Trials in Clark County District Court resumed this month after being on hold due to the pandemic, and attorney Stephen Liss wasted little time picking up a not-guilty verdict.

A jury needed only 15 minutes to deliberate after hearing the evidence in the March 10 trial.

Liss’ client was accused of domestic violence assault against his adult son. The client, 48, was arrested in November after his wife called 911 to report he had locked her out of the house and she had called their son, 29, to come over and help her get into the residence.

The wife, who did not show up to testify at trial, told the 911 dispatcher she wanted deputies to come because she said her son was “trying to detain” his father. When asked by the dispatcher if anyone had been assaulted she said no.

Arriving deputies from the Clark County Sheriff’s Office found the father and son in the backyard. The father was on the ground and his son was sitting on top of him.

Attorney Daniel Mellen, who was appointed last year to represent one of the protesters arrested in downtown Vancouver, successfully argued earlier this month for the criminal charge to be dismissed.

His client, along with several other protesters, were arrested on Oct. 30 and charged with failure to disperse, a misdemeanor.

As reported at the time, the protests were in response to the fatal police shooting of Kevin E. Peterson, Jr.

In a pre-trial motion, Mellen argued the charge should be dismissed because prosecutors have insufficient evidence to prove a crime had been committed.

Washington lost the distinction of having one of the strictest drug laws in the nation on Thursday, when the state Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional.

In a 5-4 decision, the state’s high court said the state’s strict liability law for felony drug possession went beyond the state’s policing power.

The ruling, State V. Blake, was in a case out of Spokane County. A defendant arrested for a non-drug crime was searched at the county jail, and a corrections officer found a small baggie of methamphetamine in a coin pocket of her jeans. At trial, she used a “those weren’t my pants” defense. Her attorney said it was a case of unwitting possession. The defendant testified a friend had given her the jeans two days prior to her arrest, and had bought them at a secondhand store.

Prosecutors did not prove that the defendant had known the drugs were in her pocket.

Under state law, possession of a controlled substance is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. A person found guilty can also be ordered to pay a substantial fine and, as a convicted felon, lose rights and opportunities, the court noted.

“This case presents an issue of first impression for the court,” wrote Justice Sheryl Gordon McCloud in the majority opinion. “Does this strict liability drug possession statute with these substantial penalties for such innocent, passive conduct exceed the legislature’s police power? The due process clauses of the state and federal constitutions, along with controlling decisions of this court and the United States Supreme Court, compel us to conclude that the answer is yes – this exceeds the State’s police power.”

For the foreseeable future, court appearances will be virtual. Here are some helpful tips and links:

1. For court appearances, you will need to download a free app, Zoom, either on your phone or computer. To download it, go here. 

2. If your case is being heard in Clark County District Court, on the day of your appearance find your name on the daily roster and click the meeting ID number, which is on the far right of the screen.

If you have a District Court hearing and you do not have a device on which you can download Zoom, you can call 1-888-788-0099 and enter your meeting ID number.

3. If your case is being heard in Clark County Superior Court, on the day of your appearance find your docket.  If you need to call in, use the phone number, meeting ID and password listed on the docket. 

4. Another useful, free app is Adobe Fill & Sign, which allows you to sign documents. There are different versions for different devices. Learn more about it here.