Meier pleads not guilty to murder

EPHRATA - Moses Lake teen Michael Meier pleaded not guilty in Grant County Superior Court to charges of murder, witness tampering and unlawful possession of a firearm Tuesday.

Meier is charged with shooting to death Brandon Mende, 16, on Feb. 16.

Judge Evan Sperline denied a request from Meier's attorney to lower bail from $2 million. Grant County Prosecuting Attorney Angus Lee said that Meier's previous arrest and convictions for kidnapping and assault and the serious nature of this case warrant the high bail amount.

Because Meier is 17, he will be held in juvenile detention until he turns 18, is released on bail or is found guilty as an adult. Meier turns 18 in June of this year.

Warren Swanson, Grant County Youth Services administrator, said that Meier's presence in the juvenile detention facility may force his office to move future inmates to other county's juvenile facilities.

He told Grant County commissioners in their regularly scheduled meeting that many people involved in the case are on juvenile probation and at least one has violated that probation and could be sentenced to 40 days in jail.

Swanson said that person, and potentially other juveniles, will need to be kept away from Meier. He said that Grant's juvenile detention center has an open room that inmates are allowed to come and go freely. State law requires that juveniles have access to education programs and other services, and that solitary confinement is not an option. He said the only way to ensure that Meier is kept away from potential witnesses or rival gang members would be to house them in other county's juvenile centers.

He said it would cost Grant County $100 per day to house a juvenile in Okanogan County.