Judge releases Richard Sherman, no bail; case proceeding with misdemeanors, not a felony
Richard Sherman is free without bail and is no longer facing a felony charge of burglary domestic violence.
King County District Court Judge Fa’amomoi Masaniai denied King County deputy prosecutor Kyle Olson’s request for $10,000 bail.
Judge Masaniai made that ruling Thursday afternoon, at the first court hearing since the former Seahawks Super Bowl champion and iconic cornerback was arrested and jailed by Redmond police officers early Wednesday.
Sherman is scheduled to be in King County District Court Friday at 2 p.m. for a second hearing.
“The court rules indicate that I have to, on a first offense, for anything, the presumption is release, with conditions,” Judge Masaniai said.
“I see Mr. Sherman is a pillar of this community. He is a business owner. He is a husband. He is a father.
“I am going to release Mr. Sherman on his own promise to return to court.”
Olson had said before the judge’s ruling the basis for requesting $10,000 bail, which a deputy prosecutor’s spokesman said was standard for domestic-violence cases with similar circumstances, were the state’s “concerns for community safety, concerns for Mr. Sherman’s family and Mr. Sherman himself.”
The judge didn’t share those concerns.
In a jail hallway outside the courtroom, defense attorney Cooper Offenbecher said he and his office are investigating the circumstances surrounding Wednesday morning’s incidents involving Sherman.
“Richard is thankful to have the support of his family and friends,” Offenbecher said in a brief statement, before walking away. “We look forward to vigorously defending this case in court.”
The hearing was split between room 338 of the King County Courthouse where the judge, deputy prosecuting attorney, Sherman’s wife and others were, and King County Jail courtroom number one. The latter location is where Sherman’s attorney was, speaking to the judge through an online Zoom link and big, flat-screen televisions. Everyone in both rooms wore facemasks, as King County courts remain under COVID-19 protection protocols.
As expected, Sherman waived his right to appear in court Thursday. He had his attorney, Offenbecher, represent and appear for him in the first hearing.
When asked by the judge about the prosecution’s statements of probable cause for the four charges, Offenbecher said he had no comment.
“Richard Sherman is among the best in our community, and we’re proud to have him here,”r Offenbecher said in court.
“He’s a good person with a good soul.”
Sherman’s wife Ashley was in the King County District Court room across the street from the King County Jail her husband had been booked into at 6:08 a.m. Wednesday. The judge asked Offenbecher if Ashley (Moss) Sherman wanted to make a statement in court Thursday. Through the attorney, she declined.
Judge Masaniai ruled probable cause to proceed with the case on the four charges a King County deputy prosecuting attorney presented stemming from a one-car accident inside an active construction zone on Highway 520 and Sherman’s subsequent, alleged attempt at forced entry into his in-laws’ home early Wednesday, both in Redmond. Those charges are all gross misdemeanors and misdemeanors: one charge of criminal trespass in the second degree for domestic violence, one charge of malicious mischief in the third degree for domestic violence, one charge of resisting arrest and one charge of driving under the influence.
That is a downgrade from what Redmond police listed in its reason to arrest and book Sherman into jail early Wednesday: suspicion of burglary domestic violence, a class B felony charge under the Revised Code of Washington.
Some new details in the case came to light during Thursday’s hearing:
- Olson, the deputy prosecutor, said: “The facts involved in this case allege that law enforcement were dispatched to Mr. Sherman’s home (in suburban Maple Valley) in response to suicidal threats by Mr. Sherman (Tuesday night). The information indicated that he had been drinking and he was taking anti-depressants.”
- Olsen said police report that Sherman allegedly made suicidal statements in the presence of law-enforcement officers, as well—and that “he also made statements about taking a firearm from an officer.”
- Washington State Patrol troopers allege Sherman then got in his SUV and drove the approximately 30 miles from Maple Valley north to Redmond Tuesday night into early Wednesday, “while under the influence.”
- The deputy prosecutor said police allege Sherman repeatedly tried to forcibly enter the front door of his in-laws’ residence in Redmond, about 2 miles from where his SUV stopped operating after it hit a barrier inside an active construction zone eastbound on Highway 520. Olson said police allege Sherman’s father-in-law feared for his and his family’s safety to the point “he not only sprayed Mr. Sherman with bear mace but retrieved his own firearm, in concerns for his own safety.”
