Aaron Hahn’s trial on a murder solicitation charge originally set to begin April 13 was rescheduled Friday to June 15. He also faces another trial May 18 on child rape and related charges.
Deputy prosecutor William Payne tried unsuccessfully March 20 to have Hahn’s two trials consolidated, arguing that evidence presented in one trial would be necessary for the other anyway.
Clallam County Superior Court Judge Brooke Taylor disagreed.
The 28-year-old Hahn, a Gresham, Ore., resident, was charged March 24, 2008, with four counts of child rape, one count of sexual exploitation of a minor, one count of possessing depictions of minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct and one count of stalking – domestic violence.
The charges stem from a relationship with a teenage Sequim girl that Hahn initially met online and his reported threatening behavior after she called off the relationship.
The girl went to police shortly after a Port Angeles woman was killed by an ex-boyfriend who had been stalking her, fearing a similar outcome.
Sequim Police arrested Hahn in March 2008 in a sting operation that brought him to Castle Rock in Washington, thus avoiding the need to extradite him from Oregon.
On May 27, 2008, while awaiting trial, Hahn was charged
with solicitation of aggravated murder or solicitation of first degree premeditated murder for allegedly attempting to hire someone to kill his alleged victim.
Hahn allegedly asked a
fellow inmate to help him find someone to kill the underage
Sequim girl with whom he reportedly had a relationship. Hahn allegedly provided detailed descriptions of the victim, her address and her daily routine to the inmate, offering payment in the form of a car and a later installment of $2,500 when the victim was killed.
The inmate came forward to corrections personnel, advising them of Hahn’s intentions, who in turn contacted Sequim Police detectives.
Solicitation to commit first degree murder is a class A felony which carries a penalty of up to life in prison. Hahn’s bail has been set at $1 million.
Reach Brian Gawley at bgawley@sequimgazette.com.
