls that prey on waterfowl
or scavenge their carcasses.
In addition to collecting re-
from WDFW and two feder-
al agencies will ask hunters’
permission to collect samples
from harvested birds, so they
can test for the disease.
WDFW waterfowl sec-
tion manager Don Kraege,
said in a press release that
the sample collection takes
less than one minute per
bird, and is an important step
in the effort to keep the dis-
ease from spreading.
the disease, but often don’t
show symptoms. The prima-
ry risk is to domestic chick-
said. He noted that between
2005 and 2011, WDFW test-
ed more than 10,000 wild
birds for bird flu viruses,
and found that about 10 per-
cent of all birds tested were
infected. However, none of
the strains at that time were
associated with any illnesses
or mortality.
Canadian inspectors first
confirmed the presence of
H5N2 at two British Co-
lumbia poultry farms in
early December. WDFW
subsequently had two dead
birds from Whatcom County
tested the following week.
A gyrfalcon, that had been
used for hunting and fed
wild duck by its owner, was
found to have H5N8, a dif-
form of the virus. A duck
found at Wiser Lake was
infected with H5N2 — the
strain found in poultry in
British Columbia. On Dec.
18, the USDA confirmed the
presence of the H5N8 virus
in guinea fowl and chickens
in a backyard poultry flock
in Winston, Ore.
Ducks, geese and shore-
birds are now migrating
southward from Alaska
along the Pacific Flyway,
making domestic birds es-
pecially susceptible to con-
tracting the disease.
While it is extremely un-
likely that hunters or people
feeding wild birds could
contract bird flu from wild
birds, the following com-
mon-sense precautions will
reduce the risk of contract-
ing any wildlife disease:
• Do not harvest or handle
wild birds that are obviously
sick or found dead.
• Wear rubber gloves
while cleaning game or
cleaning bird feeders.
• Do not eat, drink or
smoke while cleaning game.
• Wash hands with soap
and water or alcohol wipes
immediately after handling
game or cleaning bird feeders.
• Wash tools and work
surfaces used to clean game
birds with soap and wa-
ter, then disinfect with a 10
percent solution of chlorine
bleach.
• Separate raw meat, and
anything it touches, from
cooked or ready-to-eat foods
to avoid contamination.
• Cook game birds thor-
oughly. Meat should reach
an internal temperature of
155 to 165 degrees Fahren-
heit to kill disease organisms
and parasites.
For more information
about
avian
influenza,
see WDFW’s website at
http://1.usa.gov/1K4dtxT
or ODFW’s at http://bit.
ly/1EPqGKS
LaMear invites applications for city boards, commissions
The Daily Astorian
Astoria Mayor-elect Ar-
line LaMear is inviting ap-
plications to fill volunteer
positions on several city
boards and commissions.
The new mayor will make
the appointments in January
based on recommendations
from the City Council, city
staff and department heads.
Applications can be sub-
mitted for vacancies on the
city’s Budget Committee;
Design Review Committee
(for design professional and
builder vacancies); the His-
toric Landmarks Commis-
sion; the Hospital Authority;
the Library Board; the Parks
and Recreation Board; the
Planning Commission and
the 3R Committee.
Interested applicants can
obtain information and ap-
plication forms through the
city’s web page at http://bit.
ly/1vxkJaB or through the
mayor’s office on the third
floor of City Hall.
Applications are due at
the mayor’s office by Jan.
15. The mayor expects to
make the appointments by
Jan. 30.
takes plea deal
for rape charges
By KYLE SPURR
The Daily Astorian
An Astoria transient ac-
cused of raping and sexu-
ally abusing a 14-year-old
runaway girl accepted a plea
deal Wednesday in Clatsop
County Circuit Court.
Holmen, 30, entered an Al-
ford Plea to three counts
of third-degree rape. An
Alford Plea is a guilty plea
from a defendant who pro-
claims their innocence, but
admits the prosecution has
enough evidence to prove
they are guilty.
Other
charges
of
third-degree sexual abuse
and contributing to the sex-
ual delinquency of a minor
were dropped.
District Attorney Josh
Marquis said he will recom-
mend a back-end sentence
of three months in jail and
three years probation. If
Holmen violates the proba-
tion, he will face 30 months
in prison.
A sentencing hearing was
scheduled for Jan. 14.
The charges against
Holmen reference events
that occurred between Jan.
1 and Oct. 5, according to
the indictment. Holmen is
accused of having sex on
three separate occasions
with a 14-year-old runaway.
He was 29 at the time.
Astoria police arrested
Holmen Oct. 3 after a near-
ly monthlong investigation
into allegations made by the
family of the 14-year-old
girl.
Brad Johnston said at the
it is obvious what is going
on, proving the facts in the
case requires a great deal of
a class c felony.
Visit us online at
www.DailyAstorian.com
W A NTED
Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber
N orth w es t H a rdw oods • Lon gview , W A
Contact: Steve Axtell • 360-430-0885 or John Anderson • 360-269-2500
New Oregon laws apply today
PORTLAND (AP) — Or-
egon’s most talked about new
law for 2015 — legalization
of recreational marijuana —
does not take effect until July.
Here are some of the new
laws that do apply Jan. 1.
• Children of volunteer
the line of duty are eligible
for special scholarships. Sim-
ilar scholarships have long
been available to the children
of killed or disabled police
• Foreclosed homes on
the auction block must con-
tain a warning to prospective
buyers if they haven’t been
tested for methamphetamine
contamination.
• Young people who report
an alcohol-related emergency
can’t be prosecuted for being
a minor in possession of alco-
hol. The law does not shield
them from other offenses,
such as driving under the in-
• Those with one minor
out-of-state marijuana con-
viction can apply for a con-
cealed handgun license in
Oregon.
• The Oregon Department
of Justice gains more power to
annual reports with the state or
submit false information.
• Mutuel pools for live or
previously held horse races
may include amounts car-
ried forward from the mutuel
pool of previous races. This
esoteric law allows Portland
Meadows to install Instant
Racing electronic gambling
machines to help subsidize
live racing. The machines re-
semble slots and players bet
on previously run races, with
identifying information not
shown.
Admire fashion and support The Harbor
Think Project Runway, but with thrift
items from Déjà Vu.
La Fête is a fundraiser for The Harbor, the
domestic and sexual violence resource cen-
ter for Clatsop County. It includes a fashion
show competition with judges and people’s
choice awards where you can vote with do-
nations.
There will be food, wine, and a dance
party to follow. Get dolled up and come on
down and support survivors and the mission
of The Harbor.
La Fête kicks off at 7 p.m. Jan. 17 at the
Astoria Arts and Movement Center. Admis-
sion costs $7. For more information, call
503-325-3426.
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Cannon Beach