Fugitive goes to court, freed, rearrested

A man who Spokane police say has 167 criminal charges in 15 years appeared for a court hearing Tuesday and was allowed to stay out of jail despite a felony warrant for his arrest.

 Mark W. Bush, 36, was wanted on a warrant when he was arraigned on an unrelated felony marijuana charge on Tuesday before Spokane County Superior Court Judge Harold Clarke.

Court officials apparently did not know of Bush’s fugitive status. He was allowed to stay out of custody and ordered to be back in court Jan. 24 for an arraignment under the early-case-resolution program, which allows suspects charged with low-level felonies to resolve their cases quickly.

His freedom did not last long.

Bush was captured Wednesday night by a police dog after the Spokane police Patrol Anti-Crime Team received a tip that he was near the 400 block of North University Road.

Sgt. Tracie Meidl said Bush knew about his wanted status and had been eluding police “for several weeks” before he was arrested on a Department of Corrections warrant for failing to check in with his probation officer.

She said police “had no idea” Bush was in court a day before his arrest.

Police say Bush has been booked on 17 charges in the last 11 months. He’s been captured by a police dog three times..

Bush has at least four felony convictions, including third-degree assault in 2008, and 23 misdemeanors, including three counts of obstructing a law enforcement officer and one count of resisting arrest.

His most recent felony charge stems from a traffic stop in September initiated by an officer who knew Bush had a Department of Corrections arrest warrant. Bush’s probation officer found a jar with 61 grams of marijuana in the car, according to court documents.

Bush was out on $2,500 bond when he showed up for his arraignment on Tuesday. Now he’s back in jail, being held without bail after his arrest Wednesday.