White Center Now: The blog about White Center

The King County Sheriff’s Office just announced it’s reassigning some deputies in other unincorporated areas – and while the reassignments aren’t happening here, this area will be part of a change in “response protocol”:

In response to current and potentially sustained budget constraints, the King County Sheriff’s Office has made the difficult yet necessary decision to reduce minimum staffing at our North and Southeast precincts effective immediately. This includes the affected communities of Redmond Ridge, Fairwood, Fall City and other areas in unincorporated King County. As this is simply a redeployment of resources, no King County deputies are losing their jobs. This change will not affect police services in contract cities served by the King County Sheriff’s Office.

With this modified staffing, King County deputies in all three unincorporated precincts will only be dispatched to alarms verified by alarm companies or video/audio evidence. Additionally, our 911-dispatchers will refer all non-injury and non-blocking collisions or those on private property to the Washington State Patrol website: wsp.wa.gov/driver/collision-records. Deputies will still respond to collision associated with crimes such as hit and runs or impaired driving.

Any non-emergency 911 calls regarding a behavioral health crisis will be referred to the Sheriff’s Office Therapeutic Response Unit.

Residents of King County can report crimes such as abandoned vehicles, mail theft, vandalism and lost property here.

We are taking these critical steps to ensure King County deputies are safe and available for life-safety emergencies, which will always remain our top priority.

Here’s what the King County Sheriff’s Office tells us about an overnight incident that involved two locations in unincorporated North Highline:

– Around midnight, deputies responded to reports of a shooting in the 10000 block of 1st AVE S.
– Fire transported one victim to Harborview for medical treatment.
– Deputies report the incident began at the West Seattle Marijuana Store, where an unknown number of suspects attempted to break in.
-No suspects at this time.
-Case number: C25007631

(Despite its name, the WS Marijuana Store is located in Top Hat, at 10825 Myers Way S.) If you have any information, call 911 and refer to the case number noted above.

From the King County Sheriff’s Office:

Missing Child Alert. This 7-year old boy is autistic and was last seen about 1 pm in the White Center area of 4th avenue and S. 112th. He was wearing a black Pokémon t-shirt, shorts, and black shoes. If you see him, please call 911.

The report and photo are from the King County Sheriff’s Office:

More stellar police work (and K9 Quinn work) means more drugs taken off the streets.

On November 15th, our Special Emphasis Team served a narcotics search warrant on a drug trafficker known for selling fentanyl powder, fentanyl pills and heroin from White Center to Mount Vernon. After many months and 100-plus hours of surveillance our detectives and deputies seized:

• 5.12 pounds Fentanyl powder
• 13,620 Fentanyl M30 pills
• 1 pound of heroin
• More than $2000 in cash

They also booked a suspect on one count of investigation with intent to distribute and one count of conspiracy
Estimated street value of all these narcotics: $286,000

A reader reported 16th SW blocked near 107th this morning. We asked King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Deouty Mike Mellis what happened: “It looks like there is an ongoing investigation related to a fatal vehicle vs pedestrian accident in the area. Our Major Accident Response and Reconstruction Unit (MARR Unit) is investigating. I do not have any additional details for release at this time.”

2:37 PM: A 19-year-old woman is in the King County Jail this afternoon for investigation of homicide after another woman was found dead in a White Center apartment. Here’s what King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Deputy Mike Mellis tells us:

At 7:15pm on Friday, October 25th, 2024, the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) Communications Center received a 911 call regarding a possible homicide having just occurred.

The location was a small apartment building in the 9800 block of 15th Ave SW in the White Center area … Upon arrival, KCSO deputies contacted several individuals and located a deceased adult female inside one of the rooms of the residence. Another adult female was arrested at the scene. The KCSO Major Crimes Unit detectives were called to the scene to take over the investigation. The female suspect was booked into the King County Jail at approximately 1:30 am (this) morning. The King County Medical Examiner’s Office will release the victim’s name, cause of death, and manner of death per their protocols. The King County Prosecutor’s Office will review the case reports and make a filing decision. This case remains an open and active investigation.

If you have any information, the KCSO case # is C24036038.

EVENING UPDATE: The suspect’s bail was set today at $2 million.

7:54 PM: We just got the court document from the bail hearing. Here’s the narrative, with some redactions:

(The suspect) is a tenant residing at the address of 9834 15 Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98106; a multitenant structure comprised of separate rooms rented out on a per room basis by the 73-year-old property owner… (suspect) has resided at this location, renting a room for approximately one year.

