West Seattle, Washington
23 Tuesday
Two weeks ago tonight, Seattle Police and Parks personnel joined concerned community members (WSB coverage here) for a “safety walk” through Emma Schmitz Overlook Park. They heard again what had been voiced repeatedly in the two-plus months since the still-unsolved Beach Drive murder of Greggette Guy – the request for more lighting in the viewpoint area. As Beach Drive Blog first reported yesterday, their request has been granted – new lights have gone up. Surprisingly, this happened without a formal announcement, which you might expect when government agencies take action on a high-profile request from citizens. So we contacted the Seattle Parks media team this morning to follow up; at day’s end, spokesperson Karen O’Connor told WSB that police “recommended added lighting and ran it by Robert Stowers, our Southwest manager”; from there, Seattle City Light put up the lighting on existing poles. We asked O’Connor if more safety measures are planned; she expects to have that information on Monday
What lightning allegedly doesn’t do, car thieves have done – strike twice. Someone has stolen Stacey‘s mom’s car, again. May 10th, she e-mailed to say her mother’s car, a 1989 Toyota Camry black 4-door, with a missing hubcap on the front passenger side, had been stolen from the 6300 block of 42nd SW. This morning, Stacey e-mailed WSB the photo above and the message:,”Again, my mom woke up today and her car was gone!!!!!!” (She also mentioned that in an unpleasant coincidence, her sister, a former West Seattleite living in Shoreline, discovered her Jeep stolen yesterday. Stacey says her mom’s car was found downtown four days after the May theft; as it says in the graphic she added to the photo above, call police if you see it.)
We don’t know if they have a Block Watch, but what CJ‘s neighbor did for her epitomizes how they’re supposed to work:
I just wanted to pass on what happened (Wednesday). I came home to a story from my nanny. Late (in the) morning a neighbor (who I have not met) who lives in the apartments across the alley came over to tell us that she had seen a man in our backyard looking around there and into our next-door neighbor’s yard. Our backyard is enclosed by a high fence and the gate is always closed. You have to reach over the fence to open the gate. The neighbor told our nanny that she asked the man what he was doing and that he then asked her for money. She called the police who came soon after.
We live on the 2100 block of 42nd Ave SW. If you pass this on to your readers, would you please thank my neighbor for her concern and actions?
You just did! P.S. Registration has just opened for the annual event in which you can get together with your neighbors to celebrate and enhance prevention, awareness, and just plain neighborliness – Night Out on August 7th. The updated SPD webpage is here.
A guilty plea today for 20-year-old Angelo Felice, who, 16 months ago, was arrested and charged with the Fauntleroy stabbing murder of a man best known by his vaudeville name, Hokum W. Jeebs. Felice was arrested while spotted walking in eastern West Seattle after someone saw him climbing out of the Kilbourne Park ravine near Jeebs’ home the morning after the murder – as detailed in this WSB comment – and reported the sighting to police. Today, Felice pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of 2nd-degree murder, which carries a potential sentence of 10 to 18 years, but court documents say prosecutors will recommend a sentence of 140 months – just over 11 1/2 years. Felice had moved to Seattle less than a month before killing Jeebs; he had juvenile convictions for burglary and assault. (2011 photo by Jill Schmieder of Altena Photography, for WSB)
From a report just published on SPD Blotter:
Last night at around 8:30 pm, Southwest Precinct officers responded to a “shots fired” call in the 8100 block of 9th Avenue Southwest [map]. The call stated that a neighbor heard 3 gun shots and then a car speeding away. Officers arrived and contacted a resident. He told officers that he was alone in the house sleeping when he heard a noise at the front door, followed by a loud crash at the back door of the house. The victim walked out of the front door to investigate, and he saw three Asian males, and a black male, all in their teens, running from behind his house. The victim told officers that he yelled at them. One of the males turned around and pointed his arm at the victim. The victim stated that he could not actually see a gun, but saw 2-3 flashes and heard gun shots. According to the victim, the group of teens then ran southbound on 9th Ave SW and then west on SW Thistle Street.
The victim returned to his house and found that the back door had been kicked in. Officers conducted an area search but did not locate the suspects. Officers did, however, locate two shell casings in the area where the victim stated the suspects fired the gun.
