Teen back in custody following violation

NEWPORT — A Newport teen is back in custody, arrested after violating terms of a deferred disposition for his role in a Newport vandalism spree. He appeared before Judge Robin McCroskey Friday, Nov. 14.

Lucas L. Swain, 16, was required to attend school as a condition of a deferred disposition granted Friday, Oct. 24 on a charge of second- degree malicious mischief with damages exceeding $5,000, a felony.

In the deferred disposition, if Swain followed certain conditions for 12 months the felony would not be prosecuted, and he would not have a felony on his record for the crime. Swain was one of three boys charged in a series of vandalisms in which more than $10,000 of damage to vehicles and buildings was done in one night last July.

Prosecutor Dolly Hunt said that Tuesday, Oct. 28, less than a week after Swain received the deferred disposition, he left school without permission and had other violations of the conditions.

Hunt said the state would treat the matter as a probation violation rather than revoking the deferred disposition, although it could be revoked if more violations occur.

According to the probable cause report, Swain left school at about 9:45 a.m., an unexcused absence and a violation of the conditions of the deferred disposition that he attend school.

Defense attorney Brittany Harner said Swain did want to leave school that day but that his mother drove him home, so he was with a parent.

Swain was having problems with his mother being the one in charge of school discipline for him, Harner said. She is a teacher at the Pend Oreille River School, where he attended. Harner believed Swain was confused about the conditions.

“What confusion?” McCroskey asked. Harner said Swain believed he was under house arrest before the disposition and thought that was what the post-disposition conditions were. She asked for community service instead of Swain returning to Martin Hall.

L. Joe Paccerelli, probation manager for the Tri County Juvenile Department, said probation officer Troy Johnson spent more than an hour explaining the conditions to Swain. He wanted a 30-day sanction for the probation violations, which were severe, he said. Hunt agreed and asked for a 30-day detention at Martin Hall, with credit for 14 days served.

According to the probable cause statement, after Swain was driven home by his mother, his father turned off the home’s WiFi. Swain was upset about that, according to the report, and he left home at about 10:30 a.m., not returning until 5 p.m.

“While Mr. Swain was out of school and away from parental supervision, he was seen with a youth who committed two separate acts of violence against the community while Mr. Swain was present,” the report read.

The other youth “sucker-punched” a youth, then 20 minutes later while Swain was still with him, the youth was involved in a theft and the brandishing of a knife against a second victim, according to the probable cause statement. “The Newport Police Department confirmed Mr. Swain’s presence at both incidents and reports are forthcoming,” according to the report.

Thursday, Oct. 30, Swain returned to school, where he was suspended from school for the rest of the day following inappropriate remarks to a female student at a Halloween party. “School staff indicates Mr. Swain was disruptive and defiant when receiving the discipline of the school,” according to the report.

McCroskey sentenced Swain to 30 days in detention. She said she didn’t believe that he was confused about the conditions of deferred detention. McCroskey said she believed he knew what he did was wrong and that he chose to go out and run around with another youth who was alleged to have committed violent offenses.

“Not even a week went by when we sat and had a conversation right here and there is no doubt in my mind that you knew what you were doing was not what you were supposed to be doing,” she said. “I don’t have much of a choice because it was so quickly violated, because the violations were so egregious, I’m going to give you the 30 days.”