CRIME WATCH: Shooting victim found dead at Don Armeni Boat Ramp

| Crime | West Seattle news

6:30 AM: Thanks to Stewart L. for the photos. Homicide and CSI detectives are at Don Armeni Boat Ramp after a shooting victim was found dead.

It happened around 4 am – the initial SFD dispatch was that “armed security found a man down and a bullet nearby.” They tried CPR but it was too late. We’ve just talked with SPD spokesperson Officer Shawn Weismiller, who confirms that a male victim was found dead, and no one is in custody. No other details on the circumstances yet. This was the third shooting incident in our area in the span of five hours, after the Roxy’s Casino and Lincoln Park incidents. And it’s the fourth deadly shooting that SPD has investigated in West Seattle in less than two months, with no arrests in any of these cases yet – 20-year-old Ka’Don Brown, found dead on the Chief Sealth IHS campus April 8th; 41-year-old Chad Anderson, found dead on 15th SW in South Delridge on May 8th; and 25-year-old Davonté Sanchez, killed near Alki’s Whale Tail Park on May 13th.

7:11 AM: The Medical Examiner’s Office has arrived on scene, as shown in that photo from Doug, who says police are asking nearby residents if they saw anything or have any video that might show what happened. The victim was found by the path along the south-end vehicle parking spaces. If you have video or other information for investigators, the SPD tip line is 206-233-5000.

ADDED 9:18 AM: SPD says the victim was 49 years old.

Heather May 28, 2023 (7:31 am)

There were a bunch of kids in groups just west of the science when I was driving to work at 0410. There were also groups of people having fires down there. I would assume the police would have interviewed these folks.

newnative May 28, 2023 (8:45 am)

Well, you should probably call in because it looks like they took off before the security guard showed up.
- Heather May 28, 2023 (5:21 pm)
  
  What do you want me to say “see those groups of people out in open there, oh you too?”
  - alki_2008 May 28, 2023 (6:34 pm)
    
    I believe NEWNATIVE is saying that you should call now and tell the police that you saw groups of people in the area, and maybe provide descriptions, not that you should’ve called at 0410 when you saw them.
  - newnative May 29, 2023 (12:11 am)
    
    Well, unless they’re withholding information, the story implies that the deceased was found by a security guard and there were no other people around. Crowds of people are not mentioned. If you were there right around the time of the murder,then you may be a witness to at least who was present, what kind of cars were around. Anything could help piece together a timeline of events.
whattheheck May 28, 2023 (9:21 am)

What is the ‘the science’?
- typo May 28, 2023 (12:22 pm)
  
  “the science” is “the scene” misspelled with extra letters (possibly autocorrect)
- Odd son May 28, 2023 (12:56 pm)
  
  May be a typo. Maybe they meant scene, west of the scene.
- Heather May 28, 2023 (5:20 pm)
  
  Oops autocorrect I mean scene.

Cranky May 28, 2023 (7:40 am)

Well, anyone telling me ‘this isn’t any different than the old days here’. Eh, I don’t believe you.

Lisa May 28, 2023 (8:21 am)

Don’t you know it’s only because we have the WSB reporting on it that it seems less safe? <sarcasm>
alkiannie May 28, 2023 (9:19 am)

You are “Cranky” (your login name), but you are also right. It is different. And it’s on a downward trend. When will it level out or improve? What will drive that change? What can we do to help besides posting these comments? I vote, I do what I can to help others, I advocate…
- Cranky May 28, 2023 (11:46 am)
  
  Crime drop – Wikipedia
  A 2004 study found that 58 percent of the drop in violent crime during the 1990s was due to incarceration.Maybe you need to look at the stats. https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/seattle-violent-crime-hits-15-year-high-other-takeaways-from-new-report/
- 937 May 28, 2023 (12:56 pm)
  
  You should really cherry pick your data better. Even the ST says crime is down – but murders are up. Kinda sad they buried this little “nuisance” fact in the body of the story.
  
  https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/law-justice/violent-crime-is-down-in-king-county-but-a-troubling-trend-persists/
  
  But that’s legacy media for ya!
  - Docile May 28, 2023 (6:40 pm)
    
