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SPOKANE - A judge last week sentenced a 48-year-old to 30 years in prison for fatally stabbing a man two summers ago in downtown Spokane.
A jury in February convicted Steven P. White of second-degree murder after he stabbed 44-year-old Shan Anderson, who was lying on the ground possibly sleeping, more than a dozen times, according to court documents. Prosecutors have said the victim and killer knew each other.
Officers responded in the early morning hours of Aug. 27, 2023, to the South Wall Street railroad viaduct for reports of a dead person, court records show.
Video surveillance from nearby buildings showed White thrusting his hand down toward Anderson in a stabbing motion about 13 times, police wrote in documents. White then left the viaduct, and Anderson could be seen walking behind him with a limp and appearing to hold his side, according to the documents. He then fell to the ground.
Anderson was stabbed an estimated 14 times, according to the Spokane County Medical Examiner’s Office in documents.
Surveillance indicated the attack happened about an hour and a half before the body was reported to police. Police arrested White about one week later near the Spokane Transit Authority Plaza downtown .
Spokane County Superior Court Judge Rachelle Anderson, who sentenced White Thursday, declared a mistrial on White’s first-degree murder charge after the jury could not reach a verdict. Anderson dismissed that charge Thursday at the request of Spokane County Deputy Prosecutor Dale Nagy.
White’s criminal history includes 70 convictions, most of them misdemeanors, according to documents.
Anderson ordered him to serve three years of community custody, or probation, when he’s released from prison.
SPOKANE - A 39-year-old woman is accused of stealing more than $12,000 from a downtown Spokane business where she worked by opening sealed pull tabs to let her family and friends win the prize from the gambling tickets.
Ashley H. Roberts, 39, was charged with suspicion of first-degree theft of the gaming proceeds belonging to Swing Lounge, a virtual golf business at 601 W. Riverside Ave.
Rachel Tibbits, who owns Swing Lounge with her husband, Alex, reported discovering the theft of the pull-tab winnings and suspected Roberts, who confessed to the owners and an employee that she had stolen the money, court records show. Roberts told the owners she would pay them back, the owners told police.
Roberts’ father also reported his daughter confessed she was fired from her job for stealing pull tabs and redeeming the winning tickets for cash, according to documents. Roberts told him she wrote his name and Roberts’ mother’s name on multiple winner’s information forms.
Roberts’ parents and her friend told police they never gave Roberts permission to put their names on the forms.
A Washington State Gambling Commission special agent who investigated the case wrote that Roberts stole $12,365 through her alleged fraud scheme in April and May 2024.
Roberts is scheduled for an arraignment Wednesday in Spokane County Superior Court. She was not listed Tuesday on the Spokane County Jail roster.
COLVILLE - A 38-year-old man who killed a Colville Tribe elder in an unprovoked attack on the Colville Indian Reservation was sentenced to 17 years in prison.
U.S. District Judge Thomas O. Rice sentenced Steven J. Zacherle for the second-degree murder of Dion Boyd and threats in interstate commerce, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office – Eastern District of Washington news release. Rice also imposed five years of supervised release and restitution payable to the Colville Confederated Tribes for Boyd’s funeral expenses.
The release said Zacherle was arguing with his partner on the evening of Oct. 18, 2022, near a gas station, according to court documents and testimony at the sentencing hearing.
His partner drove away from the area without Zacherle, who had gone inside a nearby store. Zacherle called and texted her, demanding she return or he was going to kill and injure people, the release said.
Boyd, an elder with the tribe, walked out of the gas station around the same time Zacherle made the threats to his partner. Zacherle and Boyd walked the same direction for a short distance before Zacherle struck Boyd in the head.
Zacherle then called his partner, bragging that he knocked someone out. He asked her whether she wanted to see what Zacherle had done, and she said she could hear garbled breathing and snorting on the phone line.
Omak police officers and first responders found Boyd, who was unresponsive and face down, bleeding from his head. Doctors determined Boyd was braindead and would never recover.
Boyd died about three weeks later, according to the release. A medical examiner determined Boyd sustained a severe brain hematoma and cracked skull.
Bree Black Horse, Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons assistant U.S. attorney, said at sentencing that Boyd’s loved ones described him as a generous man who helped raise his younger siblings and later his own children. He also served as an information technology technician, ensuring rural Colville tribal members could have cell service.
“Mr. Boyd’s violent and senseless death at the hands of Zacherle has severely impacted the large family Mr. Boyd has left behind,” Black Horse said. “And, Mr. Boyd is now among the disproportionate number of murdered Indigenous people and Mr. Boyd’s family has joined the ranks of too many other MMIP families throughout Eastern Washington and elsewhere.”
The FBI and Colville Tribal Police Department investigated the murder.
