Charges dismissed against Forker

SANDPOINT — Sexual abuse charges are being dismissed against a Sagle man who was ordered to serve more than 30 years in prison for sex crimes in Oregon, 1st District Court records show.

Bonner County Prosecutor Louis Marshall moved to dismiss the case against Michael Henry Forker on Oct. 22. Judge Barbara Buchanan granted the order the same day.

The case was dismissed without prejudice, which means the state can refile them at a later date, court records indicate.

Forker, 41, was charged in Bonner County with two counts of sexual battery of a child and possession of a child pornography in 2017.

While awaiting trial in Idaho, Forker was charged with multiple counts of sodomy and sex abuse in Washington County, Ore. He was convicted of the offenses this summer and was sentenced this month to up to 34 years in prison, according to Oregon Department of Corrections officials.

In the Oregon case, Forker was accused of preying on a vulnerable teen while working at a homeless shelter in Portland in 2002, according to the Beaverton Valley Times.

In the Idaho case, the alleged victim, 17, testified at a preliminary hearing that Forker offered to buy him gifts if Forker was allowed to perform sex acts on him, an arrangement which led to two encounters in a Sandpoint office and Forker’s home.

Forker’s earliest release date is 2053, according to ODOC’s website.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.