Loukaitis Judge Asked To Step Aside

The prosecution and defense in the case of a 15-year-old accused of killing two classmates and a teacher have asked the presiding judge to step aside, citing questions about his impartiality.

Grant County Deputy Prosecutor Robert Schiffner said he and defense lawyer Guillermo Romero filed a joint motion Monday asking that Superior Court Judge Evan Sperline recuse himself from the Barry Loukaitis murder case.

The motion raises questions about Sperline’s longtime social relationship with the family of Arnie Fritz, who was killed in the Feb. 2 shooting at Frontier Junior High in Moses Lake. It cites Sperline’s membership in the same church as the Fritz family and includes a copy of a sympathy card sent to the family by the judge after the shooting.

The motion notes that Sperline failed to mention the sympathy card and other evidence of a close relationship with the Fritz family after an earlier defense motion asking him to recuse himself. The motion requests that an Okanogan County judge review Sperline’s decision.

“The court’s failure to mention the existence of the sympathy card, letters of recommendation and other facts surrounding his relationship with the Fritz family unfortunately raises the question of whether the respondent (Loukaitis) can receive a fair and impartial trial in front of Judge Sperline,” the motion states.

Sperline said Tuesday he was not sure how or when the motion would be resolved, adding that it would be unfair of him to comment further.

Loukaitis is charged with three counts of aggravated first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of algebra teacher Leona Caires and students Manuel Vela Jr. and Fritz, both 14. He is also charged with one count of first-degree assault in the wounding of student Natalie Hintz, 13.

A hearing to decide whether Loukaitis will be tried as an adult is scheduled to resume Aug. 19.

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