“This appalling attack was truly senseless,” W. Mike Herrington, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Seattle field office, said in the release. “Mr. Zacherle displayed a shocking disregard for the value of human life when he took his frustrations out on an innocent bystander, recklessly costing that person his life. The Colville Indian Reservation is a safer place with him off the streets.”
PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — Four thieves used a forklift to load copper wire and fiber optic cable into the back of their box truck in south Pierce County on the morning of April 4.
"They arrived early in the morning, broke open the front gate, came back with multiple vehicles," said Rick Powers, a project manager at the site. "They were able to utilize some of our equipment to steal some of our equipment."
The suspects have not been located.
For utility workers like Powers, they're all too familiar with incidents like this.
Powers' job is to install the copper wire and fiber optic cables that keep lights and internet on. If there's copper wire theft in a public light pole for example, Powers is the one to the rescue.
Initial estimates showed the thieves got away with about $55,000 worth of materials.
"They're a lot smarter and organized than one might think," he said.
For safety reasons, the company preferred not the be publicly identified.
It's why he says it is in the public's best interest to help them find these four thieves.
A Pierce County Sheriff's Office spokesperson said the license plates weren't readable. Police said the suspects were driving a white Jeep Cherokee with a small dent on the passenger side door.
If you recognize the thieves in the surveillance video or have any helpful information for investigators, you're asked to call the Pierce County Sheriff's Office non-emergency line at 253-287-4455.
TENINO, Wash. — Officials identified a person of interest Tuesday after an elderly woman went missing in Tenino under "suspicious circumstances" last week, according to the Thurston County Sheriff's Office (TCSO).
Deputies believe Jeffrey Zizz, 47, is the last person to have seen 82-year-old Marcia Norman before she disappeared.
Norman's family said they have not heard from her since about 6:30 p.m. on April 1, and both of her vehicles have remained parked at her home.
Detectives learned that Zizz was Norman's handyman and had dinner with her on the evening of April 1.
"It doesn't look like she went on vacation or left a note or anything," said Lt. Mike Brooks with the TCSO. "Things in the house are just like you walked out of your house today and did not return causes some concern for as well as some other information we don't want to share right now."
The TCSO said in a news release Tuesday that deputies do not have probable cause to arrest Zizz in connection with Norman's disappearance.
However, Brooks wrote that as of April 6, Zizz left the area using a friend's vehicle.
"He was ultimately located and arrested in Missoula, Montana, on a recently entered, unrelated warrant," Brooks said.
Zizz appeared in Missoula County Justice Court virtually on Tuesday and waived extradition.
The judge said he was being held for violating the conditions of his community custody.
It is still unclear why Zizz was in Montana and why he was driving someone else's vehicle, but TCSO said the investigation will continue.
Zizz's vehicle has been seized as part of the investigation, Brooks added.
Norman is described as being 5'5" and weighing approximately 150 pounds.
Anyone with information is asked to contact detectives by phone at 360-786-5530 or by email.
SEATTLE — In response to a series of shootings and murders at after-hours establishments, Seattle city leaders are moving forward with an ordinance aimed at increasing safety measures at after-hours nightlife venues.
City leaders have been working on the ordinance since last year, targeting unregulated after-hours nightlife that operates in a legal gray area. The proposed legislation would mandate these businesses to implement specific safety protocols to continue operating.
City officials said so far this year, there have been 18 shootings linked to nightlife, typically occurring in the 2 a.m. hour. The latest one happened at the Capri Hookah Lounge in Rainier Beach, ending in two deaths, including a patron and a security guard.
"It’s challenging when 6 o’clock in the morning on a Saturday or a Sunday morning you’re awoken to gunshots, and it’s not 2 or 3, the first time there were over 100 shots," Erin Goodman, who lives in the area, said.
The proposed regulations would require businesses to employ at least two security staff, maintain video surveillance, prevent weapons from entering, and establish a safety plan, or face substantial fines.
"Each time we have these shootings, these killings, it's another reminder to take action," Bob Kettle, Chair of the Seattle Public Safety Committee, said. "This bill kind of covers a little bit of a gray area because there's a lot of different legislation related to specific types of businesses, but that kind of general piece, particularly between the hours of 2 a.m. and 6 a.m., were not really covered."
The ordinance has garnered support from city leaders and the family of Francisco David Escatell, who was fatally shot at a nightclub in SODO last August.
"It is always between 2 and 6 a.m., so something needs to change, and it’s really clear there needs to be better regulations in place with these establishments," Caroline Escatell, the sister of Francisco David Escatell, said.
"This is about us taking action. This is about us creating a safe base in our city, and this is about us dealing with gun violence," Kettle said.
The Public Safety Committee voted unanimously in favor of the ordinance, which will now proceed to the full city council for consideration next week.
TACOMA, Wash. — Detectives in Pierce County have identified remains in a decades-old cold case, bringing new hope to a mystery that has lingered for years.
