West Seattle, Washington
03 Thursday
This has been on the Crime Watch page since Seattle Police posted it on their SPD Blotter site (which feeds the CW page instantly as soon as SPD posts something) – but we wanted to call attention to it here too: Two homes on 32nd SW were hit by bullets last night, nobody hurt, nobody arrested. A High Point resident sent us a Twitter message last night about that time saying he’d heard what sounded like gunfire – we listened to the scanner for quite some time and monitored 911 but nothing obvious. In several separate Twitter messages, Ryan reported:
I live in High Point and am pretty sure I just heard gunshots. a lot of em, sounded like two different guns … I’m at 32nd and Juneau, it sounded less than a block away, and afterwards a car drove really fast down my dead end street … and then turned around and drove away …
We get “thought I heard gunshots” reports fairly frequently, and they don’t all pan out, but this one obviously did. We’re checking with the Southwest Precinct for any additional information about who’s been sought and potential motives. ADDED 2:02 PM: Lt. Steve Paulsen provides additional details: 5900 block of 32nd SW (map); no description of the suspect/vehicle. They haven’t quite zeroed in on the motive yet but are investigating the possibility it involved a relationship dispute of some sort. No relation to the “house hit by bullets” incident from 20th/Henderson last month.
Just out of the WSB inbox from Ryan in Seaview, with the photo above:
Unfortunately I’ve got bad news to share. Sometime between 3 am (I was up feeding our youngest son) and 10:30 am, our beautiful 1959 Airstream trailer was stolen off its parking pad. It was double locked and in full view in the alley. We live on 45th Ave SW between Juneau and Findlay. We’d really appreciate it if you could post a photo or two on the blog asking for your readers to keep an eye out for it.
Since Ryan sent several photos, we’ve posted two more angles (one showing the back of the trailer, one showing the front) after the jump:Read More
From David in Gatewood:
I … wanted to get the word out about a pair of prowlers in the Gatewood area. I live on 41st behind Thriftway and came home to a neighbor of mine who stopped me and said she chased away 2 (african-american) men in our front yard this morning at 10 AM that were clearly prowling in the windows of our home. Our front yard has a white picket fence and she had said they had opened the fence and they were in our front yard looking in the home. She walked up to our yard with her large dog and they immediately retreated up the street to 41st and Frontenac. Thanks to our great neighbors but I wanted to let the area know in case anyone may have seen these guys today.
We are in the King County Superior Court courtroom of Judge Michael Fox, where Brian Walsh has just been sentenced 
for the 2007 beating murder of “Benny” Reside (left), a mentally and physically disabled man who had been letting him stay in his apartment in Morgan Junction’s Cal-Mor Circle. This was the second part of a sentencing hearing that began October 17 (WSB courtroom coverage here), after Walsh pleaded guilty to second-degree murder (in a plea deal that we covered last summer). Prosecutors and family wanted the high end of the sentencing scale, 18 years, while defense argued for the low end, around 14. Reside’s sister Pam Reside Leach and brother-in-law Jeff Leach addressed the court again today (photo above shows Pam [left] directly addressing her brother’s killer [far right]), and for the first time, the killer, Brian Walsh, spoke as well, sobbing and asking the family’s forgiveness, reading from a handwritten statement. The judge is imposing the maximum possible sentence – 220 months, mostly, he says, because of the “absolute helplessness” of the victim, the unprovoked nature of the attack, and the savageness of the crime. More details from the courtroom – and the family’s reaction afterward (“It’s not a happy day,” Pam said) – will be added shortly. ADDED 12:38 PM: Read on for those details – what the family said, what the killer said, what the judge said:Read More
Out of the WSB inbox, from Travis:
I don’t know how many of your readers are concerned with the space behind the Admiral Theater, but I just bought a townhouse here about 6 months ago. Everything was fine for almost 6 full months, and in the last 3 weeks there has been a significant spike in graffiti, likely gang related, and I was shocked to hear from my neighbor this morning that her car was broken into @ 5:30 am. These incidents have been reported to the police but their frequency and severity appear to be on the rise. A police watch placed on the alleyway for the last several weeks has not seemed to curb the offenses.
