Washington teen accused of murdering family banned from contacting sole-surviving sister
A 15-year-old Washington state boy accused of murdering his parents and three of his siblings inside their home was banned from contacting his sole-surviving sister during a hearing on Tuesday.
The teen, whose name has not been released publicly due to his age, waived his right to appear in court Tuesday for his first hearing at the Judge Patricia H. Clark Children and Family Justice Center in Seattle, the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office said.
Prosecutors asked the judge to charge the teen suspect with five counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder. The suspect’s defense attorney said the teen had no prior criminal history. A charging decision is expected later this week.
The judge also ordered the teen to have no contact with someone whom prosecutors described as the surviving member of his immediate family.
Police described the shooting as a domestic violence incident. (FOX13 Seattle KCPQ)
The surviving family member was identified as an 11-year-old girl, who had been shot twice before escaping the home in Fall City during the shooting early Monday morning.
Deputies responded around 5 a.m. to reports of a shooting at the home and immediately took one teen into custody while another injured juvenile was taken to a Seattle hospital. When deputies entered the home, they discovered the bodies of two adults and three juveniles.
The shooting happened in the Lake Alice neighborhood of Fall City, Washington, early Monday. (FOX13 Seattle KCPQ)
King County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Mike Mellis said investigators believe the people killed had been shot. Their names and causes of death have not yet been released.
The 11-year-old girl was in “satisfactory condition” at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle on Tuesday, hospital officials said. Police had initially said the injured person was a teenager.
One teen was taken into custody and a second teen was hospitalized with gunshot wounds. Deputies found three other juveniles and two adults dead at the scene. (FOX13 Seattle KCPQ)
The 15-year-old was booked into King County’s juvenile detention facility, and no other arrests were expected, Mellis said.
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The parents were identified as Mark and Sarah Humiston, KING-TV reported. Mark reportedly worked as an electrical engineer, though few details about the family were immediately available.
Neighbors told FOX13 Seattle that a couple and their five children lived at the home, describing the family as polite. Others added that the children were homeschooled and used to help their parents and neighbors with home projects.
Community members held a vigil on Tuesday night for the family.
“Small town and tragedy, everybody comes together,” Shelley Yohn told FOX13.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