On 10/25/2024 at 7:15 pm the suspect’s brother-in-law … called the King County Sheriff’s Office Communication Center to report that (she) had told them she had killed someone and had shown (the victim’s) body in a video phone call. …
King County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the scene. Meanwhile, the King County Sheriff’s Communications Center called (the suspect, who) initially told the call receiver that said she did not do this and that it was all a joke and that she was “all the way in Everett” with ‘a friend’, denying that she had done anything. When she was then asked about the video call she made(, she) responded, “I killed her…not the friend…the one that I showed to my sister.”

The suspect subsequently told detectives that the dispute involved back rent she owned. The brother-in-law said the suspect had been threatening to kill her landlord since last month but they didn’t take her seriously.

Via a reader tip and Seattle Police regional bulletin, we learn that King County Sheriff’s Deputies are investigating an attack on a Metro bus driver. It happened in the past hour or so (after 9 am) at 15th/Roxbury. A reader says it was a northbound RapidRide H Line bus. The bulletin said the attacker broke a glass bottle over the driver’s head. They were described only as a Black man, tall, thin, in a black hoodie. If you have any information on the attack, call 911.

10:37 PM: A few people have asked why the Guardian One helicopter is over White Center right now. It’s been trying to help bring in a stolen vehicle, detected by a Lojack signal. In this case, the vehicle is occupied and on the move, refusing to stop, and it sounds like deputies don’t plan to pursue it further on the ground, though the helicopter still has eyes on it.

10:43 PM: The driver is reported to have ditched the car in Top Hat and bolted. A ground search is ensuing.

10:55 PM: The area where they’ve been searching is actually northeast White Center, 1st SW & SW 102nd. They’ve just taken someone into custody. The helicopter will be clearing the scene.

5:25 PM: According to an FYI bulletin just circulated on Seattle Police emergency radio, King County Sheriff’s Office deputies are investigating a shooting. One person is reported injured in the shooting at/near the Saar’s Super Saver Foods grocery store in the 10600 block of 16th SW. Deputies are said to be looking for a suspect described as a Hispanic man in his 20s, 5’7″, short brown hair, black clothing, with a backpack, carrying a black helmet. According to King County emergency radio, the victim is seriously injured with “multiple gunshot wounds.” (Added: Shot four times.) If you have any information, call 911.

5:47 PM: As shown in our photo, the scene appears to be at the car wash north of the store – at least, that’s where the victim was loaded into a medic unit; they’re now on the way to Harborview Medical Center. A possible suspect was found blocks away but we haven’t heard yet whether they’ve been arrested.

We’ll add anything more we find out.

6:31 PM: KCSO says they did take that suspect into custody – no other details, though, regarding the circumstances, the victim, or the suspect.

We wrote about this initially on our partner site West Seattle Blog because the Guardian One helicopter started its west-side visit over West Seattle, but are making a note here too because of what it then did over White Center: The helicopter crew picked up a Lojack signal around 11 pm Friday, indicating a stolen Jeep Wrangler was somewhere on the ground in north WC. They found it near Holy Family, and circled while deputies approached on the ground. They determined the car was empty, and the helicopter moved on

5:22 PM: Lots of questions earlier about the Guardian One helicopter over White Center/south West Seattle. Most of the ground response was gone by the time we were able to get to WC but archived King County Sheriff’s Office dispatch audio indicates Taboo Video on 16th south of 98th was robbed. Two robbers were described – descriptions broadcast over the air were partial, a Black man about 30, black clothing except for some “bluish” pants, and a white woman about 25, also in black clothing, with unspecified tattoos. They were reported to have escaped with some merchandise but no cash.

7 PM: A little more info from KCSO – the robbers did have a weapon, believed to be a Taser, but apparently did not use it, as investigators report no one was hurt. If you have any inforation, the case # is C24034078.

King County Sheriff’s Office detectives continue investigating last Friday’s holdup at the Domino’s Pizza location at 17th/Roxbury. We received two video clips, showing the robbers arriving and leaving, from a reader whose dashcam recorded this video while they were visiting a neighboring business at the time. It happened around 1:30 pm Friday (October 4). The three robbers are shown arriving and leaving in the blue Hyundai; the passerby also seen in the video was not involved.

KCSO says deputies responded but the robbers had already fled. If you have any information on the holdup, please contact KCSO.

According to a bulletin shared on Seattle Police radio, King County Sheriff’s Deputies are investigating a carjacking attempt tonight at 15th/Roxbury. We don’t know the exact time, but in the 9 pm-10 pm vicinity. Circumstances weren’t described but the suspect, who was reported to be armed, left on a “blue motorcycle.” He was reportedly possibly seen at the Coronado Springs apartment complex afterward, but gone by the time KCSO deputies arrived.