I for one am quite concerned as a new homeowner who paid high N. Admiral prices to live in a safe, clean, and friendly neighborhood.
Thanks to those who e-mailed to ask about a loud boom near 16th/Kenyon (map) around 6:30 this morning, followed by “police” sightings. Ralph had the most vivid description of what he saw at a house he identifies as being in the 7900 block of 16th SW:
I heard a loud ka-boom and thought it was a bomb. (About a year or so ago, someone did pipe-bomb neighbor’s back yard.) I thought that I should call that one in.
But first I looked out the window, and everything was quiet. Then I looked out the other window and realized that I didn’t have to call this one in – the lights were already flashing. Then a floodlight illuminated the entire front of the house … And there were numerous SWAT (or whatever) team folks there, armed and wearing helmets. … Turns out it was King County sheriff – no SPD, which surprised me. The ka-boom must have been the flash-bang used by the assault team.
Before Ralph’s note came in, we had been checking with the Southwest Precinct, and indeed, it wasn’t an incident with which they were involved – so we moved on to King County Sheriff’s Office, where Sgt. John Urquhart tells us an arrest warrant was being served – no details on what the person was wanted for, but the person is in custody.
Chris e-mailed to alert folks about a suspected car prowler, scared off by a delivery truck early this am:Read More
It didn’t happen in West Seattle, but it wasn’t very far away, and police are casting a citywide (even regional) net for a murder suspect on the loose, so we are helping distribute this photo and information: Shown at left is 39-year-old Jose Angel Blanco, AKA Jose A. Blanco-Naranjo, suspected of killing his ex-wife, 32-year-old Noemi Lopez, a mother of three, yesterday in the Rainier Valley. If you have any idea where he might be, call 911. Read more here about his description; read more here about what happened (as told by neighbor Amber Campbell, an acquaintance of ours because she runs the Rainier Valley Post neighborhood-news site in that area). TUESDAY UPDATE: Police say he has changed cars – latest information here.
Just out of the WSB inbox from Doug:
Wanted to let folks in the Seaview neighborhood know that it may be time to ditch your pumpkins if you still have them on the porch. Looks like some vandals had one heck of a night smashing pumpkins in the streets from 46th Ave SW to 49th Ave SW (basically from Graham all the way down to Brandon; map). I counted at least 7 during a morning walk. While that seems pretty tame, it appears the same group managed to destroy a couple of “For Sale” signs in front of some homes as well.
While checking out a major fire-unit call that didn’t pan out, WSB contributing photojournalist Christopher Boffoli happened onto a sizable police search nearby. A neighbor told him someone spotted a man looking into windows of homes; no word yet of any arrests (or any actual burglaries). Christopher took the photo on SW Nevada between 26th and 30th (map).
Followups are our specialty, from development projects to road-work plans and beyond, and we’re trying to do a better job of following up on crime coverage too. Toward that end: We’ve been tracking the status of two suspects from recent high-profile burglary cases in West Seattle, so we wanted to report that one of them has just gotten out of jail — 18-year-old Skyelar Hailey, the only adult suspect arrested 10 days ago in the Admiral neighborhood incident we covered here. The county jail register indicates he posted bail (which had been set at $7,500) just before 5 o’clock tonight. Online court records indicate he has a significant prior criminal history. (The other suspect whose status we’re tracking, Fauntleroy burglary suspect Richard Lovejoy, remains in jail.)
If you haven’t already heard – police have arrested the man accused of shooting two teenagers, killing one of them, at Southcenter last Saturday night. 21-year-old Barry Saunders was taken into custody in Portland.
It’s up on the P-I’s site now: A photo of 21-year-old Barry Saunders, the man wanted for murder and other charges in the Saturday mall shooting (WSB coverage here) that left 16-year-old Daiquan Jones dead, and another teenage boy wounded. He is said to have ties to Kent as well as Tukwila.
