State v. Platt

Daniel Platt appeals the trial court’s order denying his petition for conditional release from Western State Hospital after he was found not guilty by reason of insanity. Although the issues Platt raises are technically moot because he has now been released, we will decide one of them. The question of which party bears the burden of proving that a petitioner may be conditionally released is an issue of public interest which is likely to recur. We hold that where the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) opposes release, the only logical way to read the statute is to put that burden…