Ronald Jay Bianchi is back in Clark County Superior Court after serving two decades in prison, and this time he’s on trial.
Bianchi was previously sentenced to 72 years in prison for his part in a 1997 botched Vancouver bank robbery that ended in a shootout with police and the deaths of his accomplices, Aaron Lee Ahern, 25, and Michael Judson Brock, 24.
Attorney Jeff Barrar, of Vancouver Defenders, who represented Bianchi 22 years ago, argued during opening statements Monday that he would not deny the bank robbery or subsequent shootout happened.
“Our defense is straightforward,” Barrar told the jurors. The actions of Bianchi and his accomplices were not intended as “premeditated murder of three officers. If you have any doubt to (the intent), your duty is to return verdicts of not guilty on the homicide charges.”
Bianchi, then 26, had pleaded guilty to 13 counts in connection with the robbery at the former Seafirst Bank branch on East Mill Plain Boulevard. But in February 2017, the Washington Court of Appeals vacated three counts of attempted first-degree felony murder after Bianchi argued his convictions and sentence were invalid, because that crime doesn’t exist in Washington. (A defendant commits felony murder, regardless of intent, if it’s during the commission of a felony crime, such as a bank robbery; it’s impossible to attempt something that’s unintentional.)
Bianchi then withdrew his guilty pleas and opted for a trial on amended charges, including three counts of attempted first-degree murder.
Now 47, Bianchi appeared in court wearing a suit, with his hair slicked back. He gave a quick smile to family members sitting in the gallery.
In addition to attempted first-degree murder, he faces three counts of attempted second-degree murder; two counts each of first-degree robbery, second-degree assault, attempting to elude police and possession of stolen property; and one count of second-degree malicious explosion.
Statements made by the attorneys and Judge Bernard Veljacic before the jury entered the courtroom indicated that jurors will not be made aware of some of the intricacies of the case, or the years Bianchi has spent in prison.
Avoiding the history of the case may prove difficult, however.
Deputy Prosecutor Kristine Foerster noted a recent DNA match and the possibility jurors may ask why evidence wasn’t tested during the initial investigation.
In her opening statement, she stuck to the narrative of the incident and outlined the evidence uncovered all those years ago.
On Oct. 17, 1997, Bianchi, Brock and Ahern set off a pipe bomb as a diversion behind a Kmart on Andresen Road. Armed with guns, they then entered the bank about 2 miles away in trench coats and ski masks, and stole several thousand dollars, Foerster said.
As they drove away, their stolen car was spotted by Clark County Sheriff’s Sgt. Craig Hogman, who gave chase. While Bianchi drove, Ahern and Brock fired at the officer out of the car windows. They tossed a grenade at a cruiser occupied by Vancouver police Officers Lawrence Zapata and Adam Millard, but it didn’t go off, according to the prosecutor.
Bianchi crashed the car on Blandford Drive and a gun battle ensued, in which Ahern and Brock were killed. Bianchi escaped into a wooded ravine only to be captured a short time later near Fort Vancouver High School.
Foerster said the three men took significant steps in preparing for the robbery, which included stealing supplies from a “boy’s camp” and at least two vehicles to use as getaway cars.
Over one to two weeks, jurors will hear from numerous witnesses — a total of 63, according to the prosecution’s pre-filed list — about what they heard, saw and experienced. That includes the explosion behind Kmart that sent shrapnel flying onto the roofs of nearby businesses, bullet holes in police vehicles and the fear customers felt while inside the bank.
“These men’s actions were nothing short of deadly,” Foerster said.
Some of the evidence was recently tested for DNA, Foerster said, but most of the results were too complex to pinpoint definitive matches to the suspects. However, hairs taken from a mask found at the Blandford Drive scene resulted in a DNA match to Bianchi, she said.
Foerster opted not to argue the law behind the charges while Barrar’s statements quickly turned toward whether Bianchi meant to kill anyone during the robbery.
The prosecutor objected twice during Barrar’s opening — both times, the judge overruled her objections.
“Our defense is the intent of the shooters cannot be decided beyond a reasonable doubt,” Barrar said. He noted that there is no evidence Bianchi fired a weapon.
“Every step they took was to avoid violence,” Barrar said.
