An Amboy woman who was sentenced to three years in prison last year, stemming from a 2013 car crash that seriously injured a Battle Ground teen and led to the amputation of his right leg, will receive a new trial.
A state appeals court Monday overturned Shaun C. Johnson’s convictions for vehicular assault and possession of methamphetamine. The higher court reached its decision after finding that a Clark County sheriff’s deputy, who discovered methamphetamine in Johnson’s possession, had illegally searched her purse. That evidence was then erroneously allowed during Johnson’s trial in Clark County Superior Court, according to the unpublished court opinion.
The prosecution used the methamphetamine discovered in Johnson’s purse as evidence that she was under the influence when she struck then-16-year-old Justin Carey as he waited for the school bus alongside Northeast 82nd Avenue in Battle Ground.
Johnson, now 49, admitted to law enforcement that she was an addict and had used the drug two days before the crash. Her blood later tested positive for methamphetamine.
“We just hope she gets help and doesn’t hurt anyone else. We pray for her daily that she turns her life around,” Carey’s mother, Janette Chumley, said after learning Johnson’s convictions were overturned.
Clark County Prosecuting Attorney Tony Golik said his office will not be seeking a review of the appeals court’s decision. The case will instead be remanded to Superior Court to be retried on the vehicular assault charge. Golik expects the case will be sent back within the next 30 days, he said, and then a new trial date will be set.
“We were certainly aware of the appellate issue with respect to the search of the purse. We were aware it was a difficult issue on appeal, but we are back to a pretrial status and will aggressively prosecute the case, once again,” Golik said.
On April 24, 2015, a jury found Johnson guilty of vehicular assault, methamphetamine possession and bail jumping. The jury also voted for a special verdict on the vehicular assault charge, which allowed for a longer-than-normal sentence. Judge David Gregerson sentenced Johnson in May 2015 to 36 months in prison.
Johnson was driving to work shortly after 7 a.m. June 10, 2013, heading south on Northeast 82nd Avenue, when she said she dropped a lit cigarette on the floor. She said she removed her seat belt to bend down and retrieve it. Her 2006 Nissan Altima veered off the road south of Northeast 289th Street and struck Carey, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Superior Court.
The impact flung Carey about 80 feet into nearby bushes. Both of his legs were fractured and an artery was severed in his right leg. The leg later had to be amputated as a result of his injuries.
Paramedics treated Johnson at the scene for a broken arm, but they didn’t see Carey because he was concealed by the bushes. Johnson also didn’t mention she hit anyone with her car. A tow truck driver found Carey more than 90 minutes later, the affidavit states. Johnson later told police she didn’t know she had struck anyone.
Unlawful search
While being treated for her injuries, sheriff’s Deputy Tim Gosch retrieved Johnson’s driver’s license from her purse to help fill out a collision report and found two small bags of methamphetamine, court documents said.
Johnson’s attorney moved to have the evidence suppressed at trial, but the state argued that Gosch properly searched her purse while carrying out a “community caretaking” function — an exception for a warrantless search.
However, the appeals court found the prosecution did not prove there was a specific health or safety concern to justify the officer’s search through Johnson’s purse, other than the need to document the accident. It ruled that the trial court erred by denying her motion to suppress the methamphetamine found in her purse.
Because the appeals court couldn’t conclude whether allowing the evidence contributed to the vehicular assault conviction — caused by driving under the influence — it was also thrown out.
Johnson’s bail-jumping conviction stands.
Appellate attorney Jodi Backlund of Olympia, who represented Johnson, said the community caretaking function is important but doesn’t justify an officer acting beyond it.
“From our perspective, we think we had additional strong issues that we didn’t get a reversal on. We had an excellent appellate case,” Backlund said. “The court of appeals isn’t going to reverse a conviction lightly.”