Police say they don’t have any additional descriptive information; nobody was hurt.
By Megan Sheppard
On the WSBeat, for West Seattle Blog
As always, the WSBeat summaries are from reports on cases handled recently by Southwest Precinct officers, incidents of note that (usually) have not already appeared here in breaking-news coverage or West Seattle Crime Watch reports, but that might at least answer the question “what WERE all those police doing on my block (whenever)?”:
*A recent Monday, around 8 p.m., a citizen yelled at some suspicious teens who were lurking in bushes near 30th and Roxbury. The three boys began cursing at her, but only one remained after she revealed that cops were on the way. He squared off against the 62-year-old and took a swing, landing a glancing blow on her chest. In return, she — quoting the police report — “jabbed him in the chest with a left, on the nose with a right, and then kneed him in the groin.” After running away, the underage, drunk, and combative trio tried to hide in some blackberry bushes. Stumbling and tripping, they were transported to the Southwest Precinct, where one vomited in the holding cell. Released to their parents, they face investigation of obstruction and minor-in-possession of alcohol. The third will also face questions about his failure at fisticuffs and might be charged with assault.
*Feeling that his tile saw was heavy enough to stymie any would-be thieves, a citizen left it in the bed of his pickup truck, which was parked in his driveway in the 3400 block of 41st SW. Overnight on the 30th, someone managed to lug it away without being detected.
Eight more summaries ahead:Read More
3 updates in Crime Watch tonight, starting with these neighborhood crimefighters:
NEW SIGN: The 13th Avenue SW Block Watch in Highland Park is making its presence known with this new sign at SW Henderson. The photo is by Dina Johnson; from left in the photo are Blair, Randy, Art, Brian, & Brian. (If you’re interested in a Block Watch, here’s SPD info on how to get one going.)
SPEAKING OF BLOCK WATCHES: If you are a Block Watch captain or in an “acting BW captain” role, have you RSVP’d for the first-ever West Seattle Block Watch Captains’ Appreciation Party yet? It’s coming up in less than two weeks and it’s FREE for captains/acting captains and their guests, but the WS BW Captains’ Network needs you to hurry up and RSVP – all the details are here.
NOW, TWO THEFT REPORTS: Both involve bicycles. First, GI reports, “A good friend had his rare beach cruiser stolen from his garage on Alki. He’s retired and this is his toy and favorite mode of transportation. There is a reward. … If you could put the word out please. Again it’s a tan 1998 Felt Military Police beach cruiser.”
Second, this report comes from SODO, but since so many West Seattleites work (and play) there, maybe you can be on the lookout for this:
Jann e-mailed to say:
Our delivery bike was stolen last night from the sidewalk @ SODO Deli ( 3228 1st Ave S. ) It is a VERY unique vehicle, so we’re trying to get this photo in front of as many people as we can so we can try to bring it back home. It’s a 3 wheel, recumbent, with a hand made wooden seat on the back. It was recently repainted red, but it still has many touches of purple still on it, ’cause I bought it from Purple Perry Pedicabs. When it was stolen, it had the “SODO Deli” sidewalk sign in the back, which is red & white & black.
We’re a small family business with no $$ to spare, so having our marketing/delivery vehicle stolen is a huge blow.
We would greatly appreciate it if you could ask people to call 911 and let them know (if they see it). Incident # 12-180485. Thanks for any help you can give in this!
Out of the WSB inbox, from Chris:
We had a delivered package containing some hard-to-replace valuables taken from our front porch on the corner of 27th and Holden at some point between 2 and 9 pm yesterday. Wrapping material (which I’m assuming is) from the package were strewn down the hill from our house.
He’s wondering if anyone saw someone in the area “carrying a big, 15-20 pound box during that time.”
From partner site White Center Now: The King County Sheriff’s Office will soon install two video-surveillance cameras in WC. Deputy BJ Myers, who announced them at last night’s North Highline Unincorporated Area Council meeting, says he believes they’ll be the first “overt” cameras KCSO has installed – that means they’re not secret; their presence will be obvious, and that’s part of the point. As soon as a few weeks from now, they’ll be up at 98th/16th and 15th/Roxbury. Here’s the full story, on WCN.
