PORT ANGELES — The trial of a former Clallam County sheriff’s employee accused of stealing $8,644 from the evidence room has been rescheduled to Oct. 17.
The trial of Staci L. Allison had been set to begin Tuesday.
It was reset that same day because the State Patrol’s lead investigator was unavailable, said Allison’s attorney, Ralph Anderson.
Allison, a former evidence technician who now lives in Montesano, faces first-degree theft and money laundering charges for allegedly stealing $8,644 from the sheriff’s evidence room.
That’s a fraction of the $51,251 found missing in November 2006.
Anderson has requested a change of venue, saying that Allison won’t be able to get a fair trial in Clallam County.
He said a decision on the motion will be made during jury selection on the first day of trial.
If approved, the trial would be further delayed.
Sheriff Bill Benedict said that the money was found hidden in a part of the evidence room where no money is kept. He said he thinks it was kept there in order to be stolen later.
The thefts were discovered when the Sheriff’s Office found 129 empty evidence bags — which once contained $51,251 — stuffed in a plastic tube in the evidence room.
Allison has been charged with stealing a portion of that because that’s the amount she is known to have deleted from the computer records, Benedict has said.
Prosecuting Attorney Deb Kelly is prosecuting the case.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.