Laurie Krage was last seen alive in January 1996, and her remains were discovered in the fall of 1997 on Gale Creek Road, approximately 9 miles from Wilkeson School, south of Buckley.
New advances in DNA technology have enabled detectives to finally identify her, and Krage's death is now being investigated as a homicide.
Detectives are seeking assistance from anyone who may have known Krage or her late husband, Ronald Martin, who died of natural causes in 2020.
Anyone who may have information is asked to contact the Pierce County Sheriff's Office.
SEATTLE — A Whatcom County man will spend at least five years in prison after being convicted of two felonies related to child sexual abuse material.
Forty-seven-year-old Robert J. Howell Jr. of Deming, Washington, was found guilty on April 1, 2025, but he garnered the attention of law enforcement in late 2019.
Authorities were on Howell Jr’s tail when a foreign country police organization had alerted Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) that an IP address associated with Howell Jr’s home accessed a website devoted to images of child sexual abuse. That tip led HIS to dig deeper, and they eventually found that the IP address was linked to Howell Jr’s home, which resulted in a search warrant.
Dozens of electronic devices containing more than 90,000 files depicting child sexual abuse were found when federal agents executed the search warrant on Sept. 15, 2020.
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), many of the images found on the 21 devices were of the sexual abuse of very young children and included depictions involving extreme violence.
More than 75 electronics, including computers, phones, tablets, hard drives, storage devices, gaming devices, and CDs, were seized during the investigation into Howell Jr.
It was proven at trial that Howell Jr. received five specific files of child sexual abuse material, between 2016 and 2019, and knowingly possessed many more, according to the DOJ.
Howell Jr. is facing a mandatory of five years in prison and up to 20 years in prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced on July 15.
TACOMA, Wash. — Alec Ausbun walked into the Pierce County courthouse Tuesday knowing it would be his last day out of custody for more than a decade.
Ausbun, 27, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for the 2022 killing of 25-year-old Danny Stanley outside Culpepper’s Bar in Graham.
For three years, Ausbun has been on electronic home monitoring after receiving a bail reduction weeks after Stanley’s murder.
“He should have been in jail that whole time,” said Heidi Adams, the aunt of Danny Stanley. “He got that time with his family - and that’s a privilege we did not get.”
Adams and other friends and family of Stanley spoke at a plea and sentencing hearing Tuesday afternoon in Pierce County Superior Court.
“Bail should have never been reduced,” Adams said. “It was first-degree murder, black and white in the police report. This was a slap in the face to the family.”
Ausbun’s attorney, Michael Stewart, and prosecutors reached a resolution in the case with Ausbun pleading guilty in exchange for a recommended sentence of 183 months in prison followed by 36 months of community custody.
Stewart defended Ausbun’s release on electronic home monitoring while awaiting trial.
“He worked, he followed the rules, and he followed the law,” Stewart said. “There is a bravery involved when someone walks into your office and knowing this is the last free air I am going to breathe for at least 15 years. He didn’t have to be drug in here, your honor. He didn’t have to be handcuffed and shackled. He walked in of his own accord to plead guilty to the crime he committed. To accept the court’s punishment and to express his remorse to the family of Danny Stanley.”
In remarks to the court, Ausbun said he has embraced sobriety and is not the same person he was on the day he killed Stanley.
“Today, I get that chance to finally express how remorseful and how sorry I am for what I’ve done and for the loss I’ve caused,” Ausbun said. “I want to say I am truly sorry for the loss of Danny Stanley. When I get to prison, it is not going to be my time wasted. I will not waste the next 15 years of my life doing nothing.”
After hearing from all sides, Judge Susan Adams followed the agreed recommendation.
“I looked at a man who came to court today and took responsibility for his actions and expressed sincere remorse,” Judge Adams said. “I look at this family that has suffered just tremendous pain.”
According to charging documents, Ausbun was highly intoxicated and causing a disturbance that prompted bar staff to tell him to leave.
Witnesses told detectives that Ausbun was arguing with a friend in the parking lot of Culpepper’s and was told to leave again.
“[Ausbun] went into the driver’s side of the truck, reached into the passenger compartment, and retrieved a firearm,” a Pierce County Sheriff’s Office report states. “[Ausbun] then walked over to the group and [Stanley] started to run away from [Ausbun].”
Investigators say Ausbun fired toward Stanley as he was trying to get away. One of the rounds struck Stanley in the head, killing him.
“Alec Ausbun did not see Danny Stanley when he fired his weapon,” Stewart, the defense attorney, said at Tuesday's hearing.
Ausbun’s defense team hired forensic investigators to analyze the alley where the shooting happened. A report by G2Recon LLC concluded Ausbun’s view of Stanley in the alley would have been obscured.
“There were visual obstructions between the area of the shooting and the victim, which would have made the victim difficult, if not impossible to see,” the G2Recon report states.