New information just in regarding the story first reported here on Sunday night – a plant purchased by Ian Stawicki at West Seattle Nursery last Wednesday between the time he shot six people, five fatally, in North Seattle and on First Hill, and the time he shot himself in West Seattle. Seattle Public Schools has released a statement by the recipient, who is publicly identifying herself as a North Admiral resident who is a former teacher of his. This is the entirety of what we have received from SPS:
Statement from Patricia Guenther:
When I arrived at my home from work on Wednesday evening, May 30, I discovered a bag containing a blueberry plant and seed packets from the West Seattle Nursery, along with a pre-printed commercial thank you card (not personalized or signed) in a bag on my porch. I live in the North Admiral area of West Seattle.
There was no identifying information on the items and I did not know who left them there. I later learned that these items were purchased by Ian Stawicki, the shooter in the recent North Seattle and First Hill shootings, who was a former student of mine.
I have not had contact with Ian Stawicki since he was in my Summit K-12 School classroom almost 25 years ago, and I was surprised to learn that he was the source of the bag that was left on my porch.
I was in communication with the Seattle Police Department and the items were turned over to them.
No person, no neighborhood, no community is immune to being touched by tragedy. Please be compassionate with each other as we each process this recent heartbreaking event in our city in our own way.
I have no additional information and I ask that the media please respect my privacy.
SPS says she has requested that she not be contacted for interviews, and WSB will honor that request. Meantime, we asked Seattle Police today for any information they have regarding where else Stawicki went in West Seattle on Wednesday afternoon; Det. Mark Jamieson says they have nothing to release so far, but it remains an open investigation. P.S. Summit, in northeast Seattle, was closed by the district in 2009.
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Four days after what Seattle Police Deputy Chief Nick Metz called a “citywide crisis” – four murders in North Seattle, one on First Hill, and the killer’s suicide in West Seattle – we have three followups tonight.
First: We have learned more about what Ian Stawicki did in West Seattle between ditching his final victim’s car on Delridge before noon and shooting himself at 37th/Raymond about four hours later:
He bought a blueberry plant, and left it for someone as a gift.
West Seattle Nursery confirms to WSB that Stawicki made a purchase there about midway through his four hours in West Seattle on Wednesday afternoon, just before 2 pm (as mentioned in this WSB comment). We talked with WSN’s Galen Guffy this afternoon.
She says they didn’t realize he had been there and purchased a blueberry plant and “some seeds” until they heard a voicemail message the next day, from the person for whom Stawicki left the plant. (MONDAY UPDATE: WSN has clarified the timeline of who spoke to whom and when, per this comment.) That person said Stawicki left a note with the plant, And, of course, they also heard from a Seattle Police homicide detective.
The main thing, Guffy says, that the nursery staffer who helped Stawicki with the purchase remembers is that he was “creepy.” Not in the sense that gave any hint of what he had done just a few hours earlier, though (keep in mind, his photo was not distributed until more than an hour later, at which time police were still saying they believed the two shootings were separate, and while that photo was tied to the North End murders, SPD had said the car found in West Seattle was related to the First Hill killing).
You might recall that – as reported here Thursday – police said that Stawicki “contacted an old acquaintance in SW Seattle and roamed in very crowded areas for some time.” Now we know one of those “areas”; we will continue to seek more information from police regarding the others, as they have said the investigation will likely continue for weeks. Police apparently first spotted him at Fauntleroy and Raymond – roughly half a mile from the nursery – according to this audio clip they released.
(ANOTHER MONDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE: The plant’s intended recipient, who identifies herself as a former teacher of Stawicki’s at a now-closed school elsewhere in the city, has issued a statement.)
SCHOOL SAFETY NOTE: Another followup tonight – one local principal says that while the district did not mention her campus as having taken precautions, they did. We’ve heard from West Seattle Elementary principal Vicki Sacco:
I just want to inform you of the steps we took at West Seattle Elementary during the crisis the other day. Upon learning there was a problem from parents calling the school, I made several calls to the police department to no avail. Taking matters into my own hands and to ensure everyone’s safety, I made the decision to put the building into a Shelter in Place. This required locking all doors and keeping students in the building. A letter went home with students (Thursday) informing parents of our actions. … I would like the West Seattle community wants to know that we make safety our top priority.
