The Law Office of Zachary Wagnild

State v. S.N. (2018): In the spring of 2018, twenty-year-old S.N. was attending a party at the home of some friends who attended Central Washington University. During the party an altercation broke out between S.N. and one of the tenants of the house over a broken chair. By the time the altercation was over the tenant was suffering from a life-threatening knife wound to his arm and S.N. was facing 13-16 years in prison on charges of First Degree Assault and First Degree Burglary.

Along with co-counsel Michelle Scudder (www.scudderlawfirm.com), Zach successfully defended S.N. at trial which resulted in acquittals on both the Assault and Burglary charges. In addition, the jury concluded that S.N. acted lawfully in defending himself and the judge ordered the State to reimburse S.N. and his family for the attorney’s fees they paid to defend S.N.. S.N. now lives out-of-state and is pursuing his educational and employment goals.

Read the local paper’s articles about the case here:
Daily Record News: “EPD identifies suspect in knife assault”
Daily Record News: “Trial begins for man charged with stabbing acquaintance”
Daily Record News: “Attorneys make closing statements in stabbing trial”
Daily Record News: “Jury finds man not guilty of stabbing acquaintance”

State v. J.P. (2017): J.P. was charged with numerous counts of Rape of a Child in the First Degree and Child Molestation in the First Degree in two different counties after being accused by both his adopted daughter and his ex-girlfriend’s daughter of sexual abuse.

Along with co-counsel Michelle Scudder (www.scudderlawfirm.com), Zach successfully defended J.P. at trial leading to acquittals on all charges in one county and a dismissal of all charges in the second county.

State v. L.G. (2015): In 2014 L.G. was accused by his then-stepdaughter of sexually abusing her over the course of several years. The allegations cost L.G. his marriage, his employment, and most of his personal possessions. Eventually he was charged by the Pierce County Prosecutor’s Office with eight counts of child molestation and rape of a child. Facing the very real possibility of spending the rest of his life in prison but knowing he had not done what he was accused of, L.G. set his case for trial.

Along with co-counsel, Michelle Scudder (www.scudderlawfirm.com), Zach successfully defended L.G. against the false allegations. After a three week trial the jury found him not guilty of all eight counts and L.G. was finally free to pick up the pieces of his life. He has now moved out of the state and regained employment. (See L.G.’s AVVO Review Here)

State of Washington v. Jarred Ha (2016): Jarred Ha was a 22-year old economics student at the University of Washington when, after an altercation at an off-campus party, he was chased down by a 240 lb. body builder who began to beat him mercilessly. In desperation, Jarred pulled out a knife and used it to stop by the assault. In the process, Jarred inflicted serious wounds on his assailant. Because he used a knife to defend himself Jarred was charged with Assault in the First Degree and faced a prison sentence of 10-12 years. He was also summarily suspended from the University of Washington due to the incident.

Along with co-counsel, Michelle Scudder (www.scudderlawfirm.com), Zach successfully defended Jarred during a two-week trial after which a jury found him not guilty of all charges and entered a special verdict finding that he acted lawfully in defending himself. As a result of the special verdict the judge ordered the State to reimburse Jarred for all of his attorney’s fees and the University of Washington dropped the suspension allowing him to return to school. (See Jarred’s AVVO Review Here)

State v. Allen Ivanov: In 2016 Allen Ivanov took an assault weapon to the home of a high school classmate in Mukilteo, Washington and opened fire on a group of people who were celebrating the end of the school year. Among the three individuals who were killed was his former girlfriend. The evidence against Allen was overwhelming and included numerous eye-witnesses, a lengthy confession, and even a letter written before the incident outlining the reasons for the shooting. Due to the strength of the evidence and the youth and number of victims, the Snohomish County Prosecutor threatened to seek the death penalty against Allen. Zach and other members of Allen’s legal team were able to convince the elected prosecutor to spare Allen’s life just one day before he was scheduled to announce his decision.

Read the CBS News article about the case
Read KIRO News article about the case here
Read the KING 5 News article about the case
Read the Q13 Fox article about the case

State v. Johnnie Wiggins: In 2013 Johnnie Wiggins was charged with Premeditated First Degree Murder – Domestic Violence for beating his girlfriend to death on Christmas Eve in front of her 14-year-old daughter. Armed with two eye witnesses, a confession, and forensic evidence, the State refused to negotiate the case and went to trial with the hope of putting Mr. Wiggins in prison for the rest of his life. At trial Zach managed to exploit holes in the evidence and flaws in the investigation and convinced a jury to convict Mr. Wiggins of only Murder in the Second Degree saving him over 15 years in prison.

Read the Q13 Fox article about the case
Read KOMO News article about the case here
Read the Seattle Times article about the case

State v. B. Morgan: In May of 2018 Mr. Morgan, a student at Seattle University, was sitting in class nervously preparing for a test when he made a comment to a classmate that, unbeknownst to him, would lead to his arrest, expulsion from school, and being charged with two, serious felony crimes. During a four-day trial Zach convinced a King County judge that the comment was intended to be a joke. Mr. Morgan was ultimately acquitted of all charges and has resumed his studies at another university.

Madison Park Times