    Violent crime, in generally, since the 1990s has seen a MAJOR decline, even gun related deaths. Don’t look at data that only shows a 6 year forecast. It’s not representative of the progress we have made. That’s not to say we shouldn’t do more. It starts with, in my opinion, gun regulation. Asking “where are the parents” or stating ‘fixing families will help solve these problem’s’ is just a very rudimentary answer to a more complex issue.Source:
    https://www.statista.com/statistics/191219/reported-violent-crime-rate-in-the-usa-since-1990/
  - Neecency May 28, 2023 (7:00 pm)
    
    That website doesn’t show per 100,000 or per capita. When looking at stats you never look at raw numbers. Reason being, if your population increases by 200,000 and 3 or 4 more people die that year, that doesn’t mean murder rates are increasing in general. In fact, you actually see a decrease in deaths, when adjusting for population size. There has been an uptick in deaths related to guns, however, 1. There’s more people who live in the US and Seattle & 2. Gun ownership has been steadily increasing for years.

Plf May 28, 2023 (8:18 am)

Hope this is not foreshadowing of the up coming summer, horrible last couple of weeks

Andros May 28, 2023 (11:18 am)

All I can say is: WTF.

The Earl May 28, 2023 (11:25 am)

once again the subculture of gun violence strikes again.

Scubafrog May 28, 2023 (11:44 am)

This is madness. How awful for all of these victims and their families. With no leadership in our city and no real solutions, this doesn’t bode well.

anonyme May 28, 2023 (11:56 am)

WTF?? Time for a certain amendment to be amended.

Melissa May 28, 2023 (9:16 pm)

YES.
- Julian May 31, 2023 (9:24 pm)
  
  NO!!!

Balderdash May 28, 2023 (1:00 pm)

This is an upswing in violent crime, not a downward trend…..Seattle continued to contend with an increase in violent crimes and gun violence last year, according to annual crime statistics released Monday.Last year saw the highest violent crime rate in 15 years, with an increase of 729 incidents per 100,000 residents in 2021 compared to 736 per 100,000 residents last year.The increase in crime overall reflects the spike in violent crime that began in 2020 and shows little sign of dropping back to pre-pandemic levels. Homicides increased by 24% and aggravated assault totals continue to be the highest reported in the last 10 years.

Dooh May 28, 2023 (2:17 pm)

I think we have leedership in the city for the first time in years. Do you have an idea what they need to do ? How do you know they aren’t doing anything. You do know the CITY is short police officers. You can’t put a police officer at every corner, at every casino. Everyone blames the city for these. Most of the robberies, shootings, car thefts, mostly done by young people. The question that needs to be asked, where are the parents ? Gun play at Lincoln Park last night. All teenagers from the reports we have heard. The other question should be asked, Gun Control. That should start a big ol can o worms right there.Hey, my two cents like everyone else.

B May 28, 2023 (3:50 pm)

How would we know the ‘leeder’ is doing anything? It’s not like we have heard from him -or anyone else for that matter, regarding their thoughts or condolences of the 4 murders in 2 months, or 3 shootings in 5 hours in West Seattle.
Scubafrog May 28, 2023 (3:55 pm)

You’re right, and I should have expounded Dooh. We have our elected officials by way of Mayor Harrell and the city council, but we lack respected and bonafide leaders of at-risk communities writ large who can talk down different sub-groups of society before violence erupts. I’m not sure if that’s practical anymore, I may be decades from relevance.
MB May 28, 2023 (4:02 pm)

For what is worth, the prior leadership set us on the path to put us where we are today. Yes, this all starts at home, but I bet people would be a lot less likely to act a fool if there was a good chance they’d get caught and punished. They’ve learned that it won’t happen, hence more wildness.We’re paying for the sins of our past here, and will be for a bit still.
- JM May 31, 2023 (12:13 pm)
  
  What a baseless and dare I say “foolish” comment by MB. Just go to the King County Courthouse on any day you choose (but especially Fridays which are sentencing days) and you will find a murder case (and probably several) in trial. To say they have “learned” they won’t get caught or punished is pure clickbait.
Kersti Elisabeth Muul May 28, 2023 (7:13 pm)

Especially when parents are complicit with underage drinking that happens frequently in Lincoln Park ..
- Pete May 28, 2023 (8:13 pm)
  
  Drinking laws here are absolutely wild. I don’t think kids drinking is the issue (gestures in the vague direction of basically any other country) it’s more likely easy access to firearms. Me and my mates were drinking from age 16. Weirdly we never shot anyone…
WS Res May 29, 2023 (9:13 am)

“The question that needs to be asked, where are the parents ?” Well in some cases, their parents are locked up by the pro-carceral state.

