CHARLESTON, W.Va. – A Kanawha County case dating back to 2020 will not go to trial as scheduled next week due to another change of attorney for the defendant.
Che Lark appeared before Kanawha County Circuit Judge Carrie Webster on Thursday and faces 12 charges stemming from a March 2020 incident in which he allegedly struck and killed Heather Ross with his vehicle while attempting to evade police. Lark appeared alongside his appointed attorney, Ken Starcher, who Judge Webster identified as at least the fourth different lawyer to represent Lark in the case.
Due to the recent withdrawal of Lark’s previous attorney, Bunmi Kusimo-Frazier, Judge Webster delayed the trial, originally set for next Monday, to August 24 despite objections from the defendant. Starcher stated that because he was recently appointed to Lark’s defense, he was unable to view information filed before his appointment.
Despite this, Lark instructed Starcher to object to the continuance on the grounds that his right to a speedy trial had been violated.
Lark remains incarcerated following a conviction on federal drug charges last year that stemmed from the same incident that allegedly led to Ross’s death. Prosecutors say he was found in a vehicle parked in a driveway with drugs in plain view, and when officers attempted to arrest him, he fled and hit Ross with the vehicle during the ensuing chase.
He evaded arrest at that time and was later taken into custody while hiding inside an attic at a home in Chillicothe, Ohio.
His current 20-year federal sentence is the result of a guilty plea to charges of possession with intent to distribute heroin and methamphetamine after police found 4.4 grams of methamphetamine and 11.2 grams of a mixture of heroin and methamphetamine in his possession on the day that Ross was killed. Lark has appealed that conviction, claiming that his attorney informed him that his sentence would be lower if he pleaded guilty.
Lark is also pursuing a motion to dismiss the case against him in circuit court, claiming that his double jeopardy rights are being violated. He stated that one of his previous attorneys told him that the circuit court case would not move forward if he pled guilty to the federal charges.
Judge Webster scheduled a hearing for June 4 to take up that motion with an additional hearing to follow on July 8 should the trial move forward.