Page 16 - Flathead Beacon // 9.14.16

NEWS
FEATURE
Sanders County Attorney Robert Zimmerman, left, Richard Raugust, in blue, and others listen to proceedings from Raugust’s attorney Brett Schandelson, right. Raugust was released after a bail hearing in Sanders County District Court on Dec. 4, 2015. BEACON FILE PHOTO
Richard Raugust Exonerated in Trout Creek Murder Case State prosecutor dismisses charges amid new evidence, extensive litigation by Montana Innocence Project
RBY TRISTAN SCOTT OF THE BEACON
ICHARD RAUGUST, THE TROUT CREEK MAN sentenced to life in prison for the 1997 murder of his best friend, was fully exonerated of the delib-
erate homicide charge Sept. 8 after having spent 18 years of his life con ned to a cell.
Attorneys and advocates with the Montana Inno- cence Project stood by Raugust’s side at the University of Montana School of Law in Missoula to announce the exoneration, a rare development in the United States criminal justice system, and an even rarer one in Mon- tana, where Raugust became the rst wrongfully con- victed inmate to have his name cleared in a deliberate homicide case, according to records maintained by the National Registry of Exonerations.
“This is truly a watershed moment,” said Brett Schan- delson, an attorney with the Tipp and Buley law rm in Missoula who provided legal representation on a pro bono basis for the Montana Innocence Project, which appealed Raugust’s case in 2012. “Richard was the rst client of the Montana Innocence Project to be released through litigation, and as of today he stands as our rst exoneree. He will not be our last.”
Raugust was released from prison last December fol- lowing a decision by Sanders County District Judge James Wheelis, who ruled that evidence withheld in the case con- stituted a violation of due process, supported the defen- dant’s alibi and warranted a new trial. Prior to his release, he had been incarcerated at the Montana State Prison in
Deer Lodge, slowly mounting a case for his innocence. On Sept. 7, 2016, Sanders County Attorney Robert Zim- merman led a motion to dismiss the charges with preju- dice, fully and nally ending Richard’s long legal struggle. The motion came just two weeks after the Montana Attorney General’s O ce abandoned its e orts to over- turn Wheelis’ Nov. 16 order ruling the state had commit- ted a Brady violation by suppressing evidence favorable to Raugust at his 1998 trial, e ectively overturning the
conviction.
Since his release, Raugust has been living in Mis-
soula, where he recently self-published a book of poetry and has spent his days volunteering for the Montana Innocence Project, waiting on the outcome of the state’s appeal of Judge Wheelis’ decision.
Last week, he thanked his supporters and expressed an overwhelming sense of relief.
“I have been waiting for this day for many, many years,” Raugust told reporters during a press confer- ence. “I am grateful for the support and dedicated work of the Montana Innocence Project, and all of the lawyers and volunteers who worked on my case. I look forward to spending time with my friends and family as a free man.”
Since the morning of his arrest, Raugust, 49, has insisted that he did not commit the murder of Joe Tash, his best friend whose body was discovered July 24, 1997, inside a camper trailer near Trout Creek. A Sand- ers County jury handed down a guilty verdict in March 1998 after sitting deadlocked for 10 hours.
In 2012, the Montana Innocence Project appealed
Raugust’s conviction, saying that new evidence impli- cates another killer, and that if Raugust were granted a new trial, a jury would agree.
The new evidence challenges key testimony provided by the state’s sole eyewitness, a man the Montana Inno- cence Project asserts is the true killer, and claims that the testimony of a sheri ’s deputy would have supported Raugust’s alibi but was never divulged prior to trial.
According to Wheelis’ order, the deputy’s observa- tions “put the entire case against [Raugust] in such a dif- ferent light as to undermine con dence in the verdict at the underlying trial.”
With Raugust’s conviction overturned, he was once again presumed innocent of the crime, with the burden of proof returned to the state.
“Richard Raugust spent 6,708 days, which amounts to 18 years, 4 months, and 11 days, behind bars for a mur- der he did not commit,” Schandelson said. “For these many years, justice was not served for Richard or for the family of Joe Tash, Richard’s longtime friend who was murdered. We take a huge step towards remedying that injustice today.”
From the moment of his arrest, Raugust has insisted that he did not murder Tash at a remote campsite the two men shared near Trout Creek, and his story has never wavered.
He has maintained that on July 23, 1997, he, Tash and a man named Rory Ross were drinking at the Naughty Pine Saloon in Trout Creek when, just after closing time, the trio climbed into Ross’ 1985 AMC Eagle, planning to
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SEPTEMBER 14, 2016 // FLATHEADBEACON.COM