MM May 28, 2023 (2:26 pm)

They need to put up security cameras in this parking lot and along Alki and Lincoln park parking lots. Where is Bruce? The Mayor needs to make a major public News announcement of what the plan is to address and stop all this nonsense. How many more people are going to die before something is done!!!!

Jason May 31, 2023 (11:11 am)

They HAD cameras along Alki and Harbor years ago. But the locals complained about government surveillance and privacy, so they were forced to take them all down before they were even used. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Jay May 28, 2023 (3:10 pm)

The sad thing is, the only person to report that this person was shot is the security officer. The neighborhood just turned a blind ear to it. I think the people that live in this neighborhood need to get more proactive.

Lori Boetel May 31, 2023 (10:34 am)

Or the most part those of us that live on Harbor Avenue have been very proactive in working with the police and city leaders. There have been multiple meetings to come up with a plan of action to keep this area safe from the gun violence and car issues at Don Armeni boat ramp and up and down Harbor/ Alki Ave. Just because it was only reported that a security guard called it in does not mean that other calls were not made to the police. We all have eyes and ears and do not hesitate to call the police and they have encouraged us to do so.
alki_2008 June 1, 2023 (11:39 pm)

It was around 4am. I doubt many neighbors were up and alert to what was happening at the park.

alki perspectives May 28, 2023 (4:24 pm)

The increasing violence is on K-12 educators. As a higher education professor, I can tell you most of the basic skills students are supposed to learn are lacking anyway, so why focus on memorization-based learning and skills that AI will replace. Teach students values and valuable life skills like peaceful conflict resolution. They don’t get that at home, so why not at school? My taxpayer dollars for education are being wasted along with lives young and old.

Rhonda May 28, 2023 (4:40 pm)

You’re assuming all of Seattle’s violent crime is committed by young people. It’s not, unless you consider 24 – 45 year-old males to be young. The teens shooting guns in Lincoln Park late last night weren’t involved in conflict. Quite the opposite: they were partying. The job of K-12 educators is to teach kids how to read, write, learn history, civics, and understand the basics of math and science. It’s the job of parents, pastors, coaches, and youth leaders to teach morals and respect.
- 1994 May 28, 2023 (11:00 pm)
  
  Teenagers partying with guns? Partying teenagers and firearms are not a good combo. Sounds like nothing but trouble and danger. And that is now one teen needed to visit a hospital.
WestSeattleBadTakes May 28, 2023 (5:15 pm)

You’re on the right track, but your comment is an example of these poor educational outcomes.
K-12 teacher May 28, 2023 (5:17 pm)

You can’t possibly be saying that gun violence is the fault of k-12 teachers?!
Marianne May 28, 2023 (7:10 pm)

As an elementary school teacher, I can tell you that social/emotional learning is taught explicitly and integrated into all lessons.
Middle School Teacher May 28, 2023 (7:27 pm)

Seriously? What do you think we do all day long? We are putting it out there every moment, and I speak for the entire staff at my middle school. We are educating, gaining trust, yanking phones, de-escalating conflicts, listening, empathizing, boosting spirits, giving extra time, extra patience, food, water, pencils, contacting and working with families. We are exhausted but committed. And you have the audacity to insinuate that we are responsible for the (ab)use of guns in the community?
Also a teacher May 28, 2023 (8:23 pm)

Ha! “Memorization-based learning” made me laugh out loud and eye roll. I teach social emotional learning every day. This week was all about boosting self-esteem. I can’t even count the times a week I facilitate restorative conversations with students. Perhaps this is a societal issue.
k-5 teacher May 28, 2023 (10:37 pm)

Your comment is absurd. First, k-5 teachers teach responsibility, community building, problem solving with peers and relationship repair. Secondly, kids are only at school for a portion of the day; there are other influences besides teachers. why does EVERYTHING fall on us????
Mel May 29, 2023 (6:12 am)

I’ve been hard on teachers at times but in no way is this their fault. It starts at home. Where are the parents? Kids are growing up thinking they don’t have to respect authority at all. Teachers cannot fix societies problems.
Kat F May 30, 2023 (1:19 pm)

Are you bloody kidding me??? The crime/gun culture is the fault of K-12 teachers??? THAT is your higher-educated, sociologically-informed analysis? SIT DOWN. As a former prof myself, I’m here to say that you haven’t a CLUE what you’re talking about and frankly, if you really are a professor, perhaps you shouldn’t be if that’s the kind of preposterous information you spew. There are enough folks presenting misinformation as truth these days; educators should not disgrace themselves and the profession by joining their ranks.

