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PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles Police Department has arrested a woman on investigation of first-degree arson for a residential structure fire that claimed the life of a dog and left a family displaced.
Heather Green, 36, of Port Angeles was arrested about 1 p.m. Wednesday near Front Street and Laurel Street in downtown Port Angeles, according to a police report. Green was booked into the Clallam County Jail.
Green is the niece of the residents of the home in the 1000 block of West Eighth Street and was in the house when the fire began, Detective Ron Cameron wrote in the probable cause report.
Green is reported to be schizophrenic and has been detained for mental health evaluations at least two different times in recent years, according to the report.
Just before Easter, the residents of the home recalled Green saying the house was possessed or demonic and that she was going to get rid of the demons. Then, just before Tuesday’s fire, Green was seen coming from the lower level of the house. Soon after, a child who lived in the house said he saw smoke coming from one of the floor vents, Cameron wrote.
The fire likely was started in the laundry room, according to the probable cause statement.
Cameron wrote that he found wooden clothes pins in the washing machine, which likely had been placed there intentionally. Charred remnants of a paper-like product also were found, according to the report.
It also appeared as though someone had attempted to ignite clothes in the downstairs east bedroom, but the fire quickly extinguished itself, Cameron wrote.
A bottle of isopropyl alcohol and a can of denatured alcohol, with the appearance of soot and smoke smudges, were found about 15 feet from the back door. They appeared to have recently been placed there, Cameron wrote.
Fire and law enforcement agencies responded to the structure fire about 3:15 p.m. Tuesday. The family already had safely evacuated, and fire crews were able to extinguish the fire within five minutes.
A search of the residence found one Great Dane deceased within the structure.
The follow-up investigation by Port Angeles Fire Department Chief Derrell Sharp revealed evidence that indicated the fire was something other than accidental, Port Angeles Chief of Police Brian Smith said. Additional fire investigators and two detectives trained in recognizing arson entered the investigation, according to Smith and the probable cause report.
Fire investigators and detectives remained on scene investigating late into Tuesday night, according to a Facebook post by the PAPD. Probable cause was developed, and an arrest warrant for Green was issued to local law enforcement agencies.
The investigation is ongoing, Smith said.
Three PAFD fire trucks and 11 personnel responded to the fire. Clallam County Fire District 2 provided automatic aid in the form of two fire trucks and five personnel. East Jefferson Fire Rescue, Olympic Ambulance, Clallam County Fire District 3, the Port Angeles Police Department and Port Angeles Public Utilities also provided support.
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. — A United States Army soldier was sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole Wednesday for the murder of a cab driver in Tukwila in 2024.
Private Jonathan Lee struck a plea deal and was sentenced by a 6th Judicial Circuit military judge at Joint Base Lewis-McChord on Wednesday, April 23.
Lee pleaded guilty to murder, murder while perpetrating a robbery, desertion, resisting arrest, wrongful use of controlled substances and military order violations. He was originally facing a charge of premeditated murder, but the premeditated portion was removed per the plea deal.
The body of 34-year-old cab driver Nick Hokema was found Jan. 15, 2024, outside the Southcenter Mall in Tukwila. Lee was convicted of killing Hokema and stealing his car while he was on the run for sexual assault crimes involving children.
Nicole Sharkody, Hokema's girlfriend, said she's glad justice has finally been found.
“This was a man who was dangerous,” she said. “I am glad that he is finally going somewhere where he doesn’t have the opportunity, just because he's a soldier, to leave base again and hurt another family.”
In court on Wednesday, Lee said he stabbed Hokema after a disagreement over payment.
After the killing, Lee was seen on base Jan. 14, 2024. He was convicted at a court-martial Jan. 19, while he was still missing.
Authorities took Lee into custody Jan. 26, 2024. He was found at his girlfriend's home in Redmond.
Prior to his sentencing, Lee was in confinement at JBLM, serving a 64-year sentence for the felony sexual assault crimes.
As a cab driver, Sharkody said it was Hokema’s life mission to “get you where you needed to go safely.”
“He would have helped you. It doesn't matter if they're in a uniform, it doesn't matter if they're homeless. It doesn't matter what they look like," she said.
However, she added, "There are predators out there. And I'm going to use everything that I've learned about previous cases that JBLM has dropped the ball on, and I'm going to make sure that people get accountability at the very least.”
SEATTLE — A 29-year-old employee at a Capitol Hill chicken restaurant is recovering after being punched in the face by a customer on Tuesday night.
Seattle police are actively searching for three suspects involved in the assault, which happened after the men were asked to leave the restaurant for harassing patrons and using slurs.
The incident took place at the Dave's Hot Chicken, located in the 1200 block of East Pike St., around 10:54 p.m.
Witnesses reported that three men, at least one of whom appeared to be in his 20s, were eating chicken while verbally harassing other customers.
