EVERETT — Prosecutors aren’t expected to file criminal charges against the man who body-slammed Jeremy See outside a former coffee shop on Colby Avenue last year.
See, 32, died from head injuries two days later. The Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office classified his death as a homicide, a medical determination, not a legal finding.
Snohomish County chief criminal deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson recently wrote a letter to Everett police detectives detailing his office’s decision not to prosecute the man who killed See.
Based on the investigation, “there is no probability that the State could overcome a claim of self-defense,” Matheson wrote in the March 15 letter.
The Oct. 26, 2016, incident unfolded at the former Firewheel Community Coffeehouse. See’s ex-girlfriend told police that he was bothering her inside the cafe. Her friend confronted See, telling him to stay away from the woman. The confrontation spilled outside the coffee shop.
Witnesses described See rushing at the man and throwing a punch. See didn’t make contact and the other man, who was much bigger, picked See up and slammed him into the sidewalk, according to court records.
The impact fractured See’s skull. He was taken to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett, where he died.
The Daily Herald is not naming the other man because he hasn’t been charged with a crime.
No witnesses reported seeing the larger man strike See or put hands on him once he was on the ground, Matheson wrote in his letter.
There were some rumors the man was a mixed martial arts fighter. Police never were able to verify this information, the deputy prosecutor wrote.
“The various people who claim to have knowledge of it were not forthcoming with police regarding this information, or where police might substantiate it,” Matheson added.
Jurors would hear that See rushed at the man and took a swing. They’d also hear that the man slammed See to the ground but didn’t touch him after that.
“A jury likely would conclude that this act (body slamming Mr. See) was reasonable under the circumstances,” Matheson wrote. “Thus, the State could not overcome a claim of or disprove self-defense.”
See’s family had reported that he was attending a Narcotics Anonymous meeting at the coffee shop. They said he’d been sober for some time.
His family created a public Facebook page, “Justice for Jeremy.” Through the page, they had issued a statement describing See as a caring and giving man whose organs were donated to help others live.
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com.
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