Investigation into attorney’s slaying deepens

SEATTLE – A Justice Department organized-crime prosecutor has been assigned to lead the federal investigation into the slaying of Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas C. Wales.

Joshua Nesbitt, 43, spent several days in Seattle last week being briefed on the case by federal and local detectives before returning to Washington, D.C., on Friday. He is expected to return within a few days, The Seattle Times reported Saturday.

Wales, who specialized in prosecuting white-collar fraud and was also a vocal gun-control advocate, was shot to death at his home in Seattle’s Queen Anne neighborhood Oct. 12. A gunman fired several shots through a basement window into a home office where Wales was working.

Chehalis

Five years for vehicular homicide: A Morton man was sentenced to five years in prison for a single-car accident that killed two of his friends and injured another. Brad Wayne Storm, 21, was sentenced Wednesday in Lewis County Superior Court. A jury convicted him in September of two counts of vehicular homicide and one count of vehicular assault. Storm’s truck crashed off a logging road near Morton on March 24, rolling several times down a steep embankment and striking several large rocks before coming to a rest on its side. Killed were passengers Trevor Nolan Whitlow, 25, of Morton, and JeTaime D. Hall, 19, of Packwood. Another person in the truck, Nadine Jamison, 15, was seriously injured. Storm’s blood-alcohol level after the crash was found to be above the legal limit.

Longview

Child rape sentence: A man convicted of child rape has been sentenced to 26 1/2years in prison.

Jessey Fern Reed, 24, was sentenced Thursday by Cowlitz County Superior Court Judge Stephen Warning. He received the maximum time under state sentencing guidelines for one count of rape and two counts of child molestation.

Warning said the evidence showed that Reed sexually assaulted a 9-year-old girl seven times in 1999.

Defense attorney Sam Wardle said Reed was abused as a boy and was a sex-crime victim himself, but he never got the treatment he needed.

Reed was convicted in 1997 of second-degree child molestation.

British Columbia

She can keep the snake: The great snake saga appears to have come to an end after a mother battling to keep the family’s 18-foot pet python and her children signed an agreement with government officials. Kerry-Ann Koop, who owns the 140-pound snake, signed the agreement Thursday night with the British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development. Among other things, the agreement requires Koop, who has six young children, to keep the giant pet inside its habitat with locks and an alarm. When the snake is released from its indoor habitat, there must be two adults present. In addition, when the snake is out of its habitat, a “sharp knife adequate to sever his spine” must be kept close by, the agreement says.

Alaska

Moose takes a swing: Wildlife biologists on the Kenai Peninsula are looking for a moose that dragged off an 18-foot swing set from a Nikiski yard. Parts of the swing have been found but biologists believe the animal is still entangled in ropes and chains. “This moose will be pretty easy to recognize,” said Larry Lewis, a state wildlife technician. In the past, wildlife workers have disentangled moose antlers from tires, garden hoses and Christmas lights.

Oregon

Guilty plea in child’s death: Robert David Walker has pleaded guilty to murdering 5-year-old Tucker Lee Sherman last March after repeatedly assaulting him over several months. Walker, 30, pleaded guilty In a court in The Dalles Thursday to intentional murder and faces a mandatory 25-year prison term with no chance of parole. Sentencing is set for Nov. 8. Tucker Sherman’s mother, 27-year-old Rebecca Michelle Sherman, still faces a charge of manslaughter and is accused of recklessly causing the boy’s death by neglect or maltreatment.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Customers enter and exit the Costco on Dec. 2, 2022, in Lake Stevens. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Costco stores could be impacted by looming truck driver strike threat

Truck drivers who deliver groceries and produce to Costco warehouses… Continue reading

Two Washington State ferries pass along the route between Mukilteo and Clinton as scuba divers swim near the shore Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023, in Mukilteo, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ferry system increases ridership by a half million in 2024

Edmonds-Kingston route remains second-busiest route in the system.

Firefighters respond to a 911 call on July 16, 2024, in Mill Creek. Firefighters from South County Fire, Tulalip Bay Fire Department and Camano Island Fire and Rescue left Wednesday to help fight the LA fires. (Photo provided by South County Fire)
Help is on the way: Snohomish County firefighters en route to LA fires

The Los Angeles wildfires have caused at least 180,000 evacuations. The crews expect to arrive Friday.

x
Edmonds police shooting investigation includes possibility of gang violence

The 18-year-old victim remains in critical condition as of Friday morning.

The Everett Wastewater Treatment Plant along the Snohomish River. Thursday, June 16, 2022 in Everett. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett council approves water, sewer rate increases

The 43% rise in combined water and sewer rates will pay for large infrastructure projects.

Robin Cain with 50 of her marathon medals hanging on a display board she made with her father on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025 in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Running a marathon is hard. She ran one in every state.

Robin Cain, of Lake Stevens, is one of only a few thousand people to ever achieve the feat.

People line up to grab food at the Everett Recovery Cafe on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Coffee, meals and compassion are free at the Everett Recovery Cafe

The free, membership-based day center offers free coffee and meals and more importantly, camaraderie and recovery support.

Devani Padron, left, Daisy Ramos perform during dance class at Mari's Place Monday afternoon in Everett on July 13, 2016. (Kevin Clark / The Herald)
Mari’s Place helps children build confidence and design a better future

The Everett-based nonprofit offers free and low-cost classes in art, music, theater and dance for children ages 5 to 14.

The Everett Wastewater Treatment Plant along the Snohomish River on Thursday, June 16, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett water, sewer rates could jump 43% by 2028

The rate hikes would pay for improvements to the city’s sewer infrastructure.

The bond funded new track and field at Northshore Middle School on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024 in Bothell, Washington. (Courtesy of Northshore School District)
Northshore School District bond improvements underway

The $425 million bond is funding new track and field complexes, playgrounds and phase one of two school replacements.

Pharmacist Nisha Mathew prepares a Pfizer COVID booster shot for a patient at Bartell Drugs on Broadway on Saturday, Oct. 1, 2022, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Everett lawmakers back universal health care bill, introduced in Olympia

Proponents say providing health care for all is a “fundamental human right.” Opponents worry about the cost of implementing it.

Outside of the updated section of Lake Stevens High School on Thursday, Feb. 27, 2020 in Lake Stevens, Wa. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lake Stevens, Arlington school measures on Feb. 11 ballot

A bond in Lake Stevens and a levy in Arlington would be used to build new schools.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.