The school information that we reported during the unfolding events of Wednesday afternoon came from a variety of sources – the district, parents, and some school administrators (including several local private schools). Seattle Public Schools acting superintendent Dr. Susan Enfield also made a statement on Thursday about general policies.
Yet again tonight, police repeated the mantra of community watchfulness being the key to helping them catch criminals and solve crimes. While we’re finishing the story about the Beach Drive community-safety walk – during which that message was repeated – here are a few West Seattle Crime Watch notes from the WSB inbox:Read More
(Click “play” above to see the archived video of the briefing)
2:29 PM: Coming up shortly – announced for 2:30 pm but might not start on time – police leadership and the mayor are scheduled to present another briefing with new information about yesterday’s multiple murders in North Seattle and on First Hill, followed by the suspect’s suicide in West Seattle (our afternoon/evening Wednesday coverage is here). Seattle Channel says it’ll broadcast the briefing live, so we’re putting up the video window now – when the briefing begins, you should be able to see it by clicking the “play” button. Our partners at the Seattle Times have learned more about the people who were murdered – you can find the latest links on their home page. Toplines from today’s briefing, as they come.
2:40 PM UPDATE: The briefing has yet to begin, but the City Attorney’s Office has sent the media a packet of background on suspect Ian Stawicki‘s history – both with guns, and with crime. Regarding the former, he had a concealed-weapons permit from Kittitas County, and was listed as owning six guns. For the latter, he was cited for a gun violation, and had a domestic violence arrest, in which the victim did not want to press charges. (For those still wondering why he ended up here, for what it’s worth, there is nothing in the documentation that indicates any ties to West Seattle.)
2:46 PM UPDATE: The briefing has begun. Deputy Chief Nick Metz, who briefed reporters at the West Seattle scene that ended a violent and tragic day, says he has viewed the video recording of the shootings that killed four at Cafe Racer in the north end, and he has “never seen anything more horrific.” He says over the course of the day it became “a citywide crisis” and he is giving praise to the police and fire personnel who were so busy with everything that happened over the span of 5 hours – including the dispatchers, the “unsung heroes,” he calls them. “Those dispatchers are the lifeline to the community and to our officers.” Next, he says, Assistant Chief Jim Pugel will explain where the investigation stands.
2:52 PM: A/Chief Pugel says the investigation is open and will likely remain so for several weeks, even though SPD is “confident” that Stawicki is the “only” suspect in the two shootings that killed five people. He is now going back over the timeline, starting with the first 911 call at 11:01 am. He too mentions watching the video, and saying, “in 30 years of doing this, I’ve never seen anything like that.” And he says “there is a hero” – who was sitting next to the suspect “when the suspect started shooting … and picked up a stool and threw it at the suspect … picked up another stool and hit the suspect … During that time two, possibly three people, made their escape .. so he saved three lives.” The first call about the second shooting came in at 11:32 am, says the assistant chief. He says they’re not sure what route the suspect traveled to get to West Seattle. He says a “lady warned him” that he was parked in a “tow zone. … He contacted an old acquaintance in SW Seattle and roamed in very crowded areas for some time. This former acquaintance did not know what had happened, said he was acting erratically, talking nonsense, and this acquaintance broke off the contact. Once that acquaintance heard the information on the suspect, they immediately contacted us.” Once a photo was distributed, an intel officer saw him, “could not make a safe stop,” so backups were called in … and as they approached him, “that’s when he … killed himself,” says the assistant chief, now taking questions.
3:01 PM: The two guns found were both .45 caliber semi-automatic handguns, says Pugel, during Q/A. He is asked more about the heroism he mentioned, and what was on the video of the shooting. Stawicki, he said, put a victim’s hat on his head, after “complet(ing) the shooting,” and walked out. The hero also provided “critical information,” he said. It will be up to the hero to decide whether to speak to the media or identify himself publicly, he also has said. Stawicki was “calm” during the shootings, he added. The woman who owned the Mercedes SUV he drove here was apparently getting a parking receipt when she encountered Stawicki, he says. They are not sure yet how he got from the café to that scene in 8th/Seneca – whether by car or by bus or some other way. Why he chose to abandon the car where he did, on Delridge, they don’t yet know. Why were schools allowed to dismiss students with him still on the loose? Pugel says, we had no idea where he was, we always leave it up to the school to be the final arbiter on when they release. He says they made sure top police brass were in contact and had officers at schools that decided to let out. They are not sure whether Stawicki was currently living in Seattle or elsewhere. He did choose specifically to go to West Seattle, the assistant chief said.
