Facts: Respondent Robert Bonds appealed his conviction in the Superior Court for Pierce County on charges of attempted murder and unlawful possession of a firearm by filing a personal restraint petition in the Washington Court of Appeals that asserted that the trial court had violated his right to confront witnesses against him by admitting into evidence out of court statements made by his co-defendants and that his attorney had been ineffective in raising the issue on appeal. After a delay of nearly a year, the Washington Court of Appeals ruled that Bonds’ petition was meritorious, referred the case to a panel of judges for a decision on the merits, and appointed counsel for Bonds. Bonds’ new attorney subsequently filed a motion to amend the personal restraint petition to add additional claims asserting that the trial court also violated Bonds’ right to a public trial and the public’s right to open court proceedings. Despite the fact that the one year statute of limitations for collateral attacks on convictions established by Washington Revised Code §10.73.090 had expired, the Washington Court of Appeals granted the motion, holding that the motion should be granted on equitable grounds given the fact that the delay in deciding whether Bonds’ petition was meritorious and in appointing counsel had consumed nearly the entire tolling period and left Bonds’ new attorney with no time to discover the public trial issues. After the Washington Court of Appeals subsequently decided the merits of the case and vacated Bonds’ convictions, the state of Washington appealed the decision to grant Bonds’ untimely motion to amend his personal restraint petition.

Question(s): Did the Washington Court of Appeals err in granting Bonds’ untimely motion to amend his personal restraint petition on equitable grounds?

Conclusion: Justice Charles W. Johnson’s opinion for the Court reversed the Washington Court of Appeals and reinstated Bonds’ convictions, concluding that although the one year statute of limitations established by §10.73.090 may be waived at a court’s discretion on equitable grounds, these grounds are limited to instances in which a personal restraint petition is untimely due to bad faith, deception, or false assurances.

Docket No. 80995-0 (from Court of Appeals Division II Case No. 33704-5)

Petitioner: State of Washington

(Counsel: Michelle Luna-Green)

Respondent: Robert Bonds

(Counsel: Nancy P. Collins)

Briefs:

Argument: Tuesday, June 24, 2008 9:00am

[Source: TVW, http://tvw.org]

Decided: Wednesday, November 26th, 2008

Prevailing Party: State of Washington (Petitioner)

Vote: 6-3

Citation: Pending

Court: Alexander4 Court (2008-2009)

Alexander
(Concurs)

Johnson
(Majority)

Madsen

Sanders
(Dissent)

Chambers

Owens

Fairhurst

Johnson

Stephens