Local News

A man accused of beating 16-year-old Tyler Parker to death on a Covington roadside Saturday has been charged with second-degree murder.

The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office says Robert Thomas “Bobby” Green of Covington has a clear history of alcohol abuse and is being held at King County Jail on $1 million bail. Green’s previous violations include breaking a protection order in 2008 and, as a juvenile, fourth-degree assault and possession of stolen property.

Green told King County Sheriff”s detectives that he and a friend had been drinking before they saw Parker near their home in the 19400 block of Southeast 267th Street early Saturday morning, and that he thought Parker was a prowler. The two then approached Parker, who had been intoxicated himself that day, according to detectives.

Earlier that morning, Parker had been hostile with Sheriff’s deputies and identified himself as a gang member with clothing that supported the claim, court papers say. The deputies dropped Parker off at a relative’s house, but Parker apparently left that house soon after and walked toward Green’s home.

Green said that Parker identified himself as a cocaine dealer whose gang controlled Green’s block, according to court documents. After Parker made threatening statements close to Green’s face, the documents say Green knocked Parker down and started beating him. Green continued the beating long after Parker was unconscious, according to a witness who said he tried to stop Green.

“I didn’t know Bobby was going to freak out on him,” the witness said, according to court documents.

Even after Green dragged Parker’s body about three houses away, fearing retaliation from Parker’s gang, court papers say, the witness had to keep Green from continuing to beat Parker. Green and the witness said Parker was breathing when they left him, according to the papers, but when they came back and poured beer on his face to wake him up, they realized he was dead.

After someone tipped law enforcement about Green and the beating, Green told detectives that he had beaten others severely in the past as well, according to court papers.

“You get hit a few times, you fall, you know, you wake up,” Green said to detectives, according to the papers. “You get up, you live to fight another, another, another, another, another day.”

But that obviously wasn’t true for Parker, who was found crumpled with blood streaked behind him and stomping marks on his face that matched shoes detectives found in Green’s home, court papers say. The King County Medical Examiner’s Office said Parker died of head trauma.

PULLMAN (AP) — Pullman police Monday investigated a beating that put a Washington State University faculty member in the hospital with a serious head injury.

A 48-year-old man who was beaten with his shotgun last summer in Seattle’s Capitol Hill died at a long-term care center this morning.

Seattle police say the man got into a confrontation with three men on the night of  July 22 near Summit Avenue and East Olive Street. The man walked away from the confrontation and allegedly came back with a shotgun to threaten them with.

The men then disarmed him and struck him with the gun, police said. According to the Capitol Hill Seattle Blog, the man had been struck in the head and there were pools of blood next to him when medics arrived.

Police released two of the men and booked a third for narcotics possession.

The 48-year-old man was taken to Harborview after the confrontation, then transferred to a long-term care facility where he died earlier today.

Homicide detectives are still investigating the case,but are in contact with everyone involved and do not believe the fight was random.

The King County Medical Examiner’s Office is waiting to identify the man until family members are notified.

The 46-year-old victim of a beating in Spanaway Monday will have to have facial reconstructive surgery, according to his son. (Family photo)

Pierce County deputies are looking for a man who punched and kicked another man’s face so hard in Spanaway this week that the victim will need facial-reconstructive surgery.

The 46-year-old victim accidentally cut off the suspect as he exited a 7-Eleven in Spanaway around 4:10 p.m. on Monday, according to the victim’s son. The suspect, driving a dark green or gray sedan that looked like a Ford or Chevrolet, then tailgated the 46-year-old until both pulled over on the 17900 block of Pacific Avenue South.

The man who cut the suspect off apologized with his arms up and said the offense was unintentional, according to his son, but the suspect dragged him behind his car and proceeded to punch and kick the man’s face repeatedly. A witness who tried to intervene in the beating was also punched before the suspect fled in a car that had a light-skinned female passenger inside.

The victim’s son said the suspect broke so many bones in his father’s face that he will undergo facial-reconstruction surgery Friday. He described his father as a kind, non-violent man who loves his two grandchildren.

The suspect is described as a black male in his 20s, about 5-foot-8, slender build, with short black hair, according to the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department. At the time of the beating, he wore a green and brown fleece jacket.

Anyone with information that leads to an arrest is eligible for a reward if they call Crime Stoppers at 253-591-5959. According to the victim’s son, the reward amount is up to $2,250 and may go higher. Callers can remain anonymous.

