Steamboat Pilot & Today

A Craig man accused of choking his wife until she passed out had his case dismissed in Routt County because new evidence indicates the alleged assault happened in Jackson County.

Gordon Huckins, 42, was arrested Aug. 17 in Wyoming after his 33-year-old wife told the Routt County Sheriff's Office that her husband had assaulted her during a recent camping trip in Routt County.

The woman thought the incident happened near the Dry Lake Campground, Undersheriff Dan Taylor said.

The man was extradited from Wyoming on attempted first-degree murder charges.

Jackson County Undersheriff Don Roberts said the case was dismissed after officers took a global positioning system device to the spot where the alleged incident occurred and officers realized the wooded area was in Jackson County.

Routt County District Attorney Kerry St. James dismissed the case Aug. 31 saying that the case did belong in this judicial district.

Routt County public defender Trevor McFee, who was representing Huckins, said the case has been refilled in Jackson County.

McFee did not know whether the Jackson County district attorney was going to pursue the attempted first-degree murder charge Huckins was facing in Routt County.

Because the case is no longer processed in Routt County, he said, it is up to Jackson County whether they pursue the charges.

Roberts said after Huckins was extradited from Routt County to Jackson County on a warrant, he posted the $3,000 bond he was being held on at the Jackson County Jail.

"Circumstances have significantly changed in his case," Roberts said.

The Jackson County District Attorney's Office could not be reached for comment.

-- To reach Alexis DeLaCruz, call 871-4234

or e-mail adelacruz@steamboatpilot.com.