F May 28, 2023 (4:34 pm)

Whales Tale Park by Alki beach, Lincoln Park, The Roxberry Lanes bowling ally restaurant, & the Don Armeni Boat Ramp too. What is going on with all these shootings? Yikes. Shootings can not be the norm.

HP May 28, 2023 (5:46 pm)

K12 educator here. Actually we teach conflict resolution daily, but aren’t actually allowed to discipline students anymore. There is little to no consequences for bad behavior mostly because parents get upset or administrators don’t believe in discipline either. Stop blaming the teachers and look at the higher ups.

WestSeattleBadTakes May 28, 2023 (6:01 pm)

What kind of discipline are you looking to do exactly?
- alki_2008 May 28, 2023 (6:45 pm)
  
  Teachers can’t even raise their voices at students without fear of being called “abusive” and if they take away a student’s phone then they could end being physically assaulted. Why don’t you become a teacher and then let us know how it’s going teaching children to be respectful and follow rules?
Alki mom May 28, 2023 (8:57 pm)

100% agree, teachers can’t discipline kids anymore (i wish they did!). This is the result of gun culture and lack of consequences in general, it starts at home, and then in the streets. Kids fighting at Mac Donald’s, shoplifting everywhere, hit and runs and car theft that don’t even get investigated, road rage, pitbulls running free on the beach! Shame on all of us for letting this be the new norm.
- Alki resident May 29, 2023 (10:01 am)
  
  No other dogs running on the beach? Just pit bulls?
Mel May 29, 2023 (6:06 am)

I will admit I have been hard on teachers at time, but I do not believe this falls on teachers at all. Students are being taught that they don’t have to respect authority and that includes teachers. The teachers hands are completely tied. This needs to start in the home. Where are the parents at who are supposed to be raising these kids?

HS May 28, 2023 (6:38 pm)

The police had a ‘gang unit’ not too long ago.

Mel May 29, 2023 (6:07 am)

They don’t have resources (bodies) for that right now. Plus with the popularity of the defund movement in 2020, everyone said it was racist so it was disbanded.
Melissa May 29, 2023 (4:05 pm)

The cops sometimes are the gang; they’re not the solution to violence, that’s for certain.
- Bmc May 29, 2023 (9:10 pm)
  
  Riiiight :(
- Mel May 30, 2023 (6:19 pm)
  
  And this attitude is why we can’t get enough cops who want to work for SPD

WS mom May 28, 2023 (8:46 pm)

The numbers of shootings seem crazy. Have the police indicated any type of turf war going on between rival drug gangs? Are any of these shootings connected?

F May 28, 2023 (10:34 pm)

Well said.

Xyz May 29, 2023 (12:17 am)

If punishment for criminal or other bad behavior is to be effective, it needs to be sure and fast. Since this is not the case now, nor has it been for a long time, we cannot expect the possibility of punishment to be an effective deterrent to criminal behavior. That leaves us with the choice of locking up the criminals for the longest period of time possible in order to keep the rest of the population safe. The other ideas discussed here, better parenting, education, etc hopefully may help in the long term, but are not likely to show any immediate results. When criminals are arrested, they should not get the slap on the wrist and the revolving door treatment. When you vote, look for candidates who promise to or have a track record of being tough on crime. This is about the only hope we have for near term solutions.

phil Godleswinki May 29, 2023 (6:45 am)

Whats wrong with pitbulls???^^^

Marco May 29, 2023 (9:26 am)

Gun,guns,guns,hundreds and millions of guns! And the band played! America continues to arm itself with guns,guns,guns……

rucks May 29, 2023 (12:49 pm)

What prevents a few of the condo owners across the street from the shooting to set up a small, concealable camera pointing at the Armeni lot? If something happens, police can check it. Otherwise the camera records over previous footage. No different than car cams or door cams.

alki_2008 June 1, 2023 (11:45 pm)

Probably the risk of being sued by people who think their privacy is being violated, even though they can’t expect privacy when out in public. But the condo’s property managers probably advise against having such cameras because the legal cost to defend in a lawsuit is costly.