Wonder if these new charges and trial date set for
end of next month (if I’m reading correctly) are to encourage a plea agreement on all charges currently against him in both counties?
* * *
... A trial for the murder is scheduled to begin April 1, 2014, in Clackamas County Circuit Court before Judge Ron Herndon. The new charges are being prosecuted in Multnomah County and the trial date is set for Feb. 25.
http://portlandtribune.com/go/42-news/126336-murder-suspect-faces-new-charges
The date of Feb. 25th appears to be this year, or they probably would have included the year 2014 as well. Cases like the Gary Ridgway (Green River Killer) case, as well as with the Joel Patrick Courtney case (Brooke Wilberger), were both settled in a plea bargain of revealing the whereabouts of the victims bodies, in exchange for not receiving the death penalty.
Although this is from a Utah law site, this generic plea bargain quote made sense to me:
"A few of the factors that may be taken into account when a plea bargain is contemplated are:
the interests of justice being served, witness availability and evidence. Generally, the state discusses potential plea bargain offers with the victim or victim’s family, as well."
http://www.saltlakecriminaldefense.com/tag/plea-bargain/
In this case, it appears that JH can not bargain with revealing the location of the body, because WH has been found. The thing that JH has on his side, is that there is currently a case in the Oregon Supreme Court regarding the Oregon Death Penalty. This will decide if Governor Kitzhaber has a right to declare a moratorium by stopping all death penalties in Oregon, while he is in office.
http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2012/12/gov_john_kitzhaber_files_appea.html
Other factors that could weigh in favor for JH, might be the family's religious and personal beliefs. But we can not discuss those here.
We do not know all of the evidence that LE has to bargain with, other than what has already released to the public.
Just this week, a different Gresham Resident (John Coleman Hardaway), plea bargained with Multnomah County, and only received an 8 year prison sentence in an aggravated murder case. His girlfriend was his second murder victim since 1996.
"Hardaway last week pleaded guilty in Multnomah County Circuit Court to second-degree manslaughter and first-degree assault. His plea came in the form of an
Alford plea, a legal term meaning that he doesn’t admit to the acts, but he does agree that there is enough evidence to convict him."
http://www.oregonlive.com/gresham/index.ssf/2013/01/gresham_man_who_killed_once_be.html