Hammer used to kill Sultan man

SULTAN — David Grimm was asleep when he was attacked with a claw hammer.

Now, Snohomish County prosecutors say his ex-girlfriend Debra Canady and her new boyfriend, Brent Starr, orchestrated the vicious attack not only to get Grimm out of their lives but also possibly to make some money.

New details about the June 26 killing were revealed Wednesday in Everett District Court.

Canady’s attorney asked a judge to lower the Sultan woman’s bail. Everett attorney Karen Halverson asked for a $25,000 bail.

She argued that the case against Canady is flimsy. There’s no indication of physical evidence linking her client to Grimm’s death, Halverson said. Detectives simply have a text message and have made assumptions about a possible motive, she said.

“It’s a little bit thin,” she said.

Canady isn’t a risk to flee and doesn’t have any past criminal history, Halverson said. She’s lived in the area for 11 years and holds down a job in Monroe.

Chief criminal deputy prosecutor Joan Cavagnaro asked the judge to deny Halverson’s request and instead increase bail to $1 million. Starr, who is accused of wielding the hammer, is being held on $1 million.

Detectives have uncovered evidence that Canady allegedly planned the attack and actively tried to cover it up, Cavagnaro said.

“This was a particularly brutal murder. The victim was attacked while he slept,” she said.

Grimm was left with a fractured skull and there was evidence of more than 15 blows to his head, court records show.

The defendants may have been motivated to kill him to collect proceeds from life insurance, Cavagnaro told the judge.

Prosecutors earlier this week charged the pair in district court with first-degree murder while using a deadly weapon. They have until July 25 to file charges in Superior Court.

Everett District Court Judge Tam Bui maintained bail for Canady at $500,000.

Grimm, 49, left behind two sons. One was in the courtroom on Wednesday, along with sheriff’s detectives. The man was visibly shaken as prosecutors described the weapon used to kill his father.

Police found Grimm lying in bed, surrounded by blood splatters on the walls.

Detectives arrested Canady, 46, and Grimm, 30, after obtaining a search warrant to access text-message records. Investigators found a conversation the couple believed they’d erased but that instead documented their alleged involvement in the killing, according to court papers. Detectives included a portion of the alleged text conversation in a search warrant filed Wednesday.

On the day of the beating, Starr allegedly sent Canady a message that read, “It’s done,” and asked his girlfriend to fetch a change of pants, the court documents said. Later, he reportedly sent another message telling her he found clean pants and apologized for making a mess of Grimm’s room.

The cell-phone text messages show Canady knew the killing was going to take place and that it was “possibly at her direction,” sheriff’s detective Patrick VanderWeyst wrote.

Starr told detectives Grimm stood in the way of his relationship with Canady. Grimm continued to live with Canady, despite their breakup a few months ago.

There may have been a reason Canady didn’t force Grimm to leave.

Detectives found embarrassing photos of a sexual nature when they searched a safe in the home and a briefcase Grimm had in his pickup truck, according to court papers. Investigators believe Grimm may have been keeping the photos as a way to force Canady to allow him to stay in her home.

The photos allegedly depict Canady engaging in bestiality, the documents said.

Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.

Text messages

Here are the text messages detectives allege were sent by the couple charged with a June 26 beating death in Sultan:

“it’s done”

“I need pants”

“U coming here”

“nevermind, I have a pair. Have a great day. Is messy in yr room, sorry.”

“Was it quiet”

“mostly”

“he thought I was (somebody else)”

“U may have to toss yr clothes if they come to question you”