3:12 PM: And after the mayor was asked about gun laws and attitudes – he reiterated that there has to be a change in the attitude that it’s OK to walk around armed – the news conference ended. When the Seattle Channel archives the video for playback, we’ll re-add it to this story; everything that was said about the West Seattle angle is included above.
3:42 PM: Two postscripts. One, we have added the above photo – police said that a “bag” was the item that linked the two shootings; no description provided, but WSB’s Christopher Boffoli points out he photographed the one above at the scene. Also, the information provided by police today seems to corroborate a phone call we received yesterday, not long before everything ended with the 37th/Raymond suicide, from a WSB reader who said a friend of hers had called her because she had been contacted by someone she knew, who needed a ride, but was acting strangely; the caller said her friend later heard more about the shootings and wondered if that person was the shooter, so she contacted police. The caller told us her friend had mentioned a name … “Ian.”
4:33 PM: SPD Blotter tells a little more about the Café Racer hero’s story. Meantime, Seattle Public Schools has sent a letter elaborating on their security procedures – read on:Read More
(TOPLINE SUMMARY: Police say the shootings that killed 4 on Roosevelt in North Seattle and 1 at 8th/Seneca are linked; they happened in the 11 am hour. Around noon, a black Mercedes SUV linked to the latter was found in 4100 block of Delridge. Searches ensued. Then the suspect turned up in 37th/Raymond area; as police moved in, they say, he shot himself.)
12:05 PM: According to the scanner, a vehicle potentially linked to a shooting downtown less than an hour ago has been found on Delridge Way SW, not far from the bridge.
12:09 PM UPDATE: A containment area is being set up in a wide area around the reported vehicle discovery in the 4100 block – traffic is being blocked across a wide area. Scanner traffic says the vehicle was unoccupied but a major search is under way. This apparently was the shooting that happened at 8th and Seneca within the past hour – the second shooting in the city today. More to come.
12:13 PM UPDATE: There is a news chopper from Channel 7 over the SUV in question and KIRO reports that at least one gun has been spotted inside, from their aerial vantage point. We are monitoring KIRO radio and they say the shooting at 8th and Seneca has turned fatal – a woman was shot after some kind of “disturbance.” They say police do not believe at this point that the First Hill shooting was related to another deadly shooting in the city earlier this morning, 2 people killed in the U District.
12:16 PM UPDATE: We have just reached the south end of Youngstown and traffic is being detoured uphill. Huge amount of flashing lights visible along blocked-off Delridge in front of Youngstown. Chopper audible overhead. We’ve parked relatively nearby and WSB co-publisher Patrick Sand has gone down the hill to see/find out what he can.
12:25 PM UPDATE: Police have yellow tape up roughly from the middle of Youngstown Arts Center, telling people to stay out of the area. Southwest Precinct operations Lt. Pierre Davis is on scene. They’re staging media. Also, we are trying to verify possible school lockdowns/sheltering in place – our son at Chief Sealth International High School, at least 2 miles from the vehicle discovery, says they are sheltering in place.
12:40 PM UPDATE: Seattle Times says a home is being searched in Delridge/Genesee area. Seattle Public Schools says “Sealth, Denny, Lafayette and Pathfinder@Cooper are in shelter in place” mode. Also, a parent has forwarded us an e-mail saying Holy Rosary is in lockdown. Thanks for sharing any information you have on school status – we are harvesting and monitoring as best we can.
12:53 PM UPDATE: If you have trouble getting the site, our apologies, traffic flood, we are working with our server to try to open more gateways. We also are updating key info on Twitter and Facebook – twitter.com/westseattleblog and facebook.com/westseattleblog. Police now have SWAT units in the area but there is no word of an arrest yet.
