WA - 3 children, ages 13, 9 and 7, among 5 killed inside Fall City home, 15 y.o. in custody - 21 October 2024

[Squirrel85]

I think I read that the 11 year old described his shirt he was wearing when he shot her, and it was found on the floor in a.... bathroom maybe. I think he took a fast shower and changed before calling 911. Does soap and a shower get rid of gunshot residue? (oh, my search history just keeps getting worse)

Wouldn't his hair still be wet by the time the police arrived? I think the neighbor where the 11-year-old had run to had also contacted law enforcement. The neighbor would have been able to contact law enforcement before the end of the supposed shower.

 

[Knox]

Wouldn't his hair still be wet by the time the police arrived? I think the neighbor where the 11-year-old had run to had also contacted law enforcement. The neighbor would have been able to contact law enforcement before the end of the supposed shower.

Maybe the timeline isn’t exact as we understand it. Was there was a gap between the time he came into her bedroom to check for signs of life, her hearing him on the phone and fleeing?

We don’t have a complete account, because she doesn’t mention her Mom’s shooting - to our knowledge. Nor have we heard about any screams or utterances from the victims. Surely it wasn’t a completely silent event?

I feel so much compassion for this child. She is traumatized beyond belief. And now her account of what she experienced first hand, will be used against her by a team of attorneys to defend her sibling.

I’m not sure in what universe a jury would buy into that. Will she have to testify in court at his trial?

 

[Kemug]

Wouldn't his hair still be wet by the time the police arrived? I think the neighbor where the 11-year-old had run to had also contacted law enforcement. The neighbor would have been able to contact law enforcement before the end of the supposed shower.

Shower cap? Hair-dryer?

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Lawyers for the teenage boy accused of slaughtering his parents and three siblings in their Fall City, Washington, home have doubled down on his claim that his younger brother committed the crimes

His lawyers want to create "reasonable doubt" with this alternative theory that the deceased younger brother actually did it all?

I know it's the lawyers' jobs, but I think once the jury hears from the 11-year-old survivor (and LE and others) they will be angered by this strategy. My opinions.

 

[LadyL]

But did 15m have gunshot residue? I could see no blood splatter, it didn’t seem like he was close in the shootings. Can you wash gunshot residue away? Was he wearing the same clothing, I don’t remember?

With no stippling on or around 13m’s wounds, pretty much seals the conclusion-it wasn’t him.

wait did you see crime scene photos? or the suspect?

 

[LadyL]

Maybe the timeline isn’t exact as we understand it. Was there was a gap between the time he came into her bedroom to check for signs of life, her hearing him on the phone and fleeing?

We don’t have a complete account, because she doesn’t mention her Mom’s shooting - to our knowledge. Nor have we heard about any screams or utterances from the victims. Surely it wasn’t a completely silent event?

I feel so much compassion for this child. She is traumatized beyond belief. And now her account of what she experienced first hand, will be used against her by a team of attorneys to defend her sibling.

I’m not sure in what universe a jury would buy into that. Will she have to testify in court at his trial?

the Mom did call out but I don't remember what she said

 

[Knox]

the Mom did call out but I don't remember what she said

Link?

 

[LadyL]

well, there's this, so it wasn't a completely silent event, although it doesn't specify the Mom - it states the shooter was leaning over three bodies at the same time, which indicates to me they were dead and not crying out - the Mom was found in the bathroom - if I find another link specifying who called out, I'll post it

She then heard someone shouting “stop” and “help” and what she believed was her 15-year-old brother speaking on the phone, according the probable cause document. She told police he was leaning over the three bodies in the hallway to see if they were still alive, then came back to the bedroom to check on her.

15-Year-Old Accused Of Killing Family And Staging Scene To Frame Brother

The teen's 11-year-old sister told King County detectives that she survived the mass shooting by playing dead, according to a court document.

www.huffpost.com

 

[Knox]

well, there's this, so it wasn't a completely silent event, although it doesn't specify the Mom - it states the shooter was leaning over three bodies at the same time, which indicates to me they were dead and not crying out - the Mom was found in the bathroom

She then heard someone shouting “stop” and “help” and what she believed was her 15-year-old brother speaking on the phone, according the probable cause document. She told police he was leaning over the three bodies in the hallway to see if they were still alive, then came back to the bedroom to check on her.

15-Year-Old Accused Of Killing Family And Staging Scene To Frame Brother

The teen's 11-year-old sister told King County detectives that she survived the mass shooting by playing dead, according to a court document.

www.huffpost.com

I think the "stop and "help" was 15m, not one of the victims, JMO.

