First-degree murder charge added for suspect in Everett 7-Eleven shooting

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, April 29, 2026

EVERETT – A man accused of shooting and killing a stranger at a south Everett convenience store now faces an additional murder charge as the case nears trial.

Jose “Jackson” Navarro Padilla, 58, of Everett, pleaded not guilty to a new charge of first-degree murder with a firearm in Snohomish County Superior Court on Tuesday in connection to the 2022 shooting death of 36-year-old Daniel Chavez outside a 7-Eleven store on Airport Road.

Prosecutors said the two men did not know each other before Navarro Padilla allegedly opened fire at point-blank range, according to charging papers from the time. Navarro Padilla has been behind bars in Snohomish County since 2022 on charges of second-degree murder with a firearm for Chavez’s death.

In court on Tuesday, Snohomish County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Cheryl Johnson did not say why the first-degree murder charge was added. The prosecutor’s office did not immediately respond to a request for additional information.

Navarro Padilla was arrested and charged one month after first responders found Chavez with gunshot wounds to his forehead, abdomen and arm outside the convenience store at Airport Road and Evergreen Way on Sept. 16, 2022, court documents said. Chavez died at the hospital two days later.

Security footage from the night of the shooting shows Navarro Padilla and Chavez at the checkout counter at the same time, according to charging documents. Prosecutors said Navarro Padilla could be seen on video glaring at Chavez and shaking his head, but the pair did not interact.

Investigators believe Chavez left the store about a minute after Navarro Padilla. The victim was shot less than a minute later and Padilla was seen on camera running from the scene, according to court documents.

Witnesses helped police identify Navarro Padilla as the suspect and told officers the men were arguing in Spanish before the gunfire.

After his arrest, Navarro Padilla reportedly told investigators Chavez was causing problems in the store.

“The defendant said that outside the store, Chavez was still being aggressive and swearing, so the defendant confronted him,” prosecutors wrote. “The defendant said that Chavez took a fighting stance, at which time the defendant said he put his right hand in his jacket pocket where he had a revolver and told those nearby, ‘This is gonna get bad.’”

Navarro Padilla allegedly told investigators he shot the victim twice. He said Chavez did not have any weapons or threaten him before the shooting.

While representing himself in court with the help of standby counsel, Navarro Padilla has filed several motions to have his confessions suppressed, claiming his statements may have been coerced.

On Tuesday, Navarro Padilla agreed to accept representation from a court-appointed defense attorney. Johnson said this is the fifth court-appointed attorney to represent Navarro Padilla since his arrest, leading to delays in bringing the case to trial.

“It’s time for this case to come to a resolution, one way or another,” Johnson told the courtroom.

Judge George Appel agreed to allow the defense attorney to represent Navarro Padilla on the condition that the trial was not delayed any further. The case is scheduled for a jury trial beginning May 8, and prosecutors expect the trial to take about two weeks.

Some of the prosecution’s video evidence may be in doubt after Appel denied a request to admit and authenticate the surveillance video before a jury trial begins.

Johnson said the two Everett police detectives who collected the footage no longer work for the department and may not be able to make it to trial, but Appel said he had no basis to admit the evidence without the jury knowing the circumstances.

“I’ve never seen such a thing, I’m dubious to do what you’ve asked,” Appel told the prosecutor before rejecting the request.

Court records show Navarro Padilla had a pair of active warrants out for his arrest in Skagit County at the time of the shooting. He’s been held at the Snohomish County Jail on more than $1 million bail since October 2022.

Ian Davis-Leonard: 425-339-3097; ian.davis-leonard@heraldnet.com