EVERETT — One of the men accused of killing a homeless man over $800 has pleaded guilty to murder.
Elmer Orlee Sampson, 47, admitted Tuesday that he participated in the 2008 shooting death of Nicky Schoonover Jr. north of the Tulalip Indian Reservation.
Prosecutors initially charged Sampson with first-degree murder. He pleaded guilty Tuesday to second-degree murder and agreed to testify against co- defendant Jamall Baker. Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Tim Geraghty agreed to recommend a low-end sentence in return for Sampson’s cooperation in the case against Baker, 33.
Sampson’s attorney Rob O’Neal told the judge that his client was an accomplice to an assault that led to Schoonover’s death. He didn’t shoot Schoonover, also known as “Scratchy.”
Investigators believe Baker was responsible for shooting Schoonover multiple times while the men were at a vacant lot near the reservation. The slain man’s body was discovered two days later.
Detectives believe Schoonover, 36, was killed for his disability payment. Investigators discovered a check-cashing receipt clenched in his hand. Earlier in the day he’d taken the $800 check to a Money Tree check-cashing business in Everett.
Investigators believe Sampson and Baker were with Schoonover.
A surveillance video shows Schoonover with the two men at a nearby mini-mart, where they bought gas and food, police said.
Detectives believe that later that evening, the three men drove up to the Stanwood area and likely were doing drugs.
Sampson faces more than 10 years in prison.
Baker remains charged with first-degree murder. He also faces possible drive-by shooting, drug and unlawful gun possession charges, Geraghty said. The trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 25.
Schoonover grew up in Lake Stevens and left behind a daughter, his father and stepmother, a brother and a sister.
His father hadn’t seen his son for more than a year. Police believe Schoonover was staying at the Everett Gospel Mission. He struggled with drug addiction and was in and out of trouble with the law, his father said.
“In spite of all that, he was generous and loving. When he was on drugs he was not himself,” Nick Schoonover told The Herald in 2008. “He was a really kind person. I don’t think he ever meant to hurt anyone, except himself. It’s a tragedy.”
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463, hefley@heraldnet.com.
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