MOUNT VERNON, Wash. (AP) - An Oregon man awaiting a new trial after a court of appeals overturned a burglary conviction for breaking into a Kinder Morgan oil pipeline facility in Western Washington has pleaded guilty to a reduced charge.
Kenneth Ward, 64, of Corbett, Oregon, pleaded guilty Wednesday in Skagit County Superior Court to a misdemeanor charge of second-degree criminal trespassing, The Skagit Valley Herald reported.
Ward was found guilty of felony burglary in 2017 after an October 2016 incident in which he allegedly broke into the facility west of Burlington and attempted to shut off the pipeline.
In April 2019, a state appeals court overturned Ward’s conviction, saying the trial court had erred by not allowing Ward to present a “necessity defense,” which would have asserted that a criminal act was necessary on his behalf to avoid harm, and no legal alternative was available.
“Although Mr. Ward maintains his sincere belief in the viability of that defense, he has elected to resolve the case,” Ward’s lawyers said in a sentencing memorandum filed in Skagit County Superior Court.
After his 2017 conviction, Ward was sentenced to two days in jail and 30 days of community service in Skagit County. He completed both, and received no additional sentence for his plea to trespassing.
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