FORKS — A pretrial hearing for Clallam County Victim-Witness Coordinator Anna Shimko was continued Thursday to 2:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 3.
Shimko, 33, is charged with fourth-degree misdemeanor assault in an alleged domestic violence incident Dec. 12 at her Port Angeles home.
Trial is scheduled Wednesday, Feb. 9.
In the hearing in Forks on Thursday, lawyers Michelle Ahrens of Port Angeles, representing Shimko, and Special Prosecutor Chris Shea of Sequim requested the continuance during a conference call from Port Angeles with Forks District Court 2 Judge Eric Rohrer.
Ahrens and Shea told Rohrer they need to work further on the case, Rohrer said Friday.
“There was not a specific reason that I recall,” Rohrer said.
“They are trying to work toward some conclusion to the case, I would assume.”
Ahrens would not comment on the case, and Shea did not return calls for comment.
Shimko, a Port Angeles resident, was placed on paid administrative leave from her $22.54-an-hour job Dec. 13.
The victim-witness coordinator, a full-time position, acts as a liaison between victims, witnesses and government agencies.
A “large percentage” of the public served by the position are sexual assault and domestic violence victims, county Prosecuting Attorney Deb Kelly said in an earlier interview.
Port Angeles District Court 1 Judge Rick Porter transferred the case to Rohrer’s court after Ahrens filed a certificate of prejudice against Porter a day after the incident.
Shimko and Porter were involved in a dispute over a campaign sign last summer when Porter was running for re-election.