EVERETT — A Snohomish County judge wasn’t persuaded that a Shoreline man’s threats to blow up a state Department of Corrections office in Lynnwood were part of a psychotic break.
David Moyer, 42, is living with mental illness but he understood what he was doing was wrong, Superior Court Judge Bruce Weiss concluded Monday. Moyer has a history of acting out to get attention, including at least one other bomb threat in recent years, the judge said. Sadly, he chose to victimize the people who were trying to help him, Weiss added.
Moyer was sentenced Monday to nearly five years in prison.
Weiss declined the defense’s request to show Moyer leniency based on his history of mental illness.
“The defendant knew what he was doing here,” the judge said.
Moyer walked into the office on Feb. 18 and claimed he was armed with a gun. He also announced that there was a bomb in the large bags he was carrying. Moyer tossed the bags at the reception window, shattering it.
A corrections officer hid under the front counter and called 911. She was crouched there, inches from the bags and the defendant, for nearly an hour. Tactical officers crept into the office and had to drag the woman out because she was unable to move her legs.
The corrections officer has since been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, the judge was told Monday.
Witnesses told police that when Moyer walked in he identified himself as an FBI agent and said he’d killed someone. He demanded to speak with a community corrections officer he knew by name. Witnesses said he became upset when someone asked to see his badge.
Police from around the area converged on the scene.
Moyer disrobed during the standoff with police. He eventually surrendered, walking out of the building nude with his hands in the air.
Bomb technicians used a robot to determine that there wasn’t an explosive in the bags or anywhere in the building.
The incident lasted about five hours.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463, hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley
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