EVERETT — A murder suspect who allegedly stabbed two of his attorneys with pencils is competent to stand trial.
State doctors have determined that Joshua Monson is able to assist in his own defense and understands the allegations against him.
Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Kenneth Cowsert signed an order Tuesday authorizing the criminal cases against Monson to go forward.
Monson, 27, is accused of killing a man without provocation. Brian Jones, 30, was talking on a cellphone in a south Everett apartment Jan. 2 when he was shot in the head at close range. Monson is charged with second-degree murder. He also is facing a 2010 drug charge.
Monson made an appearance Tuesday from jail. Since the second attack, county corrections officers have put him in restraints for court hearings. He was strapped to a chair with his hands shackled at his waist. He wasn’t allowed to use a pen or pencil, so his attorney signed paperwork for him.
Monson’s mental state was called into question last month after he allegedly twice smuggled small pencils from the Snohomish County Jail and attacked his attorneys.
The first incident happened at the start of Monson’s drug trial. Lawyers were in the middle of jury selection when Monson reportedly reached across the table and stabbed his attorney, Tom Cox in the neck with a pencil.
County corrections officers tackled Monson to the ground and hauled him off to jail. Jurors were sent home and the drug trial was put on hold.
Cox was forced to resign from the case and Monson was assigned a new lawyer. A few days later during an appearance from jail Monson reportedly stabbed his second attorney, Gurjit Pandher with a pencil.
The lawyers were not seriously hurt.
Monson was assigned a third lawyer and then ordered to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. His new attorney, Jesse Cantor, said on Tuesday that he was there during the evaluation and didn’t dispute the doctor’s findings.
Monson has numerous felony convictions. His 2010 drug charge stems from an arrest the day after he was released from prison. An Arlington police officer stopped a pickup truck for running a stop sign.
The officer reported that Monson, a passenger in the pickup, attempted to throw a baggie containing methamphetamine out the window during the traffic stop. The bag hit the door frame and landed on the open glove box. Monson was arrested.
He was out of custody, pending trial for the felony drug charge when he allegedly killed Jones.
The murder trial is scheduled for January.
Prosecutors are reviewing the pencil stabbing incidents for possible charges.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
