Associated Press
SEATTLE — Prosecutors on Monday charged a couple in connection with a shooting during a demonstration over the appearance of a right-wing speaker at the University of Washington in January.
Elizabeth Hokoana, 29, was charged with first-degree assault with a firearm enhancement for shooting a 34-year-old protester in the abdomen. Her husband, Marc Hokoana, who was initially suspected of the shooting, was charged with third-degree assault.
Joshua Dukes, 34, was critically injured in the Jan. 20 shooting. He underwent several surgeries but has been released from the hospital.
The incident happened outside the appearance of Milo Yiannopoulos, a far-right commentator who is known for leading a hate campaign that resulted in a lifetime ban from Twitter.
Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg said Monday that the evidence will show the two took a gun into a volatile protest on the Seattle campus.
“Marc Hokoana engaged in several provocative acts, including using pepper spray on the crowd,” Satterberg said in his statement. “The crowd reacted predictably to being pepper sprayed, but the evidence will show that at the time Elizabeth Hokoana fired her pistol that her husband was not in imminent danger,” he added.
The attorney for each defendant emailed a joint statement Monday. They declined to say more about the case.
“We have provided the police and the prosecution evidence showing that our clients acted lawfully in defense of others,” the attorneys Kim Gordon and Steven Wells said in the statement. Wells represents Elizabeth Hokoana, while Gordon represents her husband.
“We look forward to presenting our case to a jury and we anticipate an acquittal,” the attorneys said.
Warrants have been issued for their arrests, but the couple is not expected to be booked before their arraignment set for May 8, according to their attorneys and the prosecutor’s office. Prosecutors have sought $50,000 bail for each.
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