Two of Three Codefendants to Face Trial Feb. 21 For Alleged January 2020 Rape; Trial For Third Codefendant Delayed 

Lewis County Rape Case Involving Rapper ‘Lil Mosey’ to Begin Next Week 

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The trial of two of the three men — including Seattle rapper Lathan Moses Echols, who performs as Lil Mosey —  accused of raping a woman at a party in Randle in January 2020 will commence on Tuesday, Feb. 21, the court confirmed Friday. 

The victim reportedly told police she had gone to a party in Randle to see Echols on Jan. 6, 2020, consumed alcohol and eventually blacked out. Echols, 20, and one of the codefendants, Francisco Prater, 19, are accused of having sex with her “while she was incapable of consent by reason of being physically helpless or mentally incapacitated,” according to court documents. The third co-defendant, Joshua Darrow, 20, is accused of restraining the alleged victim during the incident.

Echols and Prater were initially charged in April 2021, while Darrow was charged in June. A joint trial for the three men was initially scheduled to begin in July 2022, but the trial was delayed twice: first in July 2022 due to scheduling conflicts with the attorneys’ other cases and again in December due to complications all parties were having with witnesses. 

Prater’s attorney, Carrie Fulton-Brown, asked Friday to delay the trial a third time due to the need for further investigation into witness statements that affect Prater’s case. 

“I believe it would be ineffective assistance of counsel to proceed without speaking to these witnesses,” Fulton-Brown said during a trial confirmation hearing in Lewis County Superior Court on Friday. 

Simultaneously, Echols’ attorney, Shane O’Rourke, asked the court to rule on a motion to sever Echols’ case from Prater’s. 

O’Rourke previously filed a motion to sever Echols’ case from his codefendants’ in January 2022, which was denied. 

O’Rourke said he would prefer having Echols tried individually, but would accept going to trial alongside Darrow. Facing trial alongside Prater, O’Rourke said, would negatively impact his client’s case. 

Prater’s involvement would also negatively impact Darrow’s case, said defense attorney John Polito. 

“Him (Prater) being lumped into the case presents the (circumstance) of dragging our cases down,” O’Rourke said Friday. 

O’Rourke added he was unwilling to further delay his client’s trial “under any circumstances.” 



Severing Prater’s case from his two codefendants’ would resolve the situation for all parties, O’Rourke argued. 

However, severing the cases would subject the alleged victim to trial twice, Deputy Prosecutor Paul Masiello argued. 

“In the state’s view, the positions have changed none since the initial motion to sever,” Masiello said. 

While he acknowledged the stress two trials posed for the alleged victim, Lawler said “based on the evidence that has been presented, Ms. Fulton-Brown has to have the opportunity to look into those (witnesses) because that deeply affects Mr. Prater and his rights.” 

Lawler ruled Friday to sever Prater’s case from his two codefendants’. 

The trial for Echols and Darrow will begin at approximately 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 21, in Lewis County Superior Court. The trial is expected to run through Friday, Feb. 24. 

Prater’s trial had not been scheduled as of Friday afternoon.