One witness said the group growled, barked, and used derogatory language, which they believed was due to their sexual orientation.
A manager reportedly intervened, warning the men to cease their behavior or leave.
Despite the warning, the harassment continued, leading to a confrontation at the counter over a missing chicken tender and if it had already been eaten by the customer. During the argument, one suspect used a gay slur against the employee.
The situation escalated when the manager ordered the men to leave, and the 29-year-old employee began escorting them out. One suspect allegedly said, "Don't touch my boy like that," before another suspect punched the employee, causing a cut above his left eye and swelling that left it shut.
The suspects were last seen heading west on East Pike Street from 12th Avenue, and remain at large as of Wednesdsy.
Seattle police are urging anyone with information, video, or photos related to the assault to contact the SPD Tip Line at (206) 233-5000.
SEATTLE — Seattle police detectives released photos of a motorcycle on Wednesday that struck two pedestrians last week, killing one, in south Seattle, then sped away.
The crash on the night of Apr. 18 happened at Martin Luther King Jr. Way South and South Alaska Street.
One of the victims, a 57-year-old woman, died from her injuries on Apr. 20. A 59-year-old man was also hurt.
Since then, detectives recovered photos taken by a Metro bus that was in the area when the hit-and-run crash occurred.
Seattle police said the motorcycle appears to be a 1988-1999 Honda Goldwing GL1500. Video obtained by KOMO News shows the motorcycle crash into two people in the crosswalk -- knocking them to the ground -- after it ran a red light.
The motorcycle sped away. The driver has yet to be identified. If you know the driver or have any information about the case, you're asked to call Seattle police detectives at 206-684-8923.
SEATTLE — A group of Seattle homeowners is suing the city, alleging elected leaders have knowingly allowed Denny Blaine Park to become "a regional venue for criminal and uncivil behavior."
The homeowners point to numerous cases of public masturbation "in broad daylight" and said that instead of attempting to end the activity, Seattle is planning to spend taxpayer money on “public masturbation deterrent infrastructure” at the park.
The case cites many videos, court records, and meeting notes to suggest Mayor Bruce Harrell, Seattle City Councilmember Joy Hollingsworth, and Parks Superintendent AP Diaz “are well aware” of the escalating situation and have failed to curb the activity.
The case was filed in King County Superior Court on Wednesday afternoon by “Denny Blaine Park for All” and seeks to force the city of Seattle to patrol the park or close it, also claiming the city has breached a fiduciary duty by allowing the rampant activity to continue.
A Seattle Parks Department website also outlines a proposal for Denny Blaine Park that includes the aforementioned “public masturbation deterrent infrastructure."
Yet, no city official could immediately explain the language or intent of the plan that has lived on the Seattle Parks Department website for close to a year. Denny Blaine Park is one of 15 projects with allocated funding for improvements in the last budget cycle.
As a neighbor, I can tell you, it's scary to leave your home and see someone masturbating in broad daylight, to see sexual acts happening in broad daylight,” said a woman who lives near the park that sits on Lake Washington and fears possible retribution by filing the suit. “This is outrageous.”
“All we're asking is the city to enforce the laws, and we've asked and asked, and we just feel that this is the last resort," said a man who has roots in the neighborhood dating back several decades and is a party to the suit. "It's not something we wanted to do, but it is something we felt we had no choice."
Both people spoke to KOMO News with a condition of anonymity, citing concerns about retribution and the sensitive nature of the allegations.
The filing will renew a simmering debate about the park, nestled on the water between lakefront homes. It was first created in 1901 by the Denny and Blaine families in what was then and is now a more affluent part of Seattle.
In recent years, Denny Blaine Park has gained a reputation for having an unofficial nude beach.
In 2023, after a private effort to build a playground at the site became public, members of the LGTBQ community pushed back calling it an attempt to “purposely displace the queer community” that found the park and beach to be a safe haven.
The city eventually dropped the playground proposal.
But the group of homeowners claims the park is now unsafe for everyone.
As a gay male who has lived near the park most of my life, this has nothing to do with gay or not gay," said the man who wishes to remain anonymous. "It is just asking the city to enforce the laws that are on the books to get rid of the illegal activity and lewd behavior that goes on down there."
The homeowners said they were asked to provide police and city officials with videos of the activity, so they began recording what they argue are near-daily occurrences.
In videos and pictures shown to KOMO News, multiple people can be seen performing sex acts in the park in broad daylight as other visitors walk by and try to look away. Other clips show lewd behavior in the Denny Blaine Park parking lot, and video surveillance cameras indicate some parkgoers have cased private homes while in various stages of undress.
Recent charging documents also suggest a pattern of behavior from men who have visited the park with the expressed intent of committing a public sex act.
On March 4, a Tacoma man was arrested and jailed after Seattle police responded to a call of public masturbation at the park.
