Everett teen charged in beating that caused severe head injuries

Published 1:30 am Saturday, April 8, 2023

EVERETT — A young man walked into a 7-Eleven on Casino Road one night in October 2022, bleeding all over with a large gash in his head.

He asked the clerk for help, but was “kicked out of the store,” according to court documents.

He woke up in a hospital with a skull fracture and traumatic brain injury. He remained there for 10 days, according to court papers.

An Everett teen has been charged with first-degree assault for the attack on his former friend last year. Despite being 17, the defendant was charged as an adult. According to state code, if the defendant is 16 or 17 and charged with a serious violent offense, it must be filed in adult court.

Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Millie Judge set bail this week at $250,000. The suspect, however, was released the same day when his mother posted bond.

The defendant and the injured man, now 21, were friends before he started dating the defendant’s ex-girlfriend sometime in 2021, court documents say. The defendant reportedly was “enraged” when he found out about their relationship and ended the friendship.

The defendant and the young woman eventually got back together, the charges say. He planned to attack his former friend when he found texts between the other two. He began sending the older man threatening texts and voice messages, according to court documents.

In October 2021, the defendant crossed paths with the man at a party in Stanwood. As the older man was leaving the party, the suspect “jumped at” him, kicked him and punched him in the face, court documents say. The man reportedly was hospitalized with a concussion.

About a year later, the man was on his way home from a work party along Casino Road and 5th Avenue. While he was walking, he heard a familiar voice call out his name.

“I’m going to kill you,” the voice said.

He turned around and saw a red sedan behind him, and “immediately recognized” the defendant along with two other people in the passenger seat, according to the charges.

The man tried to get away. According to court documents, someone knocked him to the ground and hit him over the head twice with a “hard, red-colored object” that he believed was a metal tube.

Around 2:30 a.m. Oct. 8, 2022, a witness called 911 to report two people chasing the injured man in the in the 500 block of W Casino Road. The two people eventually got back into their car and left. The bleeding man tried to approach the witness, but she didn’t want to get involved, according to court documents.

The injured man was later picked up by police at the 7-Eleven in the same block, wearing only shorts and socks, charges say.

The injured man messaged the defendant on Snapchat while in the hospital, telling him he’d almost left him dead on the street, according to the charges. The teen reportedly replied: “LMFAO I hit ya ass alone n left you almost dead you a (expletive).”

The injured man reported the defendant is part of a gang. The defendant was accused of firing a gun into an occupied vehicle last year, but was eventually released. It did not appear any formal charges were filed in that case. The teen had no other documented criminal history.

A jury trial was scheduled to start in May.

Maya Tizon; 425-339-3434; maya.tizon@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @mayatizon