TULALIP — A new trial date has been set for the father of a Tulalip boy who shot five students inside Marysville Pilchuck High School last year before killing himself.
The defense team for Raymond Fryberg Jr. asked to postpone his June 22 trial, citing a scheduling conflict. Additionally the defense expects that the case will be complicated.
It “involves significant interplay between Tribal and U.S. Federal Law, which may require additional exploration and briefing in this Court,” attorney Michael Tate wrote.
The trial is now set for Aug. 31.
Fryberg was indicted on a weapons charge in April. Prosecutors allege that a protection order issued by the Tulalip Tribal Court in 2002 prohibited Fryberg from buying a handgun at Cabela’s more than a decade later.
The Tulalip man is accused of lying on federal paperwork by failing to disclose that he is the subject of a domestic violence protection order.
Investigators say Fryberg’s 15-year-old son, Jaylen, brought the .40-caliber pistol to school Oct. 24 and invited friends to lunch. He opened fire inside one of the school’s cafeterias. Four students were killed and a fifth was seriously injured. The shooter committed suicide with the same gun. More than 100 students were inside the cafeteria when the violence broke out.
Raymond Fryberg Jr. remains out of custody pending trial. Several people wrote letters on his behalf after his arrest, including Marlin Fryberg Jr., who recently resigned from the Tulalip Tribes’ board of directors.
Records showed that neither Raymond Fryberg’s 2002 tribal court domestic violence protection order, nor his violation of the order in 2012, were entered into the Washington Crime Information Center or National Crime Information Center databases.
Presumably if the order or violation had been entered Fryberg would not have passed the background check done by Cabela’s.
In Snohomish County, tribes can send the orders to the Snohomish County Superior Court Clerk’s Office. The protection order is then sent to the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office to enter the information into the state database.
The U.S. Department of Justice plans to host a meeting with tribes next month to try to resolve reporting problems.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley.
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