Murder Suspect Rejects Plea Brown Suddenly Wants Trial In Waverly Case

Instead of pleading guilty to the murders of a Waverly farm couple, Cheyenne T. Brown changed his mind Tuesday and insisted on going to trial.

Brown’s refusal to accept a plea bargain astonished a dozen relatives of the victims, Gertrude and Richard Mattausch, who were killed by shotgun blasts in their bedroom on Jan. 23.

The family members had gathered in Spokane County Superior Court to hear Brown, 20, acknowledge his part in the murders.

Brown’s friend, K.C. Therriault, 19, is charged with the same two counts of aggravated murder.

Prosecutors say the two young men told police they hatched the plan out of vengeance and greed, planning to rob and kill the couple, then get away in a stolen truck.

Prosecutors last week told Brown they would not formally add the death penalty option against him if he pleaded guilty.

At that point, Brown told his attorneys he would enter the guilty plea rather than go to trial this fall.

Pleading guilty to two counts of first-degree murder would earn Brown a mandatory life sentence without parole.

Asked Tuesday if he understood the plea agreement, Brown told Superior Court Judge Kathleen O’Connor: “I want to reject that option.”

Wearing a dark suit and his long curly hair in a ponytail, Brown also said he wanted a private attorney instead of the two public defenders he’s been appointed.

Brown accused Spokane County Public Defender Don Westerman of not working hard enough in his defense and withholding information from him.

Brown also said a newspaper article this week describing the plea agreement contradicted what he thought were his options for testifying against Therriault.

Immediately after Brown rejected the plea offer, Spokane County Prosecutor Jim Sweetser filed a notice to seek the death penalty against Brown.

Brown’s trial would start in early October. But Sweetser said prosecutors plan to offer Brown the same deal over the next two weeks.

Rick Mattausch, one of the victims’ four sons, walked out of courtroom Tuesday shaking his head. “What can you say? This isn’t what we were looking for. But all you can do is keep going,” he said.

Prosecutors have never sought the death penalty for Therriault. He has an IQ below 70, making him exempt from capital punishment, Sweetser said.

Before he was taken back to jail, Brown was told by O’Connor to write down reasons for seeking another attorney.

She can decide Brown has a right to a new attorney only if she agrees he cannot communicate effectively with Westerman.

If that happens, the best he could hope for is another public defender, unless he can find money to hire a private attorney, Westerman said later.

Westerman said Brown was under no obligation to testify against Therriault if he accepted the plea bargain. During Tuesday’s hearing, Brown acted as if Westerman was denying him the option of doing that.

Sweetser said that prosecutors could not compel Brown to make any statements against Therriault.

But if Brown enters a guilty plea, prosecutors can approach Brown and ask for his help, Sweetser said during the hearing.

Brown performed odd jobs for the Mattausches on their farm in south Spokane County. After stealing a truck from Allen Mattausch, Brown was arrested last fall and ended up serving 60 days in jail.

Brown later said he was angry with the couple for that conviction. Therriault allegedly agreed to take part in the murders because he claimed the couple had laughed at him.

, DataTimes