- After initially being compliant with officers arriving at the in-laws’ house, Sherman became confrontational when told he was being arrested, police allege. He “began to resist the officers by stiffening and flexing his muscles. This required officers to forcibly place him under arrest...place him in handcuffs.”
The case moves to Friday’s second hearing in King County District Court.
RCW 9A.52.080 defines criminal trespass in the second degree as someone who “knowingly enters or remains unlawfully in or upon premises of another under circumstances not constituting criminal trespass in the first degree.
Criminal trespass in the second degree is a misdemeanor.
According to RCW 9A.48.090, “(1) a person is guilty of malicious mischief in the third degree if he or she: (a) Knowingly and maliciously causes physical damage to the property of another, under circumstances not amounting to malicious mischief in the first or second degree; or (b) Writes, paints, or draws any inscription, figure, or mark of any type on any public or private building or other structure or any real or personal property owned by any other person unless the person has obtained the express permission of the owner or operator of the property, under circumstances not amounting to malicious mischief in the first or second degree.”
Malicious mischief in the third degree is a gross misdemeanor.
RCW 9A.76.040 states “(1) A person is guilty of resisting arrest if he or she intentionally prevents or attempts to prevent a peace officer from lawfully arresting him or her.
Resisting arrest is a misdemeanor.
RCW 46.61.502 defines DUI as a gross misdemeanor.
In Washington, per RCW 9A.20.030, the maximum jail term for a gross misdemeanor is up to 364 days, a maximum fine of $5,000, or both.
Misdemeanors in Washington per the same RCW are punishable by a maximum of 90 days in jail, a maximum fine of $1,000, or both.
Were Sherman to be found guilty of any of the above charges, the fact this is his first time in the criminal-justice system—which his attorney emphasized repeatedly in court on Thursday—would likely be a mitigating factor in any sentencing.
Also Thursday, Judge Masaniai granted the deputy prosecutor’s request for a domestic violence protection order protecting Raymond David Moss, Sherman’s father-in-law.
The judge also agreed with the state’s request that Sherman not possess any weapons and not consume any alcohol or non-prescribed drugs. The last two are common requests at first appearances, per a King County prosecuting attorney’s office spokesman.
King County Superior Court records show a sealed case from early 2021 in which the King County Sheriff’s Office got an extreme risk protection order (ERPO) against Sherman. That already prohibits him from possessing firearms.
In 2016, Washington’s citizens voted to make their state the nation’s fourth to enact an extreme risk protection law.
Sherman, 33, is unsigned two weeks before NFL teams report for the start of training camp for the 2021 season.
He’s played the last three seasons for the San Francisco 49ers. They let his three-year, $39 million contract expire this winter. Sherman signed that deal in the spring of 2018 with San Francisco, near where he played in college for Stanford.
That was after Seattle released him rather than pay him $11 million for the 2018 season as he turned 30 years old and came back from a torn Achilles tendon.
He starred over eight seasons for Seattle. He had three All-Pro selections and played in two Super Bowls for the Seahawks as a charter member of their famed “Legion of Boom” secondary.
After he signed with San Francisco, Sherman had kept the home he lived in during his time with the Seahawks in the suburban King County city of Maple Valley. In 2019, days after his 49ers lost a game to the Seahawks, Sherman paid to restock the Maple Valley Food Bank.
In 2018, Sherman married Moss, his long-time girlfriend Ashley. They have two children together. Baby boy Rayden was born to Moss four days after Sherman played in Seattle’s final-play Super Bowl loss to New England in February 2015. After he signed with San Francisco in 2018, Sherman kept the home he lived in with his now-wife during his time with the Seahawks, in the suburban King County city of Maple Valley.
Sherman remains unsigned after the San Francisco 49ers let his three-year contract expire this winter. His alleged incidents this week could put him under punishment such as a suspension by the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell, per their personal-conduct policy.
This story was originally published July 15, 2021 at 4:19 PM.
