SPOKANE, WA – The Washington State Court of Appeals, Division III has denied a convicted sex offender’s personal restraint petition. The Court had previously affirmed 41-year-old Roger Flook’s conviction for first-degree child molestation. He had appealed his case, in part, based on former Asotin County Superior Court Judge Scott Gallina’s sexual misconduct convictions and prison sentence.
Flook has an extensive criminal history which includes a previous prison sentence for a 2002 Whitman County child rape conviction; theft, identity theft, and possession of stolen property in 2011 and 2012; and others.
According to court records, Flook and his wife traveled to Clarkston from Whitman County for a church-sponsored marriage retreat in June 2014; two children accompanied them. They all stayed in a motel room with one king-sized bed. Several months later, a female juvenile under the age of 12 reportedly told another juvenile that during the night at the motel room, Flook had touched her inappropriately.
That juvenile then informed an adult who conveyed the allegation to the victim’s biological father. He then contacted the Whitman County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff Brett Myers conducted the investigation of the girl’s allegations and testified extensively during Flook’s trials in Asotin County Superior Court.
In 2016, an Asotin County jury convicted Flook of first-degree rape of a child and child molestation as charged. At the time, the trial court sentenced him to 174 months to life in prison. The Court of Appeals reversed and remanded the case for a new trial due to “improper vouching for a witness.”
A second jury, in 2018, acquitted Flook of the most serious charge of rape, but found him guilty of child molestation, according to previous court records. He was then sentenced to 186 months to life incarceration, which was 12 months longer than the sentence imposed for the same charge following the first trial, but still within the standard range.
Flook appealed that conviction and the Court of Appeals has affirmed it.
In his latest filing, the personal restraint petition, Flook raised four issues and argued that his conviction should be reversed because “his due process right to a fair trial was violated when the judge presiding over his trial was later convicted of crimes related to sexual misconduct;” “the judge’s conduct violated the non-constitutional appearance of fairness doctrine;” “the trial court abused its discretion in excluding impeachment evidence;” and “the trial court abused its discretion in admitting evidence of Flook’s lustful disposition toward the victim.”
Flook contended that former Asotin County Superior Court Judge Scott Gallina’s sexual misconduct had a direct impact on his case.
“To support this argument, Flook points to several of the judge’s evidentiary decisions and argues that they demonstrate actual bias and suggest that Judge Gallina was attempting to camouflage his own misconduct. Flook also points out that the victim advocate and court employees involved in his case were victims of Judge Gallina’s misconduct and Judge Gallina made suggestive and inappropriate comments during the trial,” the Court of Appeals ruled. “After carefully reviewing the record, we conclude that Flook has failed to demonstrate that Judge Gallina’s misconduct created an unacceptable risk of bias or directly impacted Flook’s trial sufficient to demonstrate a conflict of interest that requires reversal.”
Both trials were presided over by Gallina, who was arrested in April 2019 and charged with several felonies related to sexual misconduct against several courthouse employees. Those charges included assault, indecent liberties, and rape. The incidents occurred at the courthouse and in chambers, including during breaks in court proceedings while people remained in the courtroom. Gallina’s sexual harassment was alleged to have occurred over the same time period as Flook’s trials, court documents say.
Gallina pled guilty nearly a year ago to one count of third-degree assault with sexual motivation and one count of fourth-degree assault with sexual motivation. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison on July 11, 2022.
“Flook argues that there was an undue risk that Judge Gallina’s misconduct and the subsequent investigation influenced Judge Gallina’s decisions at Flook’s trial in violation of due process. The State responds that Flook has failed to demonstrate that Judge Gallina was laboring under a conflict of interest at the time of Flook’s trial because there is no evidence that Judge Gallina knew of any potential or pending investigation into his actions at the time of the trial,” the Court says.
“Flook also points out that Judge Gallina took specific steps to hide his misconduct and argues that Judge Gallina was motivated by his fear of being caught. The record shows that Judge Gallina’s sexual misconduct persisted for over a decade. While some of his actions demonstrate a general concern with being caught, “there is no reason to believe Judge Gallina was laboring under a conflict between his duties as a jurist and a desire to avoid criminal prosecution,” the Court says. “Flook fails to cite any authority demonstrating an unacceptable risk of bias when the judge is unaware of impending charges.”
The Court of Appeals has previously rejected the argument that Gallina’s misconduct was sufficient to require reversal and remand of cases in which he presided before charges were filed against him.
“While we agree that the trial court erred in admitting evidence to show lustful disposition, Flook is not entitled to relief because he has failed to show that the error caused a fundamental defect in the proceedings that inherently resulted in a complete miscarriage of justice. We disagree with the remainder of Flook’s arguments and deny his petition,” the Court of Appeals ruled.
