Bank robbery trial now set for June
Published 4:55 pm Monday, February 23, 2026
PORT ANGELES — A defense attorney for a Jefferson County man accused of robbing Kitsap Bank in Sequim last year has requested an evaluation to determine whether the man has diminished capacity.
Defense attorney Alex Stalker requested an evaluation for Dale Allen Jaff, 58, during a hearing on Feb. 13 in Clallam County Superior Court to determine whether Jaff suffered a mental disease or defect, including diminished capacity and insanity at the time of his alleged crimes.
Judge Brent Basden agreed to the evaluation and set Jaff’s trial to begin on June 1. A hearing was set for 1 p.m. May 8.
Jaff, of Port Hadlock, is accused of robbing Sequim’s Kitsap Bank last April. He pleaded not guilty in mid-May to felony charges of first-degree robbery, second-degree theft and second-degree assault.
Restoration pending
In a separate case, a Sequim woman has once again been sent to have her competency restored in order to stand trial for the alleged attempted first-degree murder of her two young sons.
Ekaterina A. Parrish, 47, was arrested on Dec. 13, 2022, after she allegedly drove her children down an embankment in the 200 block of Hillside Drive in Sequim. The vehicle rolled over.
Parrish’s sons sustained minor injuries in the wreck. One boy, then 9, told a 911 dispatcher that his mother intentionally tried to kill them, court documents stated.
Parrish’s defense attorney, John Hayden, requested she receive competency restoration on Jan. 16 after she was deemed competent and able to assist in her defense for a trial a week prior.
However, Hayden and Clallam County Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Michele Devlin agreed that another evaluation of Parrish’s competency was needed due to recent circumstances.
According to a Feb. 3 inpatient forensic evaluation, Department of Social and Health Services staff wrote that Parrish meets diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder and likely meets criteria for borderline personality disorder. Due to those issues, staff believe she lacks the capacity to assist in her defense and they recommended her restoration.
Judge Simon Barnhart agreed to a 90-day restoration timeline for Parrish on Feb. 4. Her competency review hearing was set for 9 a.m. May 1.
Parrish has been restored to competency to assist in her own defense twice before during incarceration for the alleged charges, according to court documents.
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Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. He can be reached by email at matthew.nash@sequimgazette.com.
