Felony charges in cross-burning being filed today

By Christopher Schwarzen
Times Snohomish County bureau

	Jason Martin
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ARLINGTON — Two teens accused of burning a cross in the yard of a black pastor are expected to be charged today with felony malicious harassment, Snohomish County prosecutors said.

The 16-year-old cousins, who turned themselves in to police Saturday, say the incident was a "prank" that wasn't intended to be racist and have since asked to apologize personally to Pastor Jason Martin and his family.

Martin awoke early last Wednesday to find firefighters extinguishing the flames.

The teens are being held in the Denney Youth Center, each under $2,500 bail. If convicted, they could serve up to 30 days in the detention center.

The Seattle Times generally does not name juveniles accused in criminal cases unless they're tried as adults.

The father of one of the teens yesterday called the entire incident unfortunate.

"The whole thing is just a big mistake," the father said.

Police reports containing interviews with the two teens, dropouts from Arlington High School, say the boys were bored when they decided to play a prank on Martin's 17-year-old son, whom they knew from school.

The two took wood from a local business and fashioned it together with duct tape. They later doused the cross in gasoline siphoned off one of the boys' vehicles.

Martin, who received a visit yesterday from Gov. Gary Locke, said he's willing to meet with the teens. Martin has said he forgives the boys for the incident but said yesterday that crimes must be prosecuted under the law.
 
"When you commit a crime, you must pay the consequences," Martin said while meeting with Locke.

"Clearly, this was a hate crime," Locke said, refusing to believe the event was just a prank. "It takes a lot of planning and thought to put together a cross, and you have to know what burning a cross means."

Washington, he added, isn't known for hatred or prejudice. "We pride ourselves on our tolerance."

The support from the Arlington community for the Martin family has been proof of that tolerance, Locke said.

Martin has said the cross-burning was not the first racist incident directed toward the family of nine. One of Martin's children has been subjected to racial slurs while attending Arlington High School.

Since the March 24 incident, teachers in the 5,300-student district have been stressing the importance of speaking up when students witness intimidation and harassment.

"We may not have done a good enough job of making sure they understood how important it was to report those instances," said district spokeswoman Catherine Russell. "If you witness this you have to report it, because if it's kept in silence it can't be addressed."

The U.S. Department of Justice's Seattle branch has contacted the school district to offer help. Justice representatives say they'd like the high school to consider bringing together student leaders from different social groups and have them identify key issues of concern around campus.

The district said it is considering the idea.

Christopher Schwarzen: 425-783-0577 or cschwarzen@seattletimes.com

Times Snohomish County bureau reporter J.J. Jensen contributed to this report.

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