Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
DAVENPORT—The trial of a Sprague defendant in a criminal sex case has been continued again.
This time, the trial of Jonathan Ray Stocker, 42, of Sprague, was continued because he was served with a federal warrant. Stocker is being held in the Lincoln County Jail.
Stocker is already charged with five counts of first-degree possession of depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and one count of second-degree possession of depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit.
The new federal warrant was issued for Stocker for alleged possession of more than 100 child pornography-related files on a laptop at his Old Sprague Highway Road residence late last summer.
Stocker is expected to be transferred to a Department of Corrections or Spokane-area facility as he awaits federal trial.
The move comes as no surprise to local prosecutors and law enforcement, who have known the case could be picked up federally for months.
Lincoln County’s local charges remain open depending on federal charge outcomes, Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Ty Albertson said. For now, a new readiness hearing is set for 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, May 14.
Stocker is likely to be tried in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington in Spokane, the prosecuting attorney said.
Drew Lawson is a reporter and sports writer for Free Press Publishing, including the Cheney Free Press and Davenport Times. He is a graduate of Eastern Washington University.
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