PORT ANGELES — A trial date for a man accused of killing a Port Angeles woman last year has been postponed because of pending results from the State Patrol Crime Laboratory.
Clallam County Superior Court Judge Simon Barnhart on Wednesday granted the request of Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Steven Johnson and defense attorney William Payne to strike the original Oct. 6 trial date and schedule a hearing on Sept. 19 to set a new trial date.
“The forensics has been assigned and some progress has been made, but the October date is not viable,” Johnson said.
Marquise Hagans-Moore, 27, has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of Rebecca Rule-Cowles. The charge includes domestic violence and firearm enhancements. He has pleaded not guilty.
On Sept. 28, 2024, Port Angeles Police Department officers found Rule-Cowles, 51, dead of an apparent gunshot wound at a house she shared with Hagans-Moore in the 300 block of East Whidby Avenue. They responded to a report from the Tacoma Police Department that Hagans-Moore had turned himself in for killing his roommate in Port Angeles, according to the probable cause affidavit.
At a June 20 hearing, Johnson and Payne both said they needed more time to work through evidence and agreed to leave the October date on the calendar until Wednesday’s hearing.
Hagans-Moore remained in Clallam County Jail on Wednesday in lieu of $500,000 bond.
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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached by email at paula.hunt@peninsuladailynews.com.