1:02 PM UPDATE: Police continue to search homes in North Delridge. Meantime, we are told that in addition to the four schools SPS listed, Sanislo also is sheltering in place. The suspect in this incident is described by citywide media as white male, 35-years-old, blonde crew cut. If any sort of photo or better description is made available – Seattle Police have not put anything out on their social media or blog-format site – we will of course post it. Right now, it’s all focused on searching.
(All photos from this one forward are by Christopher Boffoli for WSB unless otherwise credited)
1:15 PM UPDATE: Additional school lockdowns – Seattle Lutheran, Hope Lutheran, per Hope’s principal. Tilden, per a commenter. OLG and Westside, no, per the information we have – they are outside the zone of concern. Again, NO ONE IN WEST SEATTLE HAS BEEN HURT OR THREATENED AT THIS POINT – important to say that – police found the vehicle linked to 8th/Seneca shooting but have not found the suspect. Also note that North Delridge buses are being rerouted – the 120 and we believe 125, up Andover at last report. (updated) Westside School says via FB that they ARE taking safety precautions just in case. We also have a report via Twitter that Gatewood may be sheltering in place too, trying to verify that with SPS central.
1:29 PM UPDATE: Community School of WS also reported to be in shelter in place. Meantime, there was a brief flurry of activity at the search scene, a possible suspicious person at Youngstown – who turned out to be a worker, according to our crew there, so all the media has now retreated from that. It’s been about two hours now since the shooting to which the SUV found here is believed to be linked, at 8th/Seneca, leaving a woman dead – here’s the latest from our partners at the Seattle Times. Police now say it appears the victim was arguing with a man before the shooting – early reports of a carjacking don’t seem to have borne out, but keep in mind, witness reports etc. can change. What has complicated all this is that it was the second deadly shooting of the morning in the city – a half-hour earlier, a man shot five people – two of whom have died – at a café in the U District. Police have not said if there’s possibly any link between the two incidents.
(North Delridge, SW Yancy vicinity, 1:30 pm)
1:43 PM UPDATE: From Seattle Public Schools regarding the end of the school day, spokesperson Teresa Wippel says, “We are planning on regular release times and don’t anticipate delays in transportation home. The city has blocked certain streets and our buses will follow the safe, alternate routes as needed.” SW Precinct Lt. Davis has just talked with media crews including ours and we are asking a followup about the closed roads and access to areas including Pigeon Point. Stand by for whatever we find out.
1:52 PM UPDATE: Northbound Delridge has JUST been reopened at the scene in 4100-4400 Delridge. Re: Pigeon Point, we are told by police that Andover is open. ALSO – per scanner – schools in this area will be notified that lockdowns are not currently requested (though keep in mind, schools are always free to take whatever precautions they feel is best for their students’ safety – this is just a matter of whether they want to know if police think they SHOULD be sheltering in place/locked down).
(Photo by Patrick Sand for WSB)
2:01 PM UPDATE: Scene is starting to clear. Tow truck has arrived to impound the vehicle (photo added). Getting more word of schools lifting shelter-in-place. Police do confirm finding a weapon in the SUV.
2:30 PM UPDATE: Southbound Delridge also is now open. Meantime, police have checked out a couple reports of suspicious men matching the suspect description – one was at the golf course; our crews went there but it did not appear to be the guy. Now there’s a location that’s being checked out which for now we will describe as uphill to the west a ways from where the vehicle was found.
2:43 PM UPDATE: No confirmed breaks in the case yet. Mayor, police chief leadership have announced 3:30 pm briefing on today’s shootings. If it’s carried by Seattle Channel, we will embed the live video on WSB too; waiting to hear. The U-District shooting has claimed a third life, it was just announced. That’s four people dead in today’s two shootings – U District 11 am, 8th/Seneca at 11:30 am.
2:50 PM UPDATE: After yet another possible sighting of someone suspicious, police are now searching in the Luna Park/Bridge area, which we would advise avoiding for a while.
3:20 PM UPDATE: That search appears to be winding down. Police are now headed to Westwood to check out a possible guy standing along SW Barton with a holstered gun. We expect to be able to embed the video of the upcoming 3:30 pm mayor/police briefing here, by the way, in case you’re interested in watching it.