Though the state restrictions on police pursuits in 2021 didn’t change the number of pursuits in which the King County Sheriff’s Office engaged, it did have a dramatic effect on whether suspects stopped. That’s one of the stats in this KCSO announcement that its pursuit policy will change starting tomorrow:

The King County Sheriff’s Office has updated its Pursuit of Motor Vehicles policy. The Washington Legislature’s revision of law enforcement vehicle pursuit laws earlier this year prompted this change.

In June of 2024, Initiative 2113 lifted certain restrictions on vehicle pursuits, restoring the authority to pursue a fleeing suspect when there is reasonable suspicion the suspect has violated the law, but retaining many of the risk reduction requirements found in the previous legislation. This impelled the Sheriff’s Office to evaluate modifications to its policy.

Effective August 1, the revised policy continues to restrict vehicle pursuits to dangerous felonies and DUI, while modifying the definition of dangerous felony to include burglary. The policy also allows pursuits for felony crimes, and non-felony crimes against a person, under extraordinary circumstances where there is an imminent and ongoing threat to persons or the community at large.

The most important factor when deciding whether to engage in a pursuit remains the risk to the community. Deputies are required to continually weigh the danger of failing to apprehend a suspect against the danger to the community created by the pursuit.

“I have confidence in the good judgement of our deputies when weighing the dangers of a chase against the potential threat to the people of King County,” said Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall. “We have given these adjustments careful consideration. We understand the vital importance of striking a balance between holding people accountable for their actions and the well-being of the community.”

The more restrictive law, passed in 2021, only allowed law enforcement to chase suspects involved in a narrowly defined set of serious, violent crimes and required probable cause (a higher legal standard than reasonable suspicion) to chase.

Between 2018-2021, the King County Sheriff’s Office averaged just over 15 pursuits per quarter, compared to 14 per quarter from 2021-2023, after the more restrictive legislation went into effect.

In contrast, prior to the 2021 legislation, 41 suspects refused to stop for deputies every quarter, while 138 refused to stop after the 2021 pursuit legislation.

Additionally, the number of pursuits that resulted in injuries stayed static and vehicles damaged went down only slightly from almost 4 a year to 3 respectively.

The new policy lays out what factors deputies should consider when initiating a vehicle chase including communication protocol, supervisor responsibilities, when to terminate a chase, and training.

“KCSO’s vehicular pursuit policy has historically been more restrictive than the state law and that’s worked well for us,” said Undersheriff Jesse Anderson. “It was important for us to listen to community members asking us to go after dangerous criminals putting people at risk. That really helped drive our decision.”

The new policy covers all unincorporated King County, as well as the 12 cities that contract with the Sheriff’s Office.

The updated King County Sheriff’s Office Pursuit of Motor Vehicles Policy will be available in the public General Orders Manual here on August 1.

The photo is from a resident of the Coronado Springs Apartments (1400 SW 107th) who told us about a KCSO response there and a person injured by gunfire. We asked KCSO’s media team about it, and here’s what they say happened:

Today at 8:25 AM King County Sheriff’s Office 911 communications center received a call about a suspicious vehicle parked at the location of the Coronado Springs Apartments located at the 1400 block of SW 107th Street. The caller reported a person asleep behind the wheel of the car, as well as no plates on the car. After the arrival of Sheriff’s Deputies, the male in the car attempted suicide with a firearm. The responding deputies administered life-saving measures until the fire department arrived. The unknown aged and named victim was taken to Harborview Hospital via MEDIC One. … The King County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Detectives are on scene to investigate this incident.

We aren’t able to check on the person’s status without their name, so we don’t know whether they survived.

If you are having thoughts of self-harm, help is available – including the 988 crisis hotline.

ADDED TUESDAY: The King County Medical Examiner’s Office says the shooting victim did not survive. He was 28 years old.

(Victim’s photo, as displayed at April 27 vigil)

Three and a half weeks after a hit-run driver killed 81-year-old Tommy Joe Garrett at 15th/Roxbury, the King County Sheriff’s Office announced this morning that a suspect is in custody. Here’s the news release:

King County Sheriff’s Office Detectives have made an arrest in fatal pedestrian hit and run that occurred in White Center on April 22, 2024.

