Alfred Joseph Sanchez, 22, a former member of the 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment, is on trial before Superior Court Judge Christine Pomeroy on a count of first-degree assault while armed with a deadly weapon. He is accused of stabbing Brad Merten in the back outside Charlie’s Bar & Grill in Olympia during the early morning March 28, 2009.
Sanchez is now a member of the Arizona National Guard, said his attorney, Sandra Johnston of Tacoma.
Johnston also represented Sanchez during his first trial last year. During the first trial, jurors deadlocked. Six jurors favored convicting Sanchez and six favored acquittal, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jon Tunheim said last year. Pomeroy subsequently declared a mistrial.
Sanchez’s second trial, which began Monday, is a “bench trial,” which means a jury will not hear evidence and Sanchez’s innocence or guilt will be determined solely by the judge. A defendant has to agree to give up his right to have a jury hear evidence in order to convene a bench trial.
Merten began testifying Tuesday about what happened to him. The stabbing left him with a punctured lung and a broken rib. The stab wound also damaged his liver, and he was hospitalized for five days. Olympia Police Officer Sean Lindros has testified that Merten’s injuries were life-threatening.
The stabbing occurred during a fight outside Charlie’s between a large group of Rangers and a group of Merten’s friends, according to trial testimony last year. One piece of contested evidence during last year’s trial was surveillance footage from Charlie’s that depicted Sanchez and another Ranger, John Melville, breaking down the bar’s back door and entering through the kitchen. Melville has been convicted of misdemeanor criminal trespass in connection with the incident but he has yet to be sentenced.
Tunheim told the jury during last year’s trial that he believes the footage was consistent with Sanchez grabbing a knife from the kitchen. However, there was no clear image of a knife in any of the footage shown to the jury.
Johnston disagreed with Tunheim’s assessment that the footage showed Sanchez was looking for a weapon. Sanchez’s second trial is expected to last about three weeks.
Jeremy Pawloski: 360-754-5445
jpawloski@theolympian.com