Investigators noted in the report that Stanley was approximately 180 feet away from Ausbun when he was shot.
“I found the alley where Mr. Stanley died to be ill lit, which posed significant challenges to visual acuity,” a report compiled by Video Consultants NW stated. “To further confirm my opinion, (witness), stated that after Alec retrieved the gun from his friend’s truck, Danny Stanley ran around the back of (witness) truck and disappeared into the dark. (Witness) described Alec Ausbun at the time of the shooting as holding the gun slightly above his head holding the gun (cocked about 90 degrees) to the side and up in the air. Holding the gun in this manner suggests that Mr. Ausbun was not sighting down the barrel at a specific target.”
Stanley family described him as a promising young man who had started his own small business that was taking off.
“His energy, that’s what I miss," Adams said after Tuesday's hearing. “We don’t want other families to go through what we went through. Even if it is a prison, they still get to see (Ausbun), they get to hug him. He gets to see his daughter. We have to go to a gravesite to visit Danny.”
LACEY - Police and federal agents are investigating after a Tesla charging station caught fire and exploded in Lacey early Tuesday morning.
Just after 1:30 a.m., officers with the Lacey Police Department started receiving reports of a loud boom at the electric vehicle charging station near the Target located at 665 Sleater Kinney Road SE. Responding officers discovered the station had been damaged.
The incident is being investigated as a malicious mischief case. The FBI arrived at the scene Tuesday morning and is now overseeing efforts. It is considered a targeted and intentional act of vandalism.
Early reports indicate an explosion was involved, although it’s unclear if this was started by a fire or if a device was used. Broken pieces of the charging station could be seen scattered across the parking lot on Tuesday.
There are no reports of anyone being injured, but the damage to the charging station is extensive.
Vandals have gone after Tesla vehicles in other recent incidents around Washington state and the country. Someone set fire to a Tesla in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood last month. A few weeks before, half a dozen Cybertrucks had swastikas scrawled across them in the Lynnwood area. A Tesla charging station was also spray-painted in Centralia.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has become a controversial figure in the federal government as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which has called for sweeping layoffs of government workers.
People who have information are asked to contact the FBI Seattle at 206-622-0460 or go to tips.fbi.gov.
AUBURN, Wash. — A tense standoff in Auburn ended in tragedy as a 51-year-old man is now presumed dead after a fire engulfed the building where he was believed to be hiding.
The incident began just after 8 a.m. when Kent police officers responded to a report of domestic violence assault with a firearm at an apartment on the 5500 block of S 259th Street. The suspect fled the scene in a black pickup truck, leading officers on a high-speed chase that was later terminated for public safety reasons.
Authorities tracked the man to his workplace at 1520 W Pike Street in Auburn. Despite efforts by negotiators and the Valley SWAT Team (VSWAT) to secure his surrender, the man remained uncooperative. An arrest warrant was issued, allowing officers to forcibly enter the building if necessary.
VSWAT employed advanced tactics, including the use of a drone, flash bang devices, and chemical munitions, but these efforts failed to compel the man to surrender.
As officers cleared the building, a fire broke out, rapidly consuming the structure and forcing a retreat.
Firefighters faced challenges in extinguishing the blaze due to the ongoing safety risk posed by the armed man. The building was quickly engulfed, and it took considerable time to bring the fire under control.
The man was believed to have been the only person inside at the time.
The Independent Force Investigation Team has been called in to investigate the incident, and the cause of the fire remains undetermined.
PORT ANGELES — Two men from Vancouver, Washington were arrested Friday afternoon following a drive-by shooting on the Lower Elwha Reservation.
Witnesses reported shots fired at a home on John Mike Road from a maroon or purple hatchback. About 3:20 pm Port Angeles Police Deputy Chief Jason Viada says the suspect car was spotted on the Tumwater Truck Route.
“PAPD stopped traffic on the Truck Route for about 10 minutes while officers from the Port Angeles Police Department, Clallam County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Patrol, and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife safely took the suspects into custody. Two semi-automatic handguns were also recovered from inside the suspect vehicle,” said Viada.
Two Hispanic men in the car were arrested. They were identified as 22-year-old Luis Cabanas and 21-year-old Abraham F. Martinez.
During the investigation, officers found multiple shell casings at the scene. The victim said one suspect entered his home, was confronted, then returned with a gun and threatened to steal his vehicle before leaving. Moments later, two shots were fired, and a bullet hole was found in the home’s exterior.
A search of the suspects’ vehicle uncovered two firearms, over $1,000 in cash, and temporary ID for Cabanas. Since neither the suspects nor the victim are tribal members, the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office has jurisdiction.
Cabanas faces charges of drive-by shooting, first-degree trespass, and robbery. Martinez is charged with drive-by shooting and unlawful concealed carry. Both remain in jail on $50,000 bail as the investigation continues.