3:30 PM: Here it is – just click the “play” button to tap into the live webcast. We’ll add a few text highlights as we hear them:
>(Late night note: This is now the archived video of this afternoon’s briefing)
3:44 PM: Briefing under way. The mayor spoke briefly, saying police need “the tools they need to do their job” and also expressing concern about it being “too easy” to get guns. Councilmember Bruce Harrell, who chairs the Public Safety Committee, suggests “gun dropoffs.”
3:50 PM: Assistant Chief Jim Pugel says there are three scenes and many detectives are out at them: “We are doing everything possible” to solve today’s deadly shootings and “identify the persons who are responsible for these crimes.”
3:52 PM: We are not sure if it’s related but a shooting is reported now at 37th and Raymond. We’re en route. WSB’s Megan Sheppard is at the scene. She says the medics are arriving.
3:57 PM: KING describes the person who’s been shot as “possible suspect in downtown shooting” and says the person is “in custody.” Police describe this as an officer-involved shooting, via Twitter.
4:03 PM: SPD assistant chief at televised briefing says this was believed to be the NORTH END suspect and now they say the gunshot was believed to be SELF-INFLICTED.
4:09 PM: Assistant Chief Pugel came back with more information. Police with photos of North End suspect had spotted what they believed to be him – and as police move in, he says, the man knelt in the street, pulled out gun, shot himself. He still is saying they’re acting on the assumption there were two different suspects – this one and the one from the 8th/Seneca shooting. WSB’s Megan Sheppard is also at the shooting scene and says one key difference in the descriptions is a beard – would seem difficult for someone to change facial hair with two shootings half an hour and some distance apart. Here’s the roadblock near this shooting scene:
4:27 PM: The photos that police had procured of the North End shooting suspect – whom they believe to be the man who shot himself here – are on the SPD website but that’s jammed up right now so you can also check out KING5.com. Per KIRO, suspect is en route to hospital and was alive at last report – we didn’t hear medic transmissions via scanner but they have the advantage of a chopper.
(This photo, next photo by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
4:37 PM: Police have tweeted that detectives are investigating a possible connection between today’s two shootings. More info is promised shortly. A briefing at the scene was expected at any minute. We’ll add whatever our crew hears there, and we’ll have the entire briefing on video once they’re back from the scene.
4:45 PM: Suspect is now reported dead, and citywide media is quoting authorities as saying it’s believed he was linked to both shootings. Seattle Police also has said that in briefing just concluded at scene. And via Twitter, they say “evidence” links the two incidents. The earlier SPD Blotter post with photos is now accessible here.
4:58 PM: Police now call the man the “lone suspect in 4 murders.” No identifying information public so far as we’ve seen, but we are starting to hear more about the victims – here’s the Times story about a man who survived the North End shooting.
5:15 PM: The Times also has published a map showing where this all unfolded. You can see it here. Here’s our unedited video of Deputy Chief Nick Metz’s briefing at the 37th/Raymond shooting scene last hour:
5:44 PM: Police now say, via Twitter, the suspect is still alive at Harborview Medical Center.
5:54 PM: He’s just been identified, according to KIRO. Looking for a spelling so we may have to correct this, but they identified him as Ian Stawicki. The Times also has that name, quoting police sources, and is continuing to add information about his background.
8:21 PM: Catching up after a break. Adding more photos from earlier to this coverage. A few updates: Police now say the SUV that the murder suspect apparently ditched on Delridge was indeed stolen from the woman who was shot and killed. West Seattle Summer Fest event producer Oliver Little says in comments that two of the North End victims were members of the band The Bad Things, which played the festival last year; we found that verified on the band’s Facebook page. Otherwise, we haven’t yet learned anything about why Stawicki chose to head this way.
8:58 PM: And another update: KING 5 quotes a Harborview Medical Center spokesperson as saying that Stawicki has died as well as a fourth victim from the North End café shooting. That means 6 people dead, including the suspected killer.
10:19 PM: Earlier this evening, our friends at Capitol Hill Seattle reported that the First Hill victim was identified in an e-mail sent to families at her daughters’ school – a 52-year-old mom.
