Innocent Man Released After 77 Days In Jail North Bend Man Accused Of Attacking Acquaintance

A North Bend man spent 77 days in jail after being accused of a crime police now say he didn’t commit.

Jeff Piercy, 19, was arrested on Feb. 19, shortly after an acquaintance was attacked with a pick ax. He was released last week after somebody else confessed to the crime.

“This is the first time I’ve had somebody in jail that’s been innocent,” said Detective Denny Gulla, an investigator with King County Police for nearly 20 years.

Piercy blames no one but Gulla for his ordeal behind bars.

“I’d like to see him apologize, you know. I’ve never had any problems with anybody before this,” Piercy said Wednesday.

Gulla said he wouldn’t do anything differently next time, since the victim until recently insisted that he saw Piercy standing over him before the attack.

On May 6, Darryl P. Easterly, 17, admitted attacking 16-year-old Ryan Frayo and has since been charged with first-degree assault, according to court documents.

Piercy thinks his face came to Frayo’s mind because he was there as Frayo was being brought out to an ambulance.

“I was standing outside talking to a cop and he heard my voice and saw my name. I believe I was the last one he heard coming into consciousness,” Piercy said.

A second-degree assault charge against Piercy will be dismissed, the King County prosecutor’s office said.

In the meantime, Piercy has gotten an unwanted feel for what it’s like to be jailed.

“When it first happened, they were treating me like I was the Green River killer, like an outcast,” he said.

He said he heard men being raped and witnessed many fights in jail. He lost 30 pounds during his stay.

“It changed my life dramatically. You don’t know why you’re there and nobody’s going to give you an answer,” he said. “It ain’t a fun place.”