No plea yet, Tara Koch plea hearing rescheduled for March 20th
by Cole Goodwin
Tara Koch
On December 19th, 2022 at 9:45 a.m, a court hearing for the Tara Koch case, presided over by Judge Karen Ostrye, was held via webex in Wasco County, presided over by Judge Karen Ostrye. The hearing was only minutes long and resulted in the scheduling of a plea hearing on March 20th, 2023 at 10:30 a.m.
The defendant in the case, Koch, is facing 26 charges related to the theft of thousands of dollars from Haven from Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault, which served survivors of sexual and domestic violence in Wasco, Sherman, Gilliam and Wheeler Counties. Koch was arrested and released on bail in July of 2022.
In November, Koch has received a court-appointed attorney, Jody Stutsman Vaughn of the Pendleton Law Office, and has been granted a waiver of extradition. In an interview published on November 3rd, Vaughn told CCCNews that Koch had entered a plea of not guilty.
However, during today's court hearing, the lawyer requested more time to review the case before entering an official plea with the court. Vaughn stated that there is a large amount of discovery in the case, estimated to be over 3,000 pages, and that she needs more time to go through it all.
“I am starting a murder trial in Umatilla County on January 23rd. So I'm asking the court to set this matter over to the third week of March to give me some time to go through that discovery,” said Vaughn.
Vaughn also stated that she had received funds for an investigator and that she may need an expert.
The prosecutor from the state agreed to extend the timeline and an in person hearing was scheduled for March 20th at 10:30 a.m. at Wasco County Courthouse during the county's normal 10 a.m. criminal docket.
