Judge Grant reduces fines, grants deferred findings and upholds two contested traffic infractions in Lake Forest Park

Lake Forest Park Municipal Court Judge Grant presided over the July 15, 2026 remote infraction calendar and issued a mix of deferred findings, mitigated committed findings and default judgments across a range of traffic and registration infractions.

The most consequential rulings came in two contested hearings. In a contested HOV‑lane case stemming from May 26, 2026, the court read Officer Sam Gowen's sworn statement and heard sworn testimony from the defendant, identified in court records as Marja. Judge Grant found by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant continued to travel in the transit‑only (bus/HOV) lane without making the required right turn and cited the controlling statute (RCW 46.61.165(4)(a)). The court imposed the full $200 penalty and explained the defendant has 30 days to file an appeal.

In a separate contested matter, Ralph Cmpaglia presented dashcam video and testimony after rear‑ending another vehicle. Judge Grant allowed the defendant to play the video on screen, considered the driver's account and the city's evidence, and found Cmpaglia committed the infraction for following too closely (penalty $150), citing the statutory standard that drivers must maintain a reasonable and prudent following distance.

Several mitigation hearings resulted in reduced penalties or deferrals. Examples include: - Linus Dimick, eligible for a deferred finding in an HOV‑lane case, accepted the six‑month deferral and must pay a $175 administrative fee and avoid new traffic violations during the period to obtain dismissal. - Multiple nonmoving registration cases were reduced to $125 (payment deadline or installment plan offered), and several school‑zone speeding citations were reduced to amounts between $75 and $95 based on individual mitigation statements and financial or health circumstances. - A citation was dismissed after Savannah Brown supplied evidence that her passenger held a valid disabled‑parking placard.

Judge Grant repeatedly emphasized the difference between mitigation (a reduced committed finding) and deferred findings, explaining that a deferred finding (cost $175) results in a six‑month continuance that, if complied with, prevents the violation from being reported to the Department of Licensing. Mitigation reductions are committed findings that remain on the driving record.

The court also entered defaults for defendants who failed to appear; in some default cases the judge reduced penalties where the defendant had since relicensed. For cases where the judge granted deferred findings, paperwork will be mailed or provided at the front window, and the court set a typical payment deadline of Sept. 20, 2026 for reduced penalties or administration fees.

The calendar combined routine mitigation requests and several contested hearings that required the court to weigh sworn officer statements, testimonial evidence and in one case dashcam video. Appeal rights and payment instructions were provided on the record for each imposed penalty.