A man on trial for sexually assaulting a woman in Birch Bay was arrested again after he ran out of the courtroom during proceedings in mid-December. The jury later found him guilty of second-degree rape with forcible compulsion and he now faces a Class B felony charge for bail jumping.
Joshua Robert Duran, 36, was arrested for running out of the Whatcom County Courthouse on December 13, 2023. He was released from Whatcom County Jail in lieu of $500 cash on December 16 and allowed to remain free until his rape conviction on December 20.
The court instructed Duran to appear at 1 p.m. December 12 for a second day of court proceedings, according to the affidavit of probable cause (APC) filed in Whatcom County Superior Court. When Duran did not appear, a warrant was issued for Duran’s arrest. Duran arrived at the courtroom at 2 p.m. and met privately with his attorneys.
A Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office deputy responded to arrest Duran, but he fled after the deputy and a prosecutor’s office investigator left him alone while they were making a copy of the warrant, according to the APC.
A jail security guard saw a man matching Duran’s description fleeing the Whatcom County Courthouse, and a juror called 911 and photographed Duran running past her.
“She indicated that she saw the man who was on trial running away from the courthouse and thought it was odd,” according to the APC.
Duran returned to court for the continuance of the rape trial on December 13 and was arrested on the warrant for jumping bail. His trial for bail jumping is tentatively scheduled for early February.
The assault
In May 2012, law enforcement responded to St. Joseph Medical Center, where a woman was undergoing a sexual assault examination, according to court documents. The woman was with an acquaintance the night before when she met Duran in a group of the acquaintance’s friends. Court documents state Duran forcibly assaulted the woman while the two were alone in a car near Birch Bay State Park. The woman told law enforcement that she tried to get away, but Duran was too strong and she later passed out after he gave her something to drink.
About six months after the assault, the sexual assault kit returned a positive DNA match for Duran.
Nearly a decade later, in March 2021, law enforcement contacted Duran in Seattle and requested a buccal swab of his DNA, later confirmed a positive match to the sexual assault examination.
Whatcom County deputy prosecuting attorney Maggie Peach said she didn’t know why nearly a decade passed between the first positive DNA connection and law enforcement contacting Duran for a confirmation test, but she filed charges in August 2021 after she received the case.
Duran was booked into Whatcom County Jail on September 2, 2021, and released the next day on $1,000 cash bail.
Whatcom County public defender Richard Larson declined to comment on the alleged bail jumping that occurred during trial, but said he intended to appeal the verdict on the rape charge.
“We respect the jury’s decision, but we will be pursuing every and all appropriate appellate right on that,” Larson said.
Peach said she was happy with the guilty verdict of second-degree rape with forcible compulsion, but declined to comment further until Duran’s February 15 sentencing.
Court records show Joshua Robert Duran has also been convicted in Washington state for theft, assault, possession of a controlled substance, possession of stolen property, assault with a deadly weapon, vehicular assault and tampering with a witness.
If you or someone you know is affected by domestic or sexual violence, the Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Services (DVSAS) 24-hour hotline is available at 360/715-1563 or 877/715-1563.
Brigid Collins Family Support Center, a Bellingham-based nonprofit working to end child abuse, can be reached at 360/734-4616 and brigidcollins.org.
Lummi Victims of Crime has a 24-hour helpline at 360/312-2015.
The National Domestic Violence Helpline operates a chat line at thehotline.org/help.
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