State Of Washington, V. Clayton Tyrone King, Iii

Court of Appeals of Washington·Decided May 16, 2023·No. 55986-2·Unpublished

Opinion

Filed

Washington State

Court of Appeals

Division Two

May 16, 2023

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON

DIVISION II

STATE OF WASHINGTON, No. 55986-2-II

Respondent,

v.

CLAYTON TYRONE KING III, UNPUBLISHED OPINION Appellant.

GLASGOW, C.J.—After police investigated a sex trafficking operation involving the sale of sexual encounters with multiple adult women and children, the State charged several members of the same gang with various crimes. The State charged Clayton Tyrone King III with one count of conspiracy to commit first degree human trafficking and one count of second degree human trafficking. Over the course of about three-and-a-half years, the trial court continued King’s trial 12 times. The continuances were largely based on the complexity of the case involving multiple victims and defendants, the large volume of discovery involved, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the courts. King’s attorneys requested or agreed to most of the continuances.

During trial, King repeatedly asked the court to appoint new counsel, but the court declined.

A jury found King guilty of both charges with street gang enhancements. Before closing, King’s attorney moved to withdraw because King filed a bar complaint against him. The trial court denied the attorney’s motion. At sentencing, the court imposed maximum sentences for both convictions,

as well as an additional 60 months for the gang aggravator on the second degree human trafficking conviction.

King appeals. He argues that his speedy trial rights under the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution and article I, section 22 of the Washington Constitution were violated. He also argues that the trial court failed to adequately inquire about his counsel’s alleged conflict of interest, and that he was deprived of conflict-free counsel when the court denied his attorney’s motion to withdraw in violation of the Sixth Amendment. We affirm King’s convictions and his sentence.

FACTS

In 2016, the Lakewood Police Department began investigating a sex trafficking operation involving several women and children. The investigation led the State to charge multiple members of the same gang, including King, with various crimes. On October 2, 2017, the State charged King with one count of conspiracy to commit first degree human trafficking and one count of second degree human trafficking. The State originally charged six others as codefendants. It eventually charged a total of 12 other people as codefendants.

King’s case was complex. In the beginning, it involved 15 different victims—five of whom were minors—numerous recorded phone calls, and thousands of pages of discovery. As the case progressed, the number of defendants and the amount of discovery grew. The case eventually involved 13 defendants and more than 100,000 pages of documents, hundreds of hours of recorded calls, “many hours of” taped interviews, and “extensive phone extraction data.” Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 227. Adding to the complexity, the first attorney representing King was appointed to a

superior court commissioner position shortly before King’s trial was set to begin, so a second attorney began representing King.

I. TRIAL CONTINUANCES

A. Pre-COVID-19 Continuances King was arraigned in October 2017, and his jury trial was initially scheduled for November 15, 2017.

On October 31, 2017, the State and some of King’s codefendants moved to continue the trial to September 2018. King’s first attorney objected to the continuance. He explained that he had recently been appointed to represent King and had received no discovery, so he could not determine whether the proposed trial date was appropriate, especially because King was in custody. The trial court granted the request for a continuance despite King’s attorney’s objection.

In August and November 2018, King’s first attorney moved to continue the trial over King’s objections because the attorney needed more time to prepare a defense. The trial court granted both continuances.

In January 2019, the State moved to continue the trial, explaining that it expected several of King’s codefendants to plead guilty and that it anticipated additional discovery. King’s first attorney agreed to the continuance over King’s objection, echoing the codefendants’ attorneys’ concerns about the amount of discovery that needed review. The trial court granted the motion.

In August 2019, King’s first attorney agreed to another continuance in order to align King’s trial date with his codefendants’. King objected. The court agreed to the continuance, setting a new trial date for December 3, 2019.

In October 2019, King’s first attorney moved to withdraw from King’s case. He explained that he had been appointed to a superior court commissioner position with a December 9, 2019 start date. Because his new position required him to wind down his law practice, if the trial court were to require him to continue representing King, he would not have income until the case concluded, which counsel anticipated would take several months. Under these circumstances, representing King would be “a huge financial burden.” Verbatim Rep. of Proc. (VRP) (Oct. 31, 2019) at 31.

At the conclusion of a second hearing on the motion, the court granted the motion to withdraw, reasoning that requiring the attorney to continue representing King would put “an unreasonable financial burden on” him under RPC 1.16(b)(6).1 VRP (Nov. 1, 2019) at 12. The court then appointed King’s second attorney, who moved to continue the trial so he could prepare. The trial court granted the continuance, noting the “extensive discovery” the case involved and setting the trial for May 4, 2020. CP at 30. King refused to sign the order continuing the trial date. B. Post-COVID-19 Continuances In March 2020, the Pierce County Superior Court suspended criminal jury trials “until at least April 24, 2020.” CP at 277. In early April 2020, King’s second attorney moved to continue the trial over King’s objection. He stated that in his “professional opinion, after 43 years of experience in major felony crimes,” he was “not adequately prepared to provide effective assistance of counsel.” VRP (April 9, 2020) at 19. The trial court granted the motion, adding that

1 RPC 1.16(b)(6) states that “a lawyer may withdraw from representing a client if . . . the representation will result in an unreasonable financial burden on the lawyer.”

the COVID-19 pandemic had made the May 4, 2020, trial date unfeasible. The trial court continued King’s trial to September 14, 2020.

In April and May 2020, Pierce County Superior Court suspended criminal jury trials again due to COVID-19, with the May suspension lasting until July 6, 2020. In August 2020, King’s second attorney emailed the trial court about an “agreed continuance,” explaining that he was in trial at a different court and that court had ordered him to declare himself unavailable for other trials. CP at 517. The trial court continued King’s trial to October 27, 2020.

In October 2020, the trial court continued King’s case again upon the agreement of King’s second attorney and the State. The trial court noted that the parties were negotiating and needed additional time to get the case ready for trial. The case was continued two more times because Pierce County Superior Court suspended criminal trials from November 23, 2020, until March 1, 2021, due to the COVID-19 public health emergency.

On February 25, 2021, King’s second attorney made the twelfth and last motion to continue the trial. The attorney explained that he needed time to get a second COVID-19 vaccine. The trial court granted a continuance of six days. When the trial court asked King if he had an objection to the trial date, he replied, “I’ve been ready to go, Your Honor, since 2017.” VRP (Feb. 25, 2021) at 20.

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