Judge denies Shuster’s jurisdictional motions; jury trial set, discovery to be picked up Friday

The Lake Forest Park Municipal Court on March 5 denied motions filed by defendant Jonathan Shuster challenging the court’s subject-matter jurisdiction and a related show-cause filing, then set a jury trial for the following week and scheduled a pretrial conference.

The magistrate explained that municipal courts have authority to hear misdemeanor and gross-misdemeanor driving offenses that occur within city limits and that federal constitutional rights related to travel do not prevent enforcement of state and local driving regulations. The court therefore denied Shuster’s motions to dismiss for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction and to have the prosecutor show cause.

The court set a jury trial for Tuesday, with a pretrial on Monday. The court authorized Shuster to attend Monday’s pretrial by Zoom but ordered him to appear in person for trial. The clerk and prosecutor told the court they would make discovery available for Shuster to pick up at the courthouse counter after 10 a.m. Friday; the court warned that no additional mailings to new addresses would be made and continuance requests based on failure to retrieve discovery would not be entertained.

During the hearing the court also notified Shuster that Seattle Municipal Court had issued a $5,000 bench warrant for a separate matter, and directed him to attempt to quash or address that warrant before the next hearing. The court clarified release conditions that remain in effect, including reporting address changes within 24 hours, no criminal-law violations, and no driving without a license and insurance.

Shuster told the court he intended a jury trial and said he would appear on the scheduled trial date; the court cautioned that transportation and discovery pickup were the defendant’s responsibility. The court emphasized that it would not permit continued address changes to avoid service.