West Seattle, Washington
29 Thursday
11:06 PM: The Guardian One helicopter is on the way to join Seattle Police in a Lincoln Park-area search. We’re still tracking down details but wanted to let you know that’s what’s happening, in case you see/hear the helicopter (or are seeing police on the ground).
11:15 PM: They’re looking for multiple suspects, one of whom was described as armed with a knife, last seen running into the north end of Lincoln Park. There’s a K-9 team in that area too.
11:32 PM: They’re still searching the park. Still no word on the nature of the call; all we know for sure is that there have *not* been any major-injury incidents in the area tonight.
11:47 PM: Basically the helicopter – which has been circling for a full half-hour now – is helping point police to just about anyone in the park/vicinity.
11:57 PM: Possible suspects found in the park, toward its central area.
12:06 AM: They’re still working to figure out if the possible suspects are who they’re looking for. And via multiple sources and bits of information, we believe this all started with a business robbery.
12:14 AM: Chopper has moved on – but the case isn’t necessarily closed yet. Their tweet confirms this is a robbery case:
Assisted @SeattlePD on search of Lincoln park for robbery suspects.
— KCSOAirsupport (@KCSOAirsupport) May 31, 2014
12:23 AM: Seattle Police add that it “started as a shoplift call in 7400 block of Fauntleroy – male suspect drew a knife and fled into Lincoln Park.” (That’s the mini-mart/gas station across from the north end of the park.)
By this point in the school year – three weeks or less to go – it feels like a race to the finish. But that’s not why they were on the run at Alki Elementary this afternoon. It was the annual Alki-A-Thon – which, if you look closely at the next photo, you’ll notice coincided with Crazy Hair Day. The Alki PTA organized the annual event as a fundraiser, with kids collecting pledges for the laps they ran.
Parents joining the runners out in the bright sunshine got into the spirit too, some sporting “crazy hair” as well as the special Alki-A-Thon T-shirts – here are Christina, Amy, and Alexis:
We caught up later with Susan Gates, this year’s Alki-A-Thon chair, who told us she was especially grateful for so much volunteer help!
ADDED SATURDAY: Thanks to Lori for sharing a photo of her first-grader son Sammy, joyfully running with his schoolmates:
She reports Sammy accomplished 18 laps!
(“Preferred” massing – size and shape, not design – from early renderings filed with the city)
The Southwest Design Review Board only meets if there are projects to review – and its two-Thursdays-a-month schedule has been open since its last meeting almost a month ago. But now there’s a date on the horizon: July 10th is tentatively scheduled as the Design Review debut for a project we first told you about in early May: A three-story eye clinic planned for 7520 35th SW, currently the site of Red Star Pizza (which, as reported in our earlier story, has been looking for a new location), and a 32-space parking area. The July 10th meeting is set for 6:30 pm at the Senior Center of West Seattle; since that’s six weeks away, there’s always a chance the date could change, and we’ll publish an update if that happens.
ORIGINAL REPORT, 7:00 PM: The police and helicopter in Highland Park/Riverview is because of a search for two possibly lost children, a 10-year-old girl and 5-year-old boy. Police are asking you to call 911 if you see them. They were last seen in the 12th/Myrtle area across from the playground. The girl has short brown hair, hot pink shirt, possibly a fur vest, cast on her right arm. The boy has blond hair, blue eyes, shirts and short. They might be in the greenbelt or walking nearby streets. More as we get it.
7:26 PM: We have confirmation they have been found safe nearby.
(WSB photo by Patrick Sand)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
In the second of two back-to-back sentencings involving high-profile West Seattle cases, King County Superior Court Judge Catherine Shaffer has just sentenced 19-year-old Trevonnte Brown, whose robbery spree aboard a RapidRide bus in Morgan Junction last November ended when passengers grabbed and tackled him.
Brown was sentenced to the recommended 13 1/2 years total – 8 1/2 for the robberies, 5 mandatory years for using a gun – not only for the bus robberies that night but also for another robbery on board a Metro bus earlier that month (not in West Seattle). And prosecutor Alex Voorhees noted that the defendant had told police that he participated in “numerous” strong-arm robberies.
Over the objection of the defense lawyer, she played the video of the bus holdup for the judge, from the moment it showed Brown rising from his seat and pointing his gun at people to demand their phones, to the pileup that followed, restraining Brown and taking away his gun, after one of the victims, Casey Borgen, grabbed his arm. The video continued to roll as a woman called 911, with at least three men keeping Brown down, who could be heard yelling that they were hurting him. A shorter form of the video was shown on citywide TV last year, including this KING5.com clip:
The video continued rolling in court until the point where police entered the bus. They were heard to call the guys who restrained Brown as heroes; Voorhees pointed out that Brown continued acting “abusive(ly)” as he was taken away, including doing damage to a police car. (pleaded guilty last month.)
Voorhees mentioned that Brown had confessed but that she was struck “by the lack of remorse” shown by Brown, who she says told investigators he had been “committing robberies since high school … he acknowledged that these three incidents we have before the court today are by no means the first foray … (though perhaps) the most extreme” because he used a gun.
(WSB photo by Patrick Sand)
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
A year and a half after 38-year-old Amy Lynn O’Brien drove her car into two students across the street from Chief Sealth International High School, an emotional hearing has ended with King County Superior Court Judge Catherine Shaffer sentencing her to one year, twice the six-month recommendation prosecutors had made, and ordering that the sentence begin immediately.
We reported last month that O’Brien pleaded guilty to hit and run and second-degree assault, the charges originally filed against her.
