A lawyer who allegedly disrupted a court and then struck a courthouse marshal on the head has been charged in Snohomish County Superior Court with felony third-degree assault.
Christopher Philip Bartow, 39, was doused with pepper spray and arrested Sept. 20 after the disturbance spilled outside a courtroom, deputy prosecutor Ed Stemler said.
Bartow, who now lives in Ellensburg, said he’s innocent.
“Not only am I not guilty, but I’m filing a $1.5 million lawsuit against the (county) department of corrections,” Bartow said Tuesday by telephone.
If he’s convicted of a felony, Bartow would face the possibility of discipline from the state Bar Association.
Bartow was in court representing himself in a child custody case with his ex-wife. The hearing was in front of Elizabeth Turner-Smith, a lawyer who was serving as court commissioner that day.
Stemler said Bartow kept interrupting the commissioner, and she asked him to leave the courtroom. As he left, the commissioner took up the next case, but Bartow returned to the courtroom and walked toward her, Stemler said.
Courthouse marshal George Willoth asked Bartow to be seated, but he began arguing. Willoth asked Bartow to step outside the courtroom so they could talk, Stemler said.
Bartow became angry outside the courtroom and used abusive language, Stemler said. The marshal then told Bartow to leave the courthouse. Bartow turned aggressively toward Willoth, and the marshal told him he was under arrest for disorderly conduct, Stemler said.
“Attorney Bartow then turned around and hit marshal Willoth in the head with his left forearm and hand,” Stemler said.
He was pepper sprayed by Willoth, and then struggled with jail custody officers, Stemler said.
The next day, Bartow went to the Everett Police Department and alleged that Willoth had assaulted him. He demanded police take a report, Stemler said.
Bartow said one of the chief state witnesses is a private investigator who had been working on behalf of his ex-wife. He alleged that Willoth was abusive toward him, and there are discrepancies in state witness statements.
Reporter Jim Haley: 425-339-3447 or haley@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