Two young men who beat up a 53-year-old soccer coach from Seattle in front of his teenage daughter Wednesday are being sought by Lynnood police.

The private-league soccer coach and his teen daughter were waiting for other teammates to show up at Meadowdale High School in Lynnwood when three young men approached, according to the Lynnwood Police Department. The two suspects insulted both the father and the daughter, then assaulted the father, but did not harm the daughter. After the beating, all three fled on foot.

The father suffered multiple bruises and abrasions to his face, but did not need to be taken to a hospital, according to police.

One suspect is described as a white male, about 15 to 17 years old, shaggy blonde hair, 5-foot-10 and weighing about 160 pounds. The other suspect is about the same age with darker skin, angular facial features and short hair.

Lynnwood police ask anyone with information on the suspects to call their detectives at 425-670-5669.

The owner of a South Renton smoke shop was robbed inside his business Wednedsay and severely beaten in the process, Renton police say.

A video  released by police showed the two suspects, identified by police as Joel White and Christopher Lockett Jr.  beating owner with a stick, bottles, fists and feet.

White was arrested Friday by detectives, but Lockett remains at large.

Renton Police are asking anyone with knowledge of Lockett’s whereabouts to call 911 and consider the man violent and dangerous.

The Associated Press

BELLINGHAM — The Whatcom Humane Society is hoping a $5,000 reward will lead to the discovery of who was responsible for the torture and beating of two puppies, including one that died.

The 5-month-old shepherd mixes were found April 1 by a driver on the Lummi Indian Reservation. The surviving puppy is in critical condition at a Bellingham veterinary clinic.

Whatcom Humane Society Director Laura Clark said the person or persons responsible could face a first-degree animal cruelty charge, which is a Class C felony.

Weather: Darn cold overnight, with temps in the 20s in many places, ice on car windows and some slippery roads. Didn’t we say we’d have spring-like weather this week? Can’t get here soon enough.  It is supposed to be clear later today and tomorrow, and looks like there will be some sun. And then there’s that 60 degree forecast for Friday, too!  The National Weather Service forecast.

Traffic: The map and cams.

Tuba Man killer back behind bars: The teen who spent time in juvie detention in the killing of Tuba Man Edward McMichael in 2008 is in jail for reportedly carrying a gun, something he’s barred from doing. Kenneth Kelly was stopped after a chase by gang cops late last month. He and two other teens were convicted of beating and robbing McMichael, who was known for playing his tuba outside sporting venues.  KOMO has the story.

The P-I Globe and landmark status: The Landmarks Preservation Board is scheduled to consider the landmark nomination of the P-I Globe. You’re invited to attend and comment on giving landmark status to the huge, iconic globe on Elliot Avenue West. Oh, board meets at 3:30 p.m. at the Seattle Municipal Tower, 700 5th Avenue, 40th Floor, Room 4060.

Shootout: A bail bondsman and another man were wounded in a shootout Tuesday night in Burien.

Good Samaritan killer sentenced in Wenatchee: The man who punched and killed a bystander who tried to help him with his broken-down van will serve more than 15 years in prison. According to The Wenatchee W0rld, Juan Manuel González-González was convicted of manslaughter in the death of  José Guadalupe García-Sevilla, who went to González-González’s aid when his vehicle stalled and was punched in the face. García-Sevilla fell, hit his head and died the next day.

Most-read stories this morning on seattletimes.com:

1. How Seattle home-invasion suspect had gotten out of prison
2. AP Source: Colts expected to part with Manning
3. Prosecutor says woman charged with prostitution has powerful ties
4. Counseling, not jail, for boy, 9, in Bremerton shooting
5. Felix Hernandez dazzles in 8-6 Mariners victory | Mariners Blog

The Associated Press

SPOKANE – A federal judge has denied a defense motion to acquit a Spokane police officer who has already been convicted of using excessive force in a case that ultimately led to the death of a mentally ill man.

U.S. District Court Judge Fred Van Sickle ruled Monday that a reasonable jury could conclude that Officer Karl Thompson acted willfully in his 2006 confrontation with janitor Otto Zehm.

Thompson’s lawyers had sought the acquittal on grounds there was no evidence that he acted with bad or evil purpose in beating Zehm.

Thompson was convicted by a jury of using excessive force and then lying about it to investigators. He faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced on Jan. 27.