 

[LadyL]

I think the "stop and "help" was 15m, not one of the victims, JMO.

ooooh I never thought of that - so he might have been pretending he was yelling at the 'real shooter', his 11 year old brother ... diabolical

 

[Knox]

wait did you see crime scene photos? or the suspect?

Fall City mass shooting: Records show possible defense for teen suspect

Prosecutors allege the 15-year-old framed his 13-year-old brother as the shooter, but defense attorneys say the suspect's narrative is "forensically viable."

www.seattletimes.com

No I did not, details at link.

 

[Knox]

ooooh I never thought of that - so he might have been pretending he was yelling at the 'real shooter', his 11 year old brother ... diabolical

Yes, exactly.

 

[Kemug]

Yes, exactly.

He is all of that, apparently.

 

[Halloqueenie]

His lawyers want to create "reasonable doubt" with this alternative theory that the deceased younger brother actually did it all?

I know it's the lawyers' jobs, but I think once the jury hears from the 11-year-old survivor (and LE and others) they will be angered by this strategy. My opinions.

Wholeheartedly agree with this, but I also wonder what they will suggest the 11yo's motive for lying is. I have a sinking feeling she's going to be dragged through the mud to cast doubt on her version of events.

 

[mickey2942]

ooooh I never thought of that - so he might have been pretending he was yelling at the 'real shooter', his 11 year old brother ... diabolical

ALA: "Chris Watkins" defense, My wife killed the girls, so I had to kill her in self defense.

 

[sunflowermomma]

MOO - it is a different level of depravity to not just massacre your own family but try to pin it on a victim, which forces the only living victim to relive her family being murdered over and over.

 

[Feelingstoned31]

There are monsters among us. It's a profound mystery how a child can do such evil. The psychiatrists will have their work cut out for them.

That being said, a "minimum sentence of 25 years" seems far too little for the heinousness of this crime. Life in prison seems more appropriate, with the understanding that he might get paroled some day.
All dependent on a conviction in adult court.

I could be wrong but I think life in prison is off the table in washington state for a juvenile under the age of 16 or 17. That was one of the laws that was changed years ago. It's seen as "unfair to children" no matter how heinous the crime.
Look for "tuba man murder". That kid i believe was in and our office Juvie for various serious crimes and released over and over again. He then murdered someone again, as a juvenile, and will be released within a few years. Because it would be cruel to make him spend his whole life in jail.
It's very light handed here. And I agree 25 years for murdering a whole family seems super light. It doesn't make sense.

 

[Feelingstoned31]

Whose idea would it be if not hers?

Die to the timing it could have been covid related.. that was around the same time if the vaccine mandates starting.
Being we have the father being from Texas, the home schooling, the move from Edmond (much more suburb city like) to fall city (much more mountain, country and quiete), conceal carry to work in dt seattle.
I would bank on conservative values and ideology. Which may have included opposition to a mandate to be vaccinated. Washington got really strict on that for government, Healthcare and school aged children being required to be vaccinated..
Just a theory around all the changes in short succession.

 

[Feelingstoned31]

BBM- this is the explanation which makes the most sense, IMO. Dad trusted his oldest child with the information, which sadly meant he had no safety concerns in doing so.

Just an idea to throw outside the box..
He may have been a sharp kid and figured it out. The vast majority of people use a loved ones bday or significant date as a 4 digit code.
I mean, he could have tried a bunch of bday, or anniversary combos and figured it out.
Or overheard a conversation talking about it.
Saw dad put the code in from a side eye.
Little ears and eyes see everything. And if he was planning something, murder in the 1st requires aforethought, maybe he was working on getting the code.

Also, it's not unreasonable in what seemed like a conservative family with the propensity to see the need for a gun for personal protection, that the eldest son would be given access for protection in case of an intruder. He would be in charge of protecting the family traditionally. If 15m has demonstrated safe gun handling skills, practices use, and has been a generally well adjusted individual, I don't think most families that would tend to be part of this demographic would ever think twice about trusting him with it. That adds up too.

I would almost bet that the answer to this comes our later. The 11f knows why he has it. Either it was a secret or dad gave it to him.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

"The state is particularly interested in those materials obtained on Oct. 29, because KCSO was not permitted to observe defense counsel or their agents as they spent hours in the residence, and a comparison of the photographs taken in the front entryway of the residence, as well as from the boys’ and girls’ rooms before and after their presence there suggests that they exceeded the scope Certification and Motion to Compel Discovery permitted by the Court’s order,” Brookhyser wrote. <modsnip: copyright> MORE AT LINK…

Defense team accused of altering crime scene of Fall City family murders

King County prosecutors allege a team of public defenders violated a court order when they were allowed unsupervised access to a Fall City family's crime scene.

komonews.com