Three West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports tonight – mail theft, vandalism, and suspicious early-morning behavior around neighborhood cars – read on:Read More
In comparison to OTHER parts of the city – where yesterday, for example, brought six shooting reports in the span of about 18 hours (all chronicled on SPD Blotter) – it’s been a relatively quiet holiday weekend in West Seattle. But not devoid of incidents; beyond a few we’ve already covered, we’ve received miscellaneous reader reports, including two break-ins with loot that you’re asked to be on the lookout for – read on:Read More
(Police on 16th, north of Roxbury, south of the reported crime scene)
10:33 PM: Police are searching right now in South Delridge for a suspect in what was reported to be a robbery. We don’t have full details yet but we have gone to the scene and can confirm a heavy police presence, including K-9 teams. The scanner indicates one person is being detained and another being sought. More as we get it.
10:44 PM UPDATE: Police at the scene are not saying much but do confirm one person is being questioned and another being sought. They say two people went into a business in the 9400 block of 16th SW and one of them showed a gun; the details of the reported robbery are still being sorted out. No injuries reported; no description made available to us for the person who’s being sought.
Four West Seattle Crime Watch reports from the past few days – one prowling report, one burglary, and two car break-ins, all reported by WSB’ers. Read on for their firsthand reports:Read More
As first reported by Beach Drive Blog yesterday, Seattle Police have finally set the date for the Beach Drive safety walk they have been promising. Southwest Precinct Operations 
Lt. Pierre Davis has just confirmed that the safety walk will be at 6:30 pm next Friday, June 1st. He explains, “This will be an opportunity for police, other city agencies and the Alki /Beach Drive community to partner, walk and discuss crime prevention topics and strategies relating to their neighborhood. We will muster at Emma Schmitz Park and canvas a portion of Beach Drive, completing our walk at Me Kwa Mooks Park.” The area, of course, has been under scrutiny since the as-yet-unsolved murder of 51-year-old Greggette Guy in March, whose car was found at Emma Schmitz, across from Me-Kwa-Mooks, where her family says she had gone to take a walk the night before her body was found in the water half a mile north. In the weeks since, Seattle Parks has cleared some of the shrubbery blocking street visibility at the viewpoint, and Parks Superintendent Christopher Williams has spoken to the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council about overall park safety.
Just got a phone call from someone in North Admiral – 51st/Waite vicinity – who said that hers is one of two cars that had just been broken into and gone through, and she wanted to get the word out. She said it appeared they were using a spark plug or something similar to break the windows (a tactic that’s been going around for a few years) though last time car prowlers had hit the neighborhood, they only went through the unlocked cars. (Yes, the car-prowl victim said, it’s been reported to police.)
Two West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports this afternoon – a burglary attempt and car vandalism – read on for both:Read More
Animal advocates are trying to find out who’s responsible for abusing a starved dog that did not survive. The Seattle Animal Shelter sent this release:
The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) is offering a reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to the identification, arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for this atrocious act of negligence.
On Saturday, May 12, an emaciated dog was found in the 9400 block of 26th Avenue Southwest. The badly emaciated dog was immediately rushed to a veterinary clinic but did not survive.
Details of where the dog had been for the last 30 days are unknown. If you recognize the dog and have seen him or know where he has been over the past several weeks please call Seattle Animal Shelter Enforcement Supervisor Ann Graves at (206)386-4288. The case number is 5319. Any information about the dog’s whereabouts is vital to helping determine the circumstances around the dog’s condition.
“To intentionally starve an animal that relies solely on you for its care is a truly heinous act,” said Dan Paul, Washington state director for The Humane Society of the United States. “Americans have no tolerance for this type of abuse against the creatures who share our world.”
Animal cruelty is a Class C felony punishable by 5 years in prison, a $10,000 fine or both.
The Seattle Animal Shelter is available for field operations seven days per week, 9:15 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. The phone number is (206) 386-PETS (7387).
A photo of the dog, while it was receiving veterinary care, can be seen here.
Three notes this afternoon: First, a stolen-car report from Thaddeus:
Our 1994 Dodge Caravan was stolen Sunday night from in front of our house in Puget Ridge. Dark green with purple decorative stripe, tinted windows. License # ACF0177. Apart from the usual hardships from losing a car, this van also served two handicapped individuals. Any info greatly appreciated!
Ahead, e-mail about a troubling encounter in North Admiral, plus a followup about an assault incident first reported by a commenter:Read More
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