The man accused of attempted murder in a machete attack on a Brinnon woman has asked for a new attorney.
James Nathaniel Parker, 38, was arraigned last week in Jefferson County Superior Court. He …
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The man accused of attempted murder in a machete attack on a Brinnon woman has asked for a new attorney.
James Nathaniel Parker, 38, was arraigned last week in Jefferson County Superior Court. He has been charged with first-degree attempted murder (domestic violence with a deadly weapon); first-degree assault (domestic violence, great bodily harm, deadly weapon); and custodial assault.
In a brief court appearance, Parker entered pleadings of not guilty to the charges.
The first-degree attempted murder and first-degree assault charges stem from Parker’s alleged attack on his former partner at her south county home in mid-January.
911 dispatchers were called just before 9:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 17 by a man who said his neighbor had been attacked by “her ex” at a home in Brinnon and was bleeding “rather badly.”
The victim told police she had just gotten home and opened the door when Parker attacked her with a machete.
Parker fled the scene of the attack in a 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt, which was spotted after it broke down on U.S. Highway 101 near Hama Hama. Parker then tried to carjack another vehicle, according to police, before fleeing on foot.
A K-9 unit brought in by the Mason County Sheriff’s Office found Parker hiding in the woods nearby.
The charge of custodial assault was filed by prosecutors after Parker allegedly assaulted a corrections officer at the Jefferson County Jail in Port Hadlock the day after his arrest.
A review of the surveillance video from the holding cell showed Parker, 38, “very clearly” trying to punch the sergeant with his right fist after he charged an officer who wanted to get Parker to put on a suicide-prevention smock.
Officials said Parker decided to cooperate with officers at the jail after a corrections officer pointed a Taser at him.
At Parker’s arraignment last Friday, Judge Keith Harper approved an updated no-contact order to prevent Parker from having any contact with the victim or the children in her home.
Parker told the judge he would not sign the no-contact order, and the judge made a note of it.
“I’ll just write, ‘Refused to sign,’” Harper explained, looking at the paperwork.
The judge then set trial to begin May 24.
“I have something I want to add,” Parker said.
He noted his court-assigned attorney had represented his former partner on a legal matter in the past.
“I’m kind of opposed to him being my attorney at this point forward,” Parker said.
His request was not immediately resolved.
“Whether or not you’re going to get another lawyer, we’ll deal with that at another time,” Harper said.
Parker remains in custody in the Jefferson County Jail. Bail on the attempted murder charge was set at $500,000, and his total bail has been set at $535,000.