(WSB photo from the aftermath of the incident in November 2012)
In November 2012, she was arrested for hitting the two girls after getting upset about the 17- and 18-year-old girls’ interaction with her unleashed dog Both girls were hospitalized with serious injuries; O’Brien turned herself in the next day and spent about a week in jail before being released on personal recognizance, remaining free until now.
Both victims, Jessica and Cassandra, were present in court for the sentencing and spoke to the judge, as did the defendant.
Lot-boundary-adjustment proposals are often first word of development plans on the way for a site, so we watch the city’s online files for early word of them. Two more West Seattle proposals have just appeared:
3917 CALIFORNIA SW: This two-lot, two-building, six-apartment site at California/Andover has been listed for sale for a while. Now there’s a proposal to change the lot boundaries/sizes. While the eventual development plan has not yet appeared online, the application says the 71-year-old, California-fronting four-plex is to be demolished, with the Andover-facing duplex to remain, for now. The site is currently split into two equal-sized rectangular parcels; the “adjustment” would result in two L-shaped lots, both with frontage on both California and Andover.
The site is zoned Lowrise 3.
4023 SW GRAHAM: This 7,500-square-foot site at 41st/Graham on the east edge of Morgan Junction is on the books as one 7,500 parcel but technically two lots, and is proposed to be “adjusted” into two 3,750-square-foot lots. The application says the 67-year-old house and slightly newer garage/carport currently on the parcel will be demolished; the future development plans are not yet on file. The site is zoned single-family 5,000, and a document in the file says 3,750 sf is the minimum allowable building-lot size.
(Looking west from The Triangle toward The Junction – photo by Long B. Nguyen)
If your Friday night’s not locked down yet – options abound:
RAINBOW BINGO: “Stars & Stripes” is the theme – doors open at 6 pm at Senior Center of West Seattle, but call fast to see if there’s still space available! (California/Oregon)
SING OUT! West Seattle Christian Church invites one and all to a Hymn Sing tonight at 7 pm. (4400 42nd SW)
ROCK, POP, PREMIERE! Tonight’s the night for the West Seattle Community Orchestras‘ final concert till fall – including the premiere of Rob Duisberg‘s new symphony (featured in our preview published earlier) as well as “rock and pop songs as you’ve never heard them.” Go see your neighbors making music. 7:30 pm, Chief Sealth International High School auditorium. (2600 SW Thistle)
MUSIC AT DUOS: The Triangular Jazztet with guest pianist Orin Sand, 7:30-10:30 pm at Duos Lounge (WSB sponsor), and check out the patio! (2940 SW Avalon Way)
WITCHBURN UNPLUGGED … with special guests, as part of the group’s video-premiere event @ Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor), 8 pm. (6451 California SW)
HAVE FUN, HELP KITTENS … and grown-up cats too. Tonight’s the night for the West Side Glory “Feline Groovy” benefit at Skylark Café and Club, helping the local shelter Kitty Harbor. 9 pm with an all-star lineup, as noted in our preview. (3803 Delridge Way SW)
EVEN MORE HAPPENING TONIGHT … browse our calendar to see what else is up!
(You don’t HAVE to have a bouncy toy, but Hillcrest does – 2010 WSB photo by Christopher Boffoli)
Be part of the year’s biggest night of block parties, the 30th annual Night Out, on Tuesday, August 5th. Sounds like a long way away, but our area’s SPD Crime Prevention Coordinator Mark Solomon sends word that registration is open NOW. If you sign up, you can close your street to traffic that night (provided you’re not on an arterial and a few other caveats) – go here as soon as you’re ready. Early party-planning also offers the chance to apply for a Department of Neighborhoods matching-fund grant – the deadline is June 23rd; find out about it here. More than 1,400 neighborhoods around Seattle had block parties last year – this year, join ’em!
Congratulations to West Seattle High School athletic director Trevor Leopold for a big honor in his role as the school’s fastpitch (softball) coach – he has been chosen Metro League Coach of the Year. The Wildcats finished the season high atop the conference (here are the standings as published at SeattleTimes.com). WSHS players receiving all-league honors were pitcher Gabby Wenn and shortstop Annalisa Ursino; all-division honors, catcher Sam Hummert and infielder Emma Atkinson, with honorable mention to infielder Tina Lozeau. Congratulations to all!
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(WS Bridge and Highway 99 views; more cams on the WSB Traffic page)
7:41 AM: All’s well (relatively) so far on the major routes, as we head into the heart of the morning commute.
WEEKEND PREVIEW: Only major closure in the region this weekend is the 520 bridge. Around the city, some big events might affect traffic – they’re in the SDOT weekend-alert roundup.
8:44 AM: Matt reports traffic-signal trouble at Delridge/Kenyon. We’re headed that way for a look. (Update: OK by the time we arrived.)
(Photo courtesy West Seattle Totems)
More success for the West Seattle Totems, whose coach Joe Matter shares another of his periodic updates, with news of state and national championships:
The West Seattle Totems, the Junior Olympic Rifle Club located at the West Seattle Stadium, just finished its best season to date.
In the Washington State Indoor Championships, the Thunderbird Squad (Owen Yeasting, Casey Iwamoto, Corinne Blair and Alec Patajo) won the state team Championship. Alec won the individual state title.
In the Washington State Outdoor Championships, the Thunderbird Squad (Owen, Casey, and Corinne) won the state team title. The Chiefs squad (Katelynn Brown, Jack Ellis, and Emma Carey) finished as the 2nd place team. Alec won the Outdoor 3-Position state title. Owen won the Outdoor Prone state title. Alec won the overall Aggregate Title. Corinne won the Indoor&Outdoor Women’s Aggregate. Emma won the Outdoor Women’s Aggregate.
In the National Indoor Championships, the Totems brought home 44 national awards.
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