SEQUIM — Superior Court Judge Ken Williams earlier this month dismissed a felony assault case against businessman Jay Ketchum that involved a Clallam County sheriff’s deputy.
The action finished the paperwork on the case against the Sequim resident that was resolved in Williams’ Clallam County courtroom seven years ago.
Superior Court Clerk Lindy Clevenger said Wednesday that a settlement that was to be kept from public disclosure was reached Aug. 4, 2003, in the case — in which Ketchum allegedly brandished a gun at Deputy Duane Hayden and cursed and yelled at him — but final paperwork was never processed, leaving the case open.
“When we became aware of it, we put it on the calendar so it could be taken care of,” Clevenger said.
In his Dec. 10 ruling, Williams noted that a two-year stipulated continuance for dismissal on the third-degree felony assault charge was recorded in court minutes of the 2003 hearing “but never memorialized in writing.”
The settlement was not sealed as part of Williams’ signed order Dec. 10.
Settlement terms
Under its terms, Ketchum waived a speedy trial for two years and agreed to forfeit his firearms rights for two years and get an anger management evaluation.
“Defendant will consult with a counselor about the stress in his life,” the order said.
Those conditions have already been fulfilled “as far as I know,” said special prosecutor Juelie Dalzell, Jefferson County’s prosecuting attorney, who drew up the order.
Dalzell, who wrote up the order Williams signed, said there was no reason to seal the records, aside from protecting Ketchum under federal laws that protect health information from public disclosure.
“It seems stupid at this point” to seal the records, she added.
Ketchum did not return calls for comment Wednesday.
Acting as “a concerned citizen,” Port Angeles lawyer J. Andrew Lauer said he had requested the case be put on the court calendar to unseal the 2003 court file.
He said in an interview that it was “highly unusual” for there to be a stipulated continuance for dismissal on a felony matter and for it to be sealed, noting that Ketchum was a longtime contributor to the political campaigns of county Prosecuting Attorney Deb Kelly.
Ketchum has made hefty monetary and in-kind contributions to Kelly since her first campaign in 2002, when he donated $1,000.
“It seems like he got a pretty good deal,” Lauer said.
Clevenger said Wednesday that the settlement was never sealed because the paperwork was never processed.
Earlier this year, Lauer had “knocked on some doors” in support of Sequim lawyer Larry Freedman, who ran unsuccessfully against Kelly in the Nov. 2 general election.
Kelly said Wednesday that from the outset, she had no involvement in the Ketchum case.
“Mr. Lauer based a lot of his comments on the erroneous assumption that the case had been resolved by virtue of a sealed document,” Kelly said.
“Mr. Lauer is a disgruntled ex-employee of mine who chose to bring this up during the past few months for political fodder.”
Kelly added that her office has hired at least three special prosecutors, including Dalzell, in the last eight years to “take whatever action they deemed appropriate.”
Original charge
Ketchum was charged with second-degree assault while armed with a deadly weapon and third-degree assault after an early-morning incident May 20, 2002.
It occurred at about 2 a.m., after emergency and law enforcement personnel had responded to a fire at Ketchum’s U.S. Highway 101 home.
Ketchum allegedly advanced on Hayden with what appeared to be a small, loaded assault rifle, walking to within inches of Hayden and yelling at Hayden and “chest bumping the deputy, pushing him backwards,” according to the certificate of probable cause.
A Superior Court jury found Ketchum not guilty of second-degree assault, but a mistrial was declared on the third-degree assault charge.
A jury had been impaneled on the third-degree assault charge when the settlement was reached in August 2003.
________
Staff writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-417-3536 or at paul.gottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