A woman who worked nearby reported she had seen the man and another man both separately performing lewd acts and had captured cell phone video of the incident. The report said she told the officer that she had seen six different men in a week doing the same thing at Denny Blaine Park.
The officer found the man in the park and wrote that he was the same person captured in the cell phone video.
In another case on Feb. 24, a neighbor called to report a man committing a similar act in Denny Blaine Park and said she had seen him do it publicly 15 times over a few years. He was arrested.
That same man, from South Seattle, is separately awaiting trial next month on a hate crime charge after King County Prosecutors alleged he was at the beach in August of 2023 and assaulted another man who had disrobed there.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit suggested there is a difference between public nudity and committing lewd acts, and that the park has become a “regional destination for public masturbation, public sex, and other types of indecent exposure, and many other violations of the law, including the Department’s Code of Conduct.”
The lawsuit specifically names dates of incidents and meetings with elected and appointed city officials and says that the lack of action means that Seattle Parks and Recreation is now “enabling and maintaining a public nuisance” and is violating state laws.
The suit also suggests that, in totality, along with illegal parking blocking access points and drug use, the entire park has become a public safety hazard for residents and visitors alike.
The group outlines in the filing specific meetings on specific dates with Hollingsworth, who chairs the Council Parks committee, as well as Diaz and other senior Parks staff.
Harrell's Office issued a statement to KOMO News:
“Creating clean, safe, and welcoming parks has been a top priority for Mayor Harrell from day one – including resolving encampments in parks across the city, increasing park maintenance, and increasing the number of park rangers from 2 to 28.
“The mayor has consistently stated that while individuals have a right to be nude at parks under state law, no one has the right to commit lewd, illegal, and unwanted sexual conduct at our parks, and no one has the right to make others feel unsafe at the park. Under this administration, efforts at Denny Blaine Park have included SPD enforcement of lewd conduct laws, deployment of park rangers, clearer parking regulations and enhanced parking enforcement, more frequent litter pickup, installation of portable toilets, and signage restoration."
“We would defer to Seattle Parks and Recreation with regard to details of an RFP related to the park. Further, we would defer to the Seattle Police Department on recent enforcement actions resulting in arrests of people committing lewd behavior.”
In an interview with KOMO News, Hollingsworth tried to explain the Parks department's mitigation efforts and phrasing.
"I don't know the specific definition of that, but again, it's a combination of things, besides police, park rangers, public intervention of that signage, also a code of conduct," Hollingsworth said. "There's a bunch of things that we need to address."
When asked if she thought Denny Blaine Park was safe for families, Hollingsworth said, "Yes and no."
"I don't think it's safe when someone unfortunately is exposing themselves to that," Hollingsworth told KOMO News. "I do believe that the park overall is safe, and so we want to continue to make sure that our city response is well, and that includes ensuring that we have enough bathrooms for the Denny Blaine, make sure that the parking is accessible so people aren't blocking folks' driveways."
Hollingsworth also said closing the park should not be an option.
"That's not what I want, and that's not what I know that a lot of people park goers want as well," Hollingsworth said. "We want every park to be accessible and safe, and especially as this is a truly like a treasure for the city."
Seattle Parks and Recreation issued a statement to KOMO News suggesting the language used to describe improvements "was from the public submission to the Park CommUNITY Fund for the project and was removed from the scope.
"It was left on website as we kept all original submissions on the hub to show how the projects developed into more informed scoped proposals," the department said.
The Parks statement also claims that there are current improvements being made.
"We have scoped the project from the initial Park CommUNITY Fund submission and will begin broader public engagement effort for the project in late 2025," the department wrote. "We anticipate improvements occurring in 2027. Currently, there is a stair improvement project at the park, which involves installing a railing and landings on the south stairs," wrote a Parks spokesperson.
“We as a neighborhood have exhausted every possibility. The last thing we ever wanted was to do something like this,” said the woman about filing the suit. “I think that people that live in the neighborhood are fearful. They're fearful about what's going on in the park and in the surrounding area.”
She recalled showing a city official the videos and asking for action, but said the unnamed official was reluctant to watch with children in the room.
“We don't get to turn off our video," the woman added. "We don't have that opportunity. We live this day in and day out, and it's only increased because of the city's lack of enforcing the law."
“To me, it seems so basic," said the man, who is a longtime resident. "We've called we've asked them to come enforce the laws. There are people breaking the laws, and there just does not seem to be a lot of response."
“This is not a political situation, or gay or not gay," he added. "This is just asking the city to enforce the laws so that the park feels safe and welcoming for everyone."
When asked what he thought about the undefined deterrent infrastructure, the man said he feared the city was trying to wall off an area of the park so the activity wouldn’t be visible to the residents.
"Imagine what would go on behind that wall," the man said. "Masturbation would probably be the least of our worries."