John Blaine Reed (left) accused of murdering Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn, listens as Snohomish County chief criminal deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson makes opening statements in his trial at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Thursday in Everett. (Andy Bronson / The Herald)

John Blaine Reed (left) accused of murdering Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn, listens as Snohomish County chief criminal deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson makes opening statements in his trial at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Thursday in Everett. (Andy Bronson / The Herald)

Trial over Oso murders begins with a self-defense claim

His attorney says John Reed, charged with killing Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn, will testify.

EVERETT — An Oso couple was killed and their bodies were hidden in the woods in 2016 because they had the misfortune of making their home next to a neighbor capable of cold-blooded murder, a Snohomish County jury was told Thursday.

Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude had a beautiful house on about 20 acres bordering the North Fork Stillaguamish River. From the outside, it looked perfect, but it was a “fool’s paradise,” said Craig Matheson, the county’s chief criminal deputy prosecutor.

That’s because their neighbor was John Blaine Reed, 55, a man with whom they had a longstanding feud, Matheson said.

“Monique and Patrick had messed with the wrong guy too many times over too many years,” and that ended in death for the husband and wife April 11, 2016, Matheson said.

The prosecutor spoke with jurors as the trial began for Reed on two counts of aggravated murder.

Defense attorney Phil Sayles said he expects Reed to testify that he was forced to act in self-defense.

“We’ll explain what happened,” Sayles said. “John will tell you what happened.”

Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude (Family photo)

Patrick Shunn and Monique Patenaude (Family photo)

Prosecutors want to paint Reed as a “diabolical madman,” he said. The portrayal doesn’t square with a man who had property buyout checks in hand from the county. Reed’s former land was damaged by the deadly Oso mudslide and related flooding in 2014.

“All he wanted to do was move on,” Sayles said.

Detectives maintain the killings were the culmination of a long-running dispute between Reed and the couple. The pair told people they lived in fear of the man. It was so bad that in 2013, Shunn took the step of making a police report, the prosecutor said.

The animus reportedly got worse after the mudslide made Reed’s land unsafe for habitation. Reed took a disaster buyout, but he had been squatting at the site. Patenaude reported him, according to court papers.

On the morning of the killings, Reed called a former neighbor and others, sharing his plans to go back to the house to retrieve his property.

Mike Shunn reacts as Snohomish County chief criminal deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson makes opening statements in the trial of John Blaine Reed, accused of murdering Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn, at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Thursday in Everett. (Andy Bronson / The Herald)

Mike Shunn reacts as Snohomish County chief criminal deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson makes opening statements in the trial of John Blaine Reed, accused of murdering Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn, at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Thursday in Everett. (Andy Bronson / The Herald)

Evidence will show Reed first killed Patenaude, 46, most likely as she returned from a mid-morning trip into Arlington to buy chicken feed and cat food, jurors were told. She never made it back into her house.

She was shot three times. The first bullet shattered the bones in her right forearm. The fatal shots were in her neck and head. The likely location of the killing was a gate that led to the couple’s home and an access path to Reed’s former property.

Shunn was shot about four hours later when he arrived after work. The bullet was fired into the back of his head, so close that burnt gunpowder left soot marks on his skin, Matheson said.

Reed killed the man as part of an attempt to buy some time and hide evidence of Patenaude’s slaying, the prosecutor said. He said jurors would hear from Reed’s brother, Tony, about efforts the pair made to hide the dead couple and their cars in the hills above the neighborhood. John Reed knew the logging roads, ravines and creeks seldom seen by anyone but locals and hunters.

Snohomish County chief criminal deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson points his fingers like a gun as he makes opening statements at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Thursday in Everett in the trial of John Blaine Reed, accused of murdering Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn. (Andy Bronson / The Herald)

Snohomish County chief criminal deputy prosecutor Craig Matheson points his fingers like a gun as he makes opening statements at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Thursday in Everett in the trial of John Blaine Reed, accused of murdering Monique Patenaude and Patrick Shunn. (Andy Bronson / The Herald)

The men also destroyed a camera used to photograph wild game. The camera might have been linked to Shunn’s laptop. The brothers feared the device might have captured one or both killings, Matheson said. He contends that neighbors’ surveillance footage shows the brothers repeatedly heading to and from the woods during the time frame they reportedly were disposing of evidence.

The brothers fled to Mexico as the couple’s disappearance drew the attention of law enforcement. John Reed was arrested in July 2016. Tony Reed had turned himself in weeks earlier. He led police to the grave site.

Matheson showed the jury pictures of the disturbed earth, obscured by a fallen rootball.

“This is what that man did,” he said of John Reed.

If convicted, the defendant faces life in prison.

Scott North: 425-339-3431; north@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @snorthnews.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Olivia Vanni / The Herald 
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County.
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mukilteo mayor vetoes council-approved sales tax

The tax would have helped pay for transportation infrastructure, but was also set to give Mukilteo the highest sales tax rate in the state.

Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring gives the state of the city address at the Marysville Civic Center on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Marysville council approves interim middle housing law

The council passed the regulations to prevent a state model code from taking effect by default. It expects to approve final rules by October.

x
State audit takes issue with Edmonds COVID grant monitoring

The audit report covered 2023 and is the third since 2020 that found similar issues with COVID-19 recovery grant documentation.

Bothell
Bothell man pleads guilty to sexual abuse of Marysville middle schoolers

The man allegedly sexually assaulted three students in exchange for vapes and edibles in 2022. His sentencing is set for Aug. 29.

Larsen talks proposed Medicaid cuts during Compass Health stop in Everett

Compass Health plans to open its new behavioral health center in August. Nearly all of the nonprofit’s patients rely on Medicaid.

Snohomish County Health Department Director Dennis Worsham on Tuesday, June 11, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish County Health Department director tapped as WA health secretary

Dennis Worsham became the first director of the county health department in January 2023. His last day will be July 3.

Police Cmdr. Scott King answers questions about the Flock Safety license plate camera system on Thursday, June 5, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace approves Flock camera system after public pushback

The council approved the $54,000 license plate camera system agreement by a vote of 5-2.

Community members gather for the dedication of the Oso Landslide Memorial following the ten-year remembrance of the slide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
The Daily Herald garners 6 awards from regional journalism competition

The awards recognize the best in journalism from media outlets across Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Gold Bar in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Lynnwood man dies in fatal crash on US 2 near Gold Bar

The Washington State Patrol said the driver was street racing prior to the crash on Friday afternoon.

Thousands gather to watch fireworks over Lake Ballinger from Nile Shrine Golf Course and Lake Ballinger Park on Thursday, July 3, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Thousands ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ at Mountlake Terrace fireworks show

The city hosts its Independence Day celebrations the day before the July 4 holiday.

Liam Shakya, 3, waves at a float passing by during the Fourth of July Parade on Friday, July 4, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett celebrates Fourth of July with traditional parade

Thousands celebrated Independence Day by going to the annual parade, which traveled through the the city’s downtown core.

Ian Saltzman
Everett Public Schools superintendent wins state award

A group of school administrators named Ian Saltzman as a top educational leader.

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.