A Longview-based attorney has pleaded not guilty to felony perjury charges after he allegedly lied about not receiving a notice from Lewis County prosecutors while representing a client in a Lewis County Superior Court case in May.
Robert Thomas Lee, 31, is accused of filing a declaration in Lewis County Superior Court on May 24, 2022, claiming he didn’t receive notice from the prosecutor’s office before it filed a motion for summary judgment in his client’s case.
In that statement, Lee wrote “(on) or about May 16, 2022, I opened my mail from the period I was traveling and was very upset to find a motion for summary judgment and extensive exhibits from Lewis County,” according to court documents.
However, Lee allegedly informed his client about the motion in email exchanges on May 9 and sent the full motion to his client on May 12, according to email records provided by Lee’s client.
Lee’s May 24 statement was filed as an assertion of facts to support his opposition to the prosecutor’s motion for summary judgment.
Lee was charged with one count each of second-degree perjury and false swearing earlier this month.
The most serious charge, perjury, carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
Lee was issued a court summons for an Aug. 24 preliminary hearing in Lewis County Superior Court, which he was present for. Given the facts of the case and that Lee appeared for his hearing, Judge J. Andrew Toynbee allowed Lee to remain out of custody on a personal recognizance (PR) release, meaning he is not required to pay bail.
His next court appearance is a hearing scheduled for Sept. 22.
