PORT ANGELES — Jury selection began Tuesday in the second-degree murder trial of Casey Joseph Balch.
Balch, 23, of Port Angeles is charged with second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter and second-degree assault for the June 2012 death of Donald Knechtel.
Witnesses said Knechtel, 48, of Marysville was trying to break up a fight outside the Alibi bar on Front Street in Port Angeles when Balch punched him in the face shortly after 11 p.m. June 1, 2012.
Port Angeles police said the force of the blow knocked Knechtel to the ground.
Knechtel died nine days later at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
Clallam County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney John Troberg said jury selection was expected to take up most of the day Tuesday.
Opening statements will follow jury selections.
Arrest narrative
According to court papers, Balch removed his shirt, took an aggressive stance and tried to incite a fight with Knechtel’s co-worker, Clint Crook.
“When Knechtel attempted to push Crook and Balch apart, Balch turned his attention to him,” Officer Erik Smith wrote in the arrest narrative.
“He threw a punch that hit him in the face,” Smith said.
“The force of the blow caused Knechtel to fall back onto the asphalt of the parking lot and hit his head against the pavement.
“Knechtel was unconscious when officers arrived.”
Knechtel was taken to Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles. He was determined to have suffered a cranial fracture, brain swelling and hemorrhaging, and was airlifted to Harborview.
Hours later, a Harborview nurse told Smith that Knechtel was effectively “brain dead” and that he would not survive his injuries, according to the arrest narrative.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5072, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
