Client at the heart of the Washington Supreme Court’s Blake ruling has died

The client at the heart of one of Washington’s most monumental state Supreme Court cases has died.

Shannon Bowman, known previously by Shannon Blake, died unexpectedly on Aug. 14 at her home in Kettle Falls, according to her online obituary. She was 46.

Bowman’s obituary described her as a “child-at-heart who marched to the beat of her own drum.”

“Shannon was able to find value in anything she came across. … In everything she did, Shannon put others first,” the obituary continued.

Bowman is survived by her daughter, Saige; her parents, Kimberly and Roger Balcom and Mike Bowman, and her siblings, Tia, Josh, Caleb, Martha, Brad, and Zach Bowman.

Stevens County Coroner Ramona Colvin confirmed Bowman’s Aug. 14 death in a phone interview with McClatchy. She said that a cause of death is still pending toxicology reports.

McClatchy was unable to get a response from Bowman’s family members, but Richard Lechich, an attorney for the Washington Appellate Project, who represented Bowman in the state Supreme Court case, spoke to the news organization.

“Shannon’s case has given many people hope and a second chance, and many of my other clients are thankful for that,” Lechich said. “I’m proud and grateful that I was able to represent her in the Washington Supreme Court.”

Lechich said Washington’s old drug possession law, which was overturned by the Blake decision in 2021, was “fundamentally unfair.” During her trial, the law put the burden on her to prove lack of knowledge of possession as opposed to putting the burden on the state to prove knowledge, like in almost every other jurisdiction, which, Lechich said, was “illustrative of this unfairness.”

“I’m thankful that Shannon took her case to trial and appealed,” he said. “She changed the world.”

In 2021, in its ruling on the State v. Blake case, the Washington state Supreme Court removed criminal penalties for drug possession after ruling felony possession unconstitutional. Under that decision, convictions were vacated and dismissed across the state by an order from the court, and the state is still repaying fines and fees.

State lawmakers voted that same year to adopt a temporary fix that would penalize those convicted of drug possession with a misdemeanor, and mandated two pre-arrest referrals for substance abuse treatment by law enforcement officials before an individual could be charged.

Lawmakers acknowledged at the outset of the 2023 legislative session that passing a new drug possession bill was a top priority, yet the version of the legislation that was proposed and passed by the Senate was unable to clear the hurdle in the House chamber in time.

Lawmakers reconvened for a special session in Olympia in May to pass a new drug possession law. The new law increases the “knowing” possession of counterfeit or controlled substances to a gross misdemeanor punishable by up to 180 days in jail and/or a $1,000 fine, lower than the penalty gross misdemeanors typically carry.

However, if the defendant has two prior convictions for possession, they could potentially be confined for up to 364 days. The “knowing use” of controlled substances in a public place also was added to the new legislation and also is punishable by a gross misdemeanor with lowered financial and jail penalties.

The legislation also allows access to pre-trial diversion programs with the requirement that prosecutors must sign off for defendants to avoid charges and undergo substance abuse treatment. Defendants who successfully complete treatment are not charged with a gross misdemeanor for possession.

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