On April 22, 2024, just after 10 PM, an 81-year-old man was crossing SW Roxbury Street at 15th Ave SW when he was fatally struck by a vehicle in the hours of darkness. The vehicle did not stop and fled the scene. Detectives were able to identify the fleeing vehicle as a silver-colored Jeep Compass. Over the next few weeks KCSO Detectives continued checking the area businesses and residences to trace the vehicle’s route pre and post collision. This eventually led them to identifying a vehicle license plate with a view of the driver, a lone 37-year-old male driver. With the help of the King County Metro Transit PD Street Crimes Detectives, the driver was arrested yesterday without incident on a traffic stop as he was leaving a home in the Puyallup area. He was eventually booked for investigation of the fatal hit and run into the King County Jail. The driver subsequently admitted that he moved the Jeep to Port Orchard, where he had it parked under a tarp at a family member’s residence. King County Sheriff’s Office Detectives have recovered the vehicle, and it was brought back to King County as evidence and for processing.

This case is still an active and open investigation. We are not naming the suspect as he has not been charged yet by the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office. We hope to have more information to release whenthe case has concluded.

We’re working to find out more and will add details when we do.

According to a bulletin heard on the Seattle Police frequency, King County Sheriff’s Deputies are investigating a shooting at 14th SW/SW 100th. The victim is described as a man shot in the leg. Medics were dispatched at 8:44 pm, according to the South King Fire 911 log. There’s no word yet on a description of who shot the victim, but deputies are reported to be looking for two vehicles that might be involved – a red Hyundai SUV and a black sedan. Both were seen westbound on SW 100th. If you have any information, call 911.

2:52 PM: The King County Sheriff’s Office says that’s the vehicle whose driver hit and killed an 81-year-old man at 15th/Roxbury on Monday night; the crash was first reported on our partner site West Seattle Blog.. Today KCSO released the photo with this request for help:

Case#: C24013796

On Monday, April 22nd, just after 10:00 PM, the King County Sheriff’s Office received 911 calls reporting a hit and run just south of the intersection of SW Roxbury Street and 15th Ave SW in unincorporated White Center.

On arrival, deputies located the victim, an adult male in his 80s. The victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center, where he later was pronounced deceased.

KCSO’s Major Accident Response & Reconstruction (MARR) detectives are asking for the community’s help in locating the fleeing vehicle. The suspected vehicle (picture attached) is described as a silver, 2007-2016 Jeep Compass with front-end damage to the grill and hood.

If you have any information about the incident or were in the area and may have dash camera footage, call 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), visit P3Tips.com, or use the P3 Tip App. Tips are anonymous.

4:12 PM: The King County Medical Examiner’s Office released the victim’s name this afternoon: Thomas J. Garrett.

10:16 PM: Thanks to the reader who emailed to ask about a large emergency response around 8:30 pm at 16th SW/SW 107th. According to recorded dispatch audio, a 66-year-old man walking at that intersection was hit and injured by a pickup-truck driver. His injuries were not initially reported to be life-threatening, but he was being taken to a hospital and was described as in stable condition. We’re following up with KCSO to see what they can tell us about the circumstances.

ADDED MONDAY MORNING: KCSO says the driver was not arrested/cited as there “was no crime.” The pedestrian’s injuries were not life-threatening.

(Added: WCN photos)

3:10 PM: Thanks for the tips. The Guardian One helicopter, and deputies on the ground, are searching after what the 911 log describes as a shooting near Evergreen High School. Other schools in the area have been on lockdown/shelter in place, including Cascade Middle School and West Seattle Montessori. We’re working to find out details.

3:37 PM: The school lockdowns have been lifted and Guardian One has left the area. We’ve sent a reporter to a designated media meetup location with a King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson, so we hope to have some details shortly.

4:25 PM: We spoke in person with media-relations Sgt. Eric White. We’ll add the video of his briefing shortly, but here’s what he said: 911 got a call about a shooting just before 2:30 pm. Near 11th SW and SW 114th [vicinity map], they found a man who had been shot in the back. He’s been taken to the hospital. Sgt. White did not have information on the circumstances that preceded the shooting, nor a description of the shooter, nor the victim’s condition. He did confirm that helicopter and K-9 searches have ended for now, and school lockdowns (including Cascade MS and West Seattle Montessori) have been lifted. (And as you can see from our photo, at least 12 casings were found.) Anyone with information is asked to call 206-296-3311.

ADDED: Here’s our video of what Sgt. White told us:

6:29 PM: From the recorded dispatch/deputies audio shortly after the first report – at least one witness saw the shooter running from the scene, but could only describe him as an unknown-race male, 5’8″, black hoodie, gray sweatpants, tucking a handgun into his pants as he fled the scene. We don’t have any additional information about the victim but his injury was initially assessed as serious. The KCSO case number is C24-008652.