City Councilman McIver trial set for December

A King County District Court judge set a Dec. 10 trial date for Seattle City Council member Richard McIver who is facing a domestic-violence charge for allegedly assaulting his wife in their South Seattle home on Oct. 10.

The trial for McIver, who pleaded not guilty to an allegation that he grabbed his wife by the throat during an argument, will likely last three days, prosecutors said. District Court Judge Linda Thompson denied a request for a change of judge submitted by McIver's attorney, Todd Maybrown. Maybrown declined to comment after the hearing on his reason for seeking the change.

A pretrial hearing for McIver is scheduled for Nov. 27, at which time attorneys will discuss whether certain information and witness statements should be admissible before the jury.

The judge is also expected to hear arguments at that hearing about what investigative information should be released by the King County Prosecutor's Office to the media. Maybrown said some of the witness statements should not be released because they could be inflammatory and could impact McIver's right to a fair trial.

Christine Clarridge: 206-464-8983 or cclarridge@seattletimes.com