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Scheduling conflicts force sentencing hearing of Freeman High shooter to be delayed

At this time, it is unclear exactly when sentencing will begin, but the judge presiding over the case asked attorneys to delay it until mid-July.

SPOKANE, Wash. — The sentencing for the Freeman High School shooter was expected to begin in June 2022. However, the sentencing hearing has again been delayed to mid-July.

The former high school student opened fire on his classmates in 2017. Caleb Sharpe, who was only 15 years old at the time, killed one student and shot three others. He pleaded guilty to first-degree murder, three counts of attempted first-degree murder and second-degree assault in January 2022.

That same month, Spokane County Judge Michael Price spent two weeks listening to victim impact statements from the Freeman community. The next step in the case is sentencing, which is expected to take approximately two weeks, as there are still victim impact statements that need to be read.

The sentencing hearing was originally set to begin in early June but has since been delayed to July 11-19, 2022.

In a letter to attorneys, Judge Price suggested moving the sentencing hearing to mid-July due to a scheduling conflict. The judge said his department has been assigned a complex case that has been awaiting trial for nearly as long as the Freeman case. He added that the other case needs to be prioritized due to the availability of experts and other people who are reportedly flying across the country for the trial.

Because the other case is set to begin at the same time as the Freeman case, Judge Price asked the attorneys in April to confirm the July sentencing dates.

At this time, it is unclear exactly when sentencing will begin.

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