Just got this note from the victim, who wants to anonymously share this warning:
Just wanted to alert anyone that parks at this park & ride (9000 Olson Pl SW; map). Yesterday the catalytic converter was “cut” out from under my 1999 Toyota 4-Runner. It must have happened during broad daylight. I was parked there from 8:30 to 5:00 pm.
The Seattle City Council and King County Council both took final budget votes today (city news release here, county news release here); 
no last-minute drama – that was all worked out last week. Many of those councilmembers also send out newsletters, and one of them, Seattle City Councilmember Tim Burgess (left), followed up his budget note with his thoughts on what should be done to help stop the youth violence that flared in a particularly ugly, and deadly, way this past weekend – in several incidents including the Southcenter shooting. We wanted to share what he has to say – his voice is particularly loud in this matter, as he chairs the council’s Public Safety Committee:Read More
Some of these factoids might surprise you; they surprised us, when we heard the infobursts presented by the featured guest at last night’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting, Steve Freng, who is a manager for the Northwest HIDTA (pronounced HIGH-tuh – High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area). Read on for those infobursts, in bullet-point form:Read More
From tonight’s West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting (last one of the year – the group won’t meet in December), not only the latest crime-trend toplines from police, but also citizen reports – including a store reportedly selling troubling merchandise – read on:Read More
Mary from Twilight Art just posted this as a comment on our original report last month about her stolen motorcycle (shown in that report):
Good news. I got my motorrad back. It was recovered from 102 30th ave sw in a 30 ft ditch. They took the starter and stripped the ignition, but she will rise again! Thanks for the help and support :)
We asked Mary a followup question – how was the bike found? She says she got some leads along the way but in the end:
Ultimately the police got a tip from someone who wants to remain anonymous and the bike was recovered on the 17th. The rims are oxidized, which makes us think it was in the ditch for some time. The ignition has been hacked; the body was ripped to remove parts; and it was covered in mud.
But she’s gearing up, so to speak, to get it back into shape.
So many times in recent weeks, we’ve seen the power of neighbors banding together to do what needs to be done – including fighting crime – and that task gets easier when you have the latest info on what’s happening in our area. Tonight, it’s your last chance of the year to get that info, and answers to your crime/safety questions, by attending one of the most worth-your-time monthly events in West Seattle, if you’re at all concerned about neighborhood safety: The West Seattle Crime Prevention Council meeting, 7 pm, Southwest Precinct meeting room (Google Street View above shows where you’re going). See you there.
E-mail from “Blue” says somebody stole a backpack like the one you see at left – and they’re hoping it will be returned: “My 12 year old’s school back pack was stolen today around 2:45 pm after school. It was taken right off of the front porch of his friend’s house in a very quiet neighborhood on 47th Ave SW, 1/2 block south of Admiral Way [map], while they stepped inside for a moment. It is really a shame that this should happen. Unfortunately, a large 3” white binder with all of his school work was inside, besides school books, hoodie, etc. If anyone finds this notebook, please call Madison Middle School 252-9200, or please drop it off at Alki Mail & Dispatch if it’s more convenient. The backpack was a skateboard-type pack, Independent brand. All black, with a large red symmetrical cross (the Independent logo) and large red “Independent” letters on the whole back side. My son would really appreciate it if the neighbors in the area can keep an eye out in their bushes & alleys, in case someone threw his binder & school work out. It’s a hard lesson for a kid. Thank you!”
From NG in the 6500 block of 44th SW (map), a cautionary tale — read on:Read More
Just in from Nathan – read ahead for the report:Read More
Another followup to the Fauntleroy arrest early Sunday, following one break-in, another attempt, and a helicopter search: Court documents obtained from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office list the charges now filed against 41-year-old Richard Lovejoy, the convicted rapist caught after that search. Read on for details of the charges, including more information about the evidence prosecutors say they have against him:Read More
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