SEATTLE — A 31-year-old man has pleaded guilty to killing a Seattle police officer 14 years ago.
Quentin Ervin pleaded guilty Monday to first-degree murder in the shooting death of Antonio Terry on June 4, 1994.
King County prosecutors had been pursuing an aggravated-murder charge that would have meant a life prison sentence, but under the plea agreement will recommend 20 years when Ervin is sentenced May 27.
He has already served most of that time. More than a decade ago, a jury convicted him of second-degree murder, but he won an appeal and had been facing a new trial before Monday’s plea.
Investigators say Ervin, then a teenager, and Eric Smiley shot the 36-year-old Terry on an I-5 ramp in Seattle after Terry, dressed in street clothes, stopped near their broken-down Ford Mustang.
It has always been disputed who shot Terry, and whether Ervin and Smiley knew he was a police officer.
Smiley is serving a 33-year prison sentence.
Associated Press
@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no:Suspected groper strikes another victim
A woman who was grabbed from behind while walking with a child on a Seattle street may be the latest victim of a man suspected in nearly two dozen groping assaults in south Seattle.
The man backed away Saturday when the woman screamed.
@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no:Scientists record slow but strong slip quake
University of Washington scientists will collect 100 portable instruments Thursday from an area near Port Angeles where they were arrayed to measure a slow slip tremor.
Seismology lab coordinator Bill Steele says over the past few weeks in an area from south Puget Sound to northern Vancouver Island the tremor slowly released energy that would be equivalent to a 6.7-magnitude earthquake if it had occurred all at once.
Steele says these slow slip quakes tend to occur every 14 months as pressure that pushes an inch or two to the east slips partially back to the west.
Associated Press
@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no:Jury awards $268,000 for unlawful arrest
A federal court jury in Seattle awarded $268,000 to a man arrested in 2006 for obstruction and resisting arrest.
The jury said the arrest of Romelle Bradford, 22, was unlawful and that Seattle police officers used excessive force and violated his civil rights.
Bradford was a Boys &Girls Club staff member supervising a dance and wearing a club T-shirt when he was arrested after an officer saw him running.
The private lawyer who defended the city says he’s disappointed by the jury decision because he felt the officer had probable cause for an arrest.
Associated Press
@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no:Tenants refuse order to vacate unsafe motel
At least eight longtime residents of a Seattle motel are refusing to leave, despite a state order that they vacate because of unsanitary and unsafe conditions.
Residents of the Green Lake Motel were supposed to be out by midnight Sunday. The remaining residents say they have nowhere else to go and would be homeless.
The motel was ordered closed after a state Health Department inspector reported problems that included a faulty fire alarm, cockroaches and piles of trash.
Associated Press
Olympia: RV street parking ban suggested
An Olympia City Council committee is recommending a ban on RV parking overnight on city streets.
The land use committee recommend the measure to the full council despite objections from more than 40 people at Monday’s meeting. Many say they live in campers because they can’t find apartments or afford homes.
A city report on the proposed ordinance says the RVs take up parking spaces and sometimes operate noisy generators or dump raw sewage.
The Olympian
@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no:Ocean beach clam dig likely for Saturday
If toxin tests are good today, the state Fish and Wildlife Department says there will be a razor clam dig on Saturday on three coastal beaches: Twin Harbors, Copalis and Mocrocks.
This would be the last dig of the spring. Long Beach and Kalaloch Beach are closed.
Associated Press
Spokane: Man in SUV had been dead for days
Police in Spokane have identified a man whose body was found in a sport utility vehicle near Deaconess Medical Center.
He was 40-year-old Michael Giannotti. Police say autopsy reports show no signs of traumatic injuries that would explain Giannotti’s death. Police say they are waiting for toxicology reports before the cause of death can be determined.
They say detectives don’t believe he drove himself to the corner where he was found in his own vehicle, a 1995 white Nissan Pathfinder.
Police say the last known time Giannotti was seen was May 13.
Giannotti’s body was found Monday afternoon, but neighbors told KXLY-TV the SUV with Idaho license plates had been parked since about Friday.
Associated Press
Longview: Hospital absolved in suicide
A Longview hospital has been absolved in the suicide of a podiatrist charged with bicycle theft.
State Health Department reviewers found no wrongdoing or negligence in the death of Dr. Jacob Jonathan Bos, 35, and spokesman Donn Moyer said no citations are being issued.
Bos was found hanging from a belt Feb. 22 in a bathroom in the psychiatric ward at St. John Medical Center. According to police reports, he was being checked every half-hour, but pillows had been arranged under the blankets to make it look as if he were sleeping.
Bos was admitted to the hospital Feb. 7 after two earlier suicide attempts. He had been charged with stealing and selling $55,000 worth of racing bicycles in Washington state and Utah after moving to Longview from Columbus, Ohio.
The Daily News
Vancouver, Wash.: Old home’s metal stolen
Metal thieves hit a historic house that is in the process of being moved.
They ripped out electrical wiring and got away with a brass-plated fireplace door as well as a generator and tools.
The damage to the 101-year-old Kiggins House was discovered Monday by the owner who is moving it to a new location. Bruce Wood hopes someone will recognize the furnace door. It’s about 2 feet square with a depiction of an angel, possibly holding a harp.
The house was built by a former Vancouver mayor and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Vancouver Columbian
Carson: Last 2 bodies of fishermen found
The bodies of all three Yakama tribal fishermen missing in the Columbia River since their boat capsized May 7 have now been found.
Tribal Chairman Ralph Sampson Jr. said Tuesday the bodies of Rommel Strom and Gailen Espirito were found just west of the mouth of the Wind River, near Carson.
Searchers recovered the body of James Peter Jr. in the same area Sunday.
Yakama Nation police, relatives of the fishermen and Skamania County officials had searched for their bodies.
Associated Press
Puyallup: Man dies in crash; driver arrested
A man died when his car was T-boned at an intersection early Tuesday in Puyallup, and another driver has been arrested for investigation of vehicular homicide.
State troopers believe that alcohol figured in the crash about 1:45 a.m. at a three-way intersection on Highway 167, also known as River Road E.
According to a Washington State Patrol report, a black 2002 Honda driven by Michael D. Vaudrin, 27, of Spanaway ran a red light and hit a silver 1999 Honda.
Witnesses told investigators Vaudrin got out, took a look, then got back into the car and drove away. The driver of the older car, Robert A. Hawkins, 51, of Spanaway was pronounced dead at St. Joseph Hospital in Tacoma.
Vaudrin was later arrested and taken to jail.
Associated Press
Custer: Valuable horse stolen from stall
A valuable show jumping stallion was apparently stolen from his stall in the northwest Washington community.
The 12-year-old black Holsteiner, named Capone I, was reported missing from the Exitpoint Stallions farm after the farm’s front gate was found unlatched Friday afternoon, said Douglas Spink, Capone I’s manager and trainer.
The barn door was open, Capone I’s stall was unlatched, and his halter and lead rope also were missing, Spink said.
Three other stallions and three protection dogs were still in the barn.
Spink speculated the horse was taken to be held for ransom, since his level of fame would make it almost impossible to use him in shows or in breeding. No ransom note had been received.
Capone I has top placements in many of North America’s competitive show jumping classes and has amassed career winnings of more than $250,000, Spink said.
The horse has white “socks” markings on three legs and a long, thin white blaze on his forehead. He also has a brand on his left flank that includes the Holsteiner Verband “H” logo and his registration number.
Exitpoint Stallions, an investor syndicate, has owned Capone I since 1999.
Associated Press
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