The 37-year-old woman accused of driving her car deliberately into two Chief Sealth International High School students on Wednesday, sending the 17- and 18-year-old girls to the hospital, has just appeared in court for a bail hearing. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office says bail was set at $250,000, and their deadline for filing charges is Tuesday. Probable cause was found for two potential counts of second-degree assault. While the 17-year-old was released from the hospital Wednesday night, the documents say the 18-year-old is in critical condition. Ahead, the police narrative from the court documents:

Read More

Three thefts in West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports tonight – one car, two bicycles. First, from Sally:

I’m sad to say our car was stolen on Thanksgiving night or early the next morning from approximately 34TH & Trenton. It is a black 1997 Subaru Legacy Outback with dark tinted windows, license# AAE6984. It’s listed on the SPD GetYourCarBack page. If anyone sees it, please call 911 to report it.

From Jake:

My Bike was stolen off of my patio (Sunday) night – I live near the 76 gas station on the corner of Andover and California. It is a Flat Gray Giant Bowery Mashup, it has bullhorn handlebars and a beam rack with a black trunk bag. I have attached the most recent photo I have, however it looks a little different now.

If anyone has any information they can contact me at jakesilsby@gmail.com.

And from Greg:

Somebody took a mountain bike from the backyard at 52– 42nd ave SW. It had disk brakes, spare tube, and handpump. It was parked under the deck in the backyard, probably done during daylight hours within the last week.

(Wednesday photo by WSB’s Patrick Sand)
5:21 PM: Just in from Seattle Police: The 37-year-old woman they were seeking in connection with yesterday’s car attack on two Chief Sealth International High School students has turned herself in:

On November 29th at approximately 4:25 p.m. today, the female suspect, a 37-year-old woman, turned herself in to officers at the Seattle Police South Precinct. She was transported downtown to be interviewed by detectives.

That’s from SPD Blotter. As we reported earlier today, the 17-year-old girl is out of the hospital, the 18-year-old girl still in.

ADDED 6:12 PM: The suspect talked by phone with KING 5 before turning herself in; here’s their story.

ADDED 8:04 PM: SPD Blotter has updated to say, “She was transported downtown to be interviewed by detectives and subsequently booked into the King County Jail for Felony Assault.” We won’t publish her name until and unless she is charged, but public databases show her to be a Highland Park resident, and her record does not show any felony convictions.

Out of the WSB inbox, from Andy:

Our red 1996 Subaru Impreza Outback was stolen from in front of our house [6500 block of 37th Ave SW] last night. The license plate read AJX3354. Any help getting her back home would be appreciated.

If you need a reference, Andy says it looks something like this. Meantime, as SPD advises via its @GetYourCarBack Twitter feed (where this has been posted too), if you see what you think is a stolen car, call 911 to report it.

We’re not being flip; that’s what police have reminded those attending recent community meetings including the West Seattle Crime Prevention Council this past week: The holidays mean more opportunistic car prowlers on the lookout for loot while you’re out shopping. We have received two car-prowl reports, both from incidents last night. First, a Morgan Junction incident reported by Tara:

I wanted to report a car prowl at the Starbucks location 6501 California Ave SW. Between 9 and 10 (Saturday night), my red Focus had its window smashed and a bag inside taken. Nothing of large monetary value, except for the broken window. Keep an eye out!

And this one in The Junction, reported by Barb:

My friend and I were parking our cars in the parking lot on 42nd SW between Alaska and SW Oregon (behind Windermere) at about 8:50pm

There were 4 people standing by a car with the car doors and trunk open. They told us someone had smashed a window in their car and stole a purse and an iPad. There was so much glass near by it may have also happened to another car too. I don’t know if you could see either item through a window or not.

Please remind people not to leave valuables in their cars no matter where they park. I know everyone should know this but, I was reminded not everyone remembers.

And even if nothing is taken, or nothing much, PLEASE report it to police so they have information on where the car prowlers are working – you can even file a report online (unless stolen property is valued above $500). But we hope you don’t need that link – especially if you take the advice you’ll find by following this one about car-prowl prevention.

(WSB photo from Tuesday night)
One more court case to report as the week comes to an end: A charge of third-degree assault is filed against Skyler Gronholz, the 28-year-old man accused in the Tuesday night incident that left a Seattle Police sergeant and officer injured, as well as a citizen who tried to help. As we reported in followups, police say they pulled Gronholz over for running a red light at California and Charlestown; he gave the officer a false name, then tried to drive away while she was arresting him and trying to get him out of the car – that was the start of the struggle that led to injuries. According to the documents arguing to keep his bail at $30,000 (in addition to $15,000 for an arrest warrant that was out for him):

At the time of the defendant’s arrest in this case, he was on warrant status on a case in King County Superior Court Drug Court for multiple counts of burglary and trafficking in stolen property. … The defendant has had 21 warrants issued for his arrest since 2005 in King County. In addition to the defendant’s Drug Court matter, where he was found guilty of four counts of burglary in the second degree and four counts of trafficking stolen property in the first degree, the defendant has known convictions for theft in the third degree (2002, 2006) and criminal solicitation (2010).

