SEATTLE — A 34-year-old Seattle man accused of fatally injuring a 91-year-old pedestrian as he backed his pickup truck into a parking space has been charged with vehicular homicide.
Court papers filed Thursday in King County Superior Court say Shawn Shipp struck Marie Fite as she walked on a sidewalk Monday in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. Senior Deputy Prosecutor Amy Freedheim said a witness told police that after Shipp parked he got out of his vehicle and tried to yank the woman out from under the truck. Court papers said he then tried to walk away but was stopped by police.
Fite died a few hours later of multiple injuries.
Shipp has also been charged with driving with a suspended license.
Shipp has a lengthy criminal history, with convictions for first-degree child rape, failing to register as a sex offender, assault, motor vehicle theft, drug possession, vehicle prowling, drunken driving, driving with a suspended license and speeding 28 miles over the posted limit, according to the King County Prosecutor’s Office.
Olympia: 11-year sentence for transit center rape
A man convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl at the Lacey Transit Center was sentenced Thursday in Olympia to 11 years in prison.
The Olympian reported a DNA sample was taken from 47-year-old Charles Davis of Tacoma after a 2008 drug conviction provided the evidence police needed to link him to the attack on the girl in 2001.
Initiative would end state liquor monopoly
There’s another campaign hoping to privatize the state liquor system in Washington.
Sponsors filed paperwork for the proposed initiative this week. It would ask voters to end the state’s monopoly on sales and distribution of hard liquor.
Spokeswoman Charla Neuman said the campaign is still lining up supporters. They face a July 2 deadline to collect more than 240,000 valid petition signatures. A group called Modernize Washington filed paperwork last month for its own similar intiative.
Wishram: Tribes search for body in Columbia River
Tribal members continue to search for the body of a Yakama fisherman who was lost in the Columbia River near Wishram April 30 when an 18-foot boat swamped in rough water.
Anthony Wesley is presumed to have drowned. Two other fishermen in the boat drowned, and one was able to swim ashore.
The Yakima Herald-Republic reported that about 100 people from the Yakama Nation, Quinault, Puyallup, Tulalip and Umatilla tribes have been searching the river for Wesley’s body.
Vancouver, Wash.: Distemper outbreak
Clark County Animal Protection and Control said reports of sick raccoons and squirrels indicate an outbreak of distemper.
The agency said dog owners should make sure their pets are vaccinated to prevent the fatal disease from spreading.
Woodland: Homeless man entered schools
Police said a homeless man accused of trespassing at Woodland Middle School and High School posed as an inspector and a baseball coach while trying to enter a boys’ locker room.
The actions Thursday prompted the school district in Cowlitz County to lock the buildings and keep students inside.
The Columbian reported police found the 32-year-old man Thursday evening doing yard work at a home near the middle school.
Woodland Sgt. Brad Gillaspie said the man was arrested for investigation of burglary for entering school buildings.
Spokane: Police bust church theft ring
Spokane Valley detectives said they have busted a ring responsible for thefts at more than 30 area churches.
Detective Kirk Keyser said over the last several months, people would visit a church and ask to talk with the pastor.
After the visit, church officials would find purses, wallets and laptop computers missing.
Associated Press
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