David McEachran, who has been referred to as a special prosecutor for the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney’s office, argues that Bass lived on the same street as Stavik, that her jogging direction took her through his house, and that he commenced attending her high school basketball games, in keeping with court facts. Prosecutors allege Bass kidnapped and raped Stavik, after which they killed her to prevent her from alerting the police, courtroom information display.
Prosecutors are also searching to introduce testimony from a man who says that even as he and Bass had been inmates within the Whatcom County Jail, Bass advised him of information about the alleged crime, court docket facts country. Bass’ public defenders have filed a motion to exclude the man’s testimony because he changed into waiting to get hold of competency recuperation services at Western State Hospital, information state. The guy was discovered to have met the provisional standards for a delusional ailment, in line with court statistics.
Prosecutors asked Judge Olson to reserve a ruling on whether or not the person could testify during the trial. A verdict is predicted sometime next week or will occur at some stage in the problem.
The trial will begin Monday with jury selection, which is anticipated to take numerous days. Opening statements will begin after the jury is seated.
WHO YOU NEED TO KNOW
▪ Prosecution: The crew prosecuting Timothy Bass for the alleged abduction, rape, and homicide of Mandy Stavik consists of former longtime Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney David McEachran and Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Erik Sigmar.
McEachran retired in Dec. 2018 after an almost half-century workplace and is returning as a unique prosecutor. Sigmar has been with the workplace for four years and an attorney for over a decade. He was promoted to Chief Criminal Deputy after Eric Richey gained the November election for the pinnacle prosecutor.
▪ Defense: The crew defending Timothy Bass for the alleged abduction, rape, and homicide of Mandy Stavik includes Whatcom County Public Defenders Starck Follis, Shoshana Paige, and Stephen Jackson.
Follis has been the director of the public defender’s office for five years and has been a lawyer for over three years.
A senior deputy public defender, Paige has been with the workplace since 2006. Jackson, a deputy public defender, has been with the office for five years.
▪ The victim, Amanda “Mandy” Stavik, changed into a 1989 graduate of Mount Baker High. The 18-year-old transformed into a home for Thanksgiving ruined by Central Washington University while she disappeared while walking.
Stavik was defined as an energetic and gregarious young girl who played saxophone in the band and turned into an honors scholar and cheerleader, The Bellingham Herald previously reported. She also performed basketball and softball and ran out of a song.
Some 900 humans attended her memorial service, and music turned into creation for a scholarship endowed in her name at Mount Baker High. Stavik also labored at the Whatcom Family YMCA.
▪ The defendant, Timothy Forrest Bass, 51, is from Everson. He became an established delivery driver for the local Franz Bakery outlet in Bellingham.
Bass grew up on the west side of Strand Road inside the Acme place, while Mandy Stavik grew up on Strand Road’s east aspect.
The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office had suspected Bass, considering that, as a minimum, in 2013, it was consistent with Sheriff Bill Elfo. Detectives contacted Bass twice at his domestic; however, he declined to give a voluntary DNA sample.
Detectives then requested permission to collect a DNA pattern from his painting truck, but Franz denied the request. Bass was then arrested in December 2017 after a coworker gave detectives a plastic cup and Coke can say he drank out of.
BACKGROUND ON THE CASE
The Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office arrested Bass on Dec. 12, 2017. He was charged with first-diploma murder and Primary-degree rape in connection with Stavik’s loss of life.
Due to May 2018, the rape rate turned into dismissed due to the statute of boundaries concerns. Bass has been in the Whatcom County Jail, considering his arrest instead of $1 million bail. If convicted, he ought to face two decades of existence in prison.
After Stavik died, a DNA profile was constituted of proof taken from her body at some stage in an autopsy. After Bass twice refused to give a voluntary pattern, detectives tried to acquire DNA proof from his paintings, Franz Bakery. Franz declined; however, a coworker found out about the sheriff’s research and collected a plastic cup and Coke can Bass drink out of it, which grew to become the gadgets of detectives, courtroom information shows.
Bass’ DNA matched the suspect profile, which brought about his arrest in line with courtroom records. Defense attorneys at the start attempted to suppress the DNA evidence, meaning it couldn’t be used at trial; however, Judge Raquel Montoya-Lewis ruled at a hearing in overdue August that it may be admitted as evidence.