The charging documents also include a few more details of the circumstances: The officer’s body was “inside the doorframe of the driver’s door” when Gronholz allegedly started the car. In addition to cuts and bruises on her elbows and knees, she also had a tooth knocked loose during the scuffle. The sergeant is described as having torn muscles in the chest, arm, and shoulder, with possible nerve damage. While, as we reported Wednesday, police suspected Gronholz was in possession of drugs, the assault charge is all that prosecutors filed against him. He’s still in jail at last check, and scheduled for arraignment November 29th.

Criminal mistreatment is the charge filed in relation to the case of an 86 year-old Alki man who died after being found in such bad condition, he died days later. This happened in 2010; two of his sons have just been charged this month. The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office tells WSB they are due in court the day before Thanksgiving to answer charges. 57-year-old Kenneth Shaw and 54-year-old Keith Shaw are charged with second-degree criminal mistreatment because of what happened to their father Kyle Shaw Jr.

Read More

Two West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports this afternoon. David’s car was stolen in North Delridge:

Could you please put up a notice to look out for a 1990 Jeep Wrangler, white, with a black hard top? License plate 465ZLU. It’s got a 3″ lift, a winch on the front, and a rear license plate frame that’s pink and reads “I Brake For Unicorns.” It was stolen last night from 28th Ave. SW at SW Adams St., right in front of Dragonfly Park, some time between 1930 last night and 0700 this morning.

Many stolen cars are found relatively close by, so keep an eye out for David’s car. Meantime, Akemi noticed an abandoned silver Redline bike on the west side of The Junction, Oregon/Glenn – we always suggest reporting these to police so they’re not re-stolen (if stolen at all), but as an FYI, she’s seen it there for a couple days.

Three West Seattle Crime Watch reader reports to share. First two are home burglaries. From Dana, who’s in Westwood, between 32nd and 34th on Barton:

Our house was broken into (Thursday) sometime between 9:30 am-3:45 pm. In bedroom window, out the back door. I think it was typical robbery: they got laptop, jewelry, prescription (expired) meds, and Wii controllers(?). Reported it to SPD, they filed report and took some fingerprints. Officer said (reminding all of us) this is the season for break-ins (before/around Christmas).

That indeed was the reminder we heard from a Community Police Team officer at this week’s Admiral Neighborhood Association meeting.

Read More

FiveSix reader reports in West Seattle Crime Watch – car prowls and vandalism, package and other theft, plus a bicycle sighting – (11:18 am update) and brazen break-in attempts – read on:Read More

This didn’t happen in West Seattle, but the choosing-to-be-anonymous victim – and the person who helped her – were both headed this way:

Last night I had the unfortunate experience of being robbed while waiting for the Rapid Ride C line downtown. I was at the stop on the corner of 3rd and Pike at 9 pm after my evening class let out when a man grabbed my iPhone right out of my hands and ran away with it before I could even get a good look at him.

I was shaken and upset and I want to warn other bus riders of this danger. The stop really didn’t feel unsafe, even at that time of night because the corner is so well-lit and there were LOTS of people around. The officer that took my report said that this crime is very common in that location.

A very nice young woman stepped up to loan me her phone to call 911. She missed her bus to West Seattle in order to let me place my call. I’m trying to focus my mental images of the night on her good deed rather than the jarring experience of being a crime victim.

When Seattle Police overhauled their website and launched a list of unsolved murders, some wondered why it did not include the December 2010 death of Jeremy Peck, who disappeared after a visit to the Admiral Pub early Christmas Eve morning that year, eventually sparking a search that ended when his body washing up on Bainbridge Island in January 2011. We noted at the time that SPD had not classified his death as a murder; when an unsealed search warrant revealed new information in July 2011, police had reiterated that it was being investigated as a “suspicious death.” However, SPD has just added Peck’s death to their “Catch a Killer” page, making an indirect announcement with this tweet a short time ago:

The July 2011 revelations included word of two men having been seen dumping something off the “low bridge” and a car testing positive for blood believed to have been Peck’s. But no arrests have been reported, and police’s addition of the case to the unsolved-murders list indicates a new bid to ask the public for tips.