Bail reduced for Luyster, 16, in assault case

Bail for 16-year-old Brent Luyster III, who’s accused of slashing at and threatening to kill a man, was reduced Tuesday to $75,000.

The teenage son and namesake of Clark County convicted triple murderer Brent Luyster II was previously held on $250,000 bail.

Luyster of Vancouver was arrested May 5 on suspicion of attempted second-degree murder, second-degree escape, felony harassment and resisting arrest. However, the prosecution has since filed a single charge of first-degree assault against him, to which he’s entered a not-guilty plea.

The teen is being held at the juvenile detention center but was automatically remanded to adult court based on his age and the nature of the charge.

Defense attorney Michele Michalek previously requested that Luyster’s bail be reduced after the allegation against him was lowered. Judge Suzan Clark denied the motion, stating that Luyster is a danger to public safety, court records show.

On Tuesday, the defense raised the issue again — this time in front of Judge Jennifer Snider, who’s presiding over the case. Snider granted the bail reduction but denied the defense’s motion to move up Luyster’s trial date, currently set for Sept. 8, and a request to prohibit media from attending his hearings, court records show.

Vancouver police were dispatched about 6:30 p.m. May 5 for a disturbance involving a weapon at the intersection of East 27th Street and Grand Boulevard. Callers reported that a young, white male pulled a knife on a man and tried to attack him, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

The victim, Deven Mantanona, and his girlfriend, Logan Fox, had left a nearby Subway restaurant and were walking north on Grand from Fourth Plain Boulevard when they encountered Luyster. He was standing across the street and would not stop staring at Fox, which prompted Mantanona to say, “What up?” the affidavit says.

Luyster then got off his bike, pulled a knife from his pocket and sprinted across the street toward Mantanona. He chased the man, slashing at him while yelling, “I’ll (expletive) kill you, Crip!” the court document reads. (A Vancouver police spokeswoman previously told The Columbian the incident did not appear to be gang-related.)

A witness told police he thought Mantanona “was going to get stabbed if he didn’t jump back. He swung the knife about five to six times,” court records say.

Luyster got on his bike and left. He returned seconds later, however, with the knife in hand. He again ran at Mantanona but stopped when he heard police sirens and fled, according to the affidavit.

Neither Mantanona nor Fox were injured.

Luyster was detained near Fourth Plain and Fairmount Avenue. Police said they found a large, fixed blade on him.

Source: https://www.columbian.com