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Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Wade Magers enters the Lincoln County District courtroom with his wife, Penny Magers ahead of his arraignment Wednesday.
DAVENPORT-Sheriff Wade Magers entered a not-guilty plea on all three criminal counts he's charged with at his arraignment Wednesday, July 7.
Magers is charged with obstructing a law enforcement officer, making a false or misleading statement to a public servant and rendering criminal assistance in the third degree.
The charges stem from a car crash involving Sheriff Magers' son back in February and the sheriff's alleged attempts to prevent authorities from learning that his son may have been driving under the influence of alcohol.
The arraignment was presided over by Garfield County District Court Judge Thomas W. Cox via Zoom. Magers arrived at court with his wife, Penny Magers, and defense attorney Bevan Maxey of Maxey Law Office PLLC in Spokane. Franklin County Deputy Prosecutor Albert Lin was also present via Zoom.
Soon into the arraignment, Maxey said Magers was prepared to enter a not-guilty plea. When Cox asked Magers for his plea on each count, the sheriff responded similarly each time: "Not guilty...not guilty...not guilty."
Cox said the charges of obstructing a law enforcement officer and making a false or misleading statement to a public servant each carry a maximum sentence of 364 days in jail and/or a fine up to $5,000. The criminal assistance charge carries a maximum sentence of 90 days in jail and/or a fine up to $1,000.
Maxey then said the case can't fully resolve at a trial until at least December due to the potential for numerous witnesses to appear before the court. He then asked for the pretrial to be set past the usual 90 days post-arraignment.
Magers then waived his right to a speedy trial.
Lin, Cox and Maxey then debated when to set a pretrial. Maxey initially suggested Oct. 14 or Oct. 20, but managed to push the date back to Nov. 3, when all three courts involved were available. The pretrial was thus set for Nov. 3 at 1 p.m.
About 12 people were present in the courtroom excluding Magers and Maxey, with around four more watching on a screen outside the courtroom. One man was disallowed from entering the courtroom on suspicion he would use the courtroom as a soapbox to air his grievances.
When Wade Magers, Penny Magers and Maxey entered District Court around 12:43 p.m., Maxey commented to Wade Magers that they wanted to get the day's proceedings over quickly. When the trio saw The Times present, they ceased talking and moved to a closed conference room.
Aside from greeting one man sitting at the back of the room, entering his not-guilty plea and speaking with Maxey in hushed tones, Magers entered the courtroom quietly and exited in the same fashion.
LCSO deputies, sergeants and dispatch, as well as law enforcement from other agencies, were all represented either inside the courtroom or watching outside.
Drew Lawson is the editor of the Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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