Category Archives: 2018 Homicides

15th Tacoma Homicide of 2018: LaMont ‘Monty’ Rushton

Posted on December 30, 2018 | 1 comment

james rushton

44-year-old LaMont ‘Monty’ Rushton had been homeless for a while, but like most homeless individuals he was trying to get it together. His six-year-old son was being raised by Monty’s mother. He wanted to get him back. He thought that maybe he would go up to Alaska and work on a fishing boat. Dangerous work, but everyone knew stories of someone who knew someone who went there for a season and came back with thousands. Maybe he’d make friends up there. He was a friendly guy. People tended to like him. This was just temporary.

It was Thursday, December 14th, a little after 11:30pm in downtown Tacoma. Monty was walking near South 26th and A Street when he spotted a young man taking a smoke break and asked him for a smoke. The young man handed him a smoke. Monty thanked the young man and walked on until he was confronted by a 29-year-old man. It was dark. The young man was at least 30 feet away. He heard Monty say, “Please don’t.” It appeared to the young man like the other man had challenged Monty to a fight and Monty had declined. Monty wasn’t a fighter. The other man ran away.

Monty headed towards the young man asking for help. Not realizing Monty was injured the young man initially ignored him. When he got closer the young man realized Monty had been stabbed multiple times in the chest and leg. The young man and his coworkers contacted paramedics and tried to help him, but Monty died a half hour after getting to the hospital becoming Tacoma’s fifteenth homicide this year.

A few days later, Monty’s killer was arrested at a nearby homeless camp. A large knife was found in the man’s tent. This is the second homeless killing in downtown Tacoma in the last month. And with any luck, the last killing this year.

As always, the comments section is reserved for friends and family of Monty to share memories or thoughts about Monty. All comments are moderated and approved before they appear.

– Jack

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13th & 14th Tacoma Homicides of 2018: Evitan De Biaso & Deonte Mitchner

Posted on December 25, 2018 | 7 comments
Evitan De Biaso
Deonte Mitchner

The plan seemed simple enough. A 16-year-old offered to sell a gun to a 13-year-old he smoked pot with a few weeks ago. The deal was to go down December 9th. The 16-year-old had no gun to sell. He was bringing three friends with him and they were going to rob the kid. According to charging papers, two of those friends were 19-year-old Evitan De Biaso and 21-year-old Deonte Mitchner. The third friend stayed in the car with Deonte’s two young children. Evitan and Deonte hid in bushes in an alley near the 1300 block of East 35th street.

Things did not go according to plan. The 16-year-old led the 13-year-old to the ambush, but the 13-year-old brought a friend. When Evitan and Deonte jumped out, the 13-year-old ran with the 16-year-old chasing him. The 16-year-old heard gunshots and knew that neither of his friends had guns. Around 4:50pm Tacoma police found both Evitan and Deonte dead of gunshot wounds. Evitan and Deonte become the thirteenth and fourteenth Tacoma homcides this year. The 16-year-old and the driver have been arrested. The unidentified shooter remains at large. People with knowledge of the incident are asked to call the Tacoma Police Department at 253-591-5968.

If TacomaStories has a theme it is to echo Bryan Stevenson’s “We are more than the worst things we’ve done.” Evitan and Deonte were more than these actions. Both had loving, caring families. Deonte has a 1-year-old and a 5-year-old who will never spend another Christmas with their father. It’s all too easy to judge and discard other people. We do not do that here. I know I have said it before, but every loss of life creates a hole in the lives of countless others.

As always the comments section is reserved for the friends and family of Evitan and Deonte who might want to share any thoughts or memories of them. All comments are moderated and approved before appearing.
– Jack

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Twelfth Tacoma Homicide of 2018: Antonio Douglas

Posted on December 18, 2018 | Leave a comment

Antonio Douglas

It was just after 11pm on December 4th. Some teenagers had pulled off the road in the 3700 block of Marine View Drive in Northeast Tacoma. They were smoking marijuana and passing around a stolen pistol. Seventeen-year-old was in the driver’s seat of the Toyota Camry. He pulled the clip out of the gun and handed it to his 17-year-old friend in the back. Charging papers say the friend told them that Antonio told him the gun was empty. His friend pointed the gun at the driver’s seat and pulled the trigger. The bullet went through the seat, through, Antonio’s arm and into his torso. Antonio opened the driver’s side door and fell out of the car. The others in the car drove him to his Aunt’s house. When his aunt saw that he had been shot, she told them to take him to the hospital. Antonio later died at the hospital becoming Tacoma’s twelfth homicide this year.

I was not able to find much online about Antonio. He was seventeen years old. So is his friend. His friend’s life will never be the same and Antonio’s life has ended long before it should have. The tragedy of this is as obvious as it is painful. While the tragedy is most felt by friends and family of Antonio, this is a tragedy for all of us because we will never get to see what Antonio could have been. Antonio’s friend has been arrested and charged with first-degree manslaughter.

This is the very definition of a homicide that should not have happened. If they hadn’t been playing with a gun, if his friend would have checked for a bullet in the chamber of the pistol, maybe if they’d driven him directly to the hospital, maybe if they hadn’t been smoking marijuana. There are a hundred things we could point at and say it shouldn’t have happened, but none of that changes the reality of the situation. We lost a child. And that matters. I write about these homicides so they will be remembered. We can’t save Antonio, but we can remember him, remember what happened, and hope it doesn’t happen again.

As always, the comments section is moderated and reserved for friends and family of Antonio who might want to share any thoughts or memories about it.
– Jack Cameron

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Eleventh Tacoma Homicide of 2018: Jiskoko “Jish” Shaw

Posted on November 25, 2018 | 4 comments

Jisgogo Sha

It was just after 9:30pm on Saturday, November 19th. In a parking garage in the 700 block of Commerce Street in downtown Tacoma, two transient acquaintances were talking. One was 33-year-old Jiskoko Sha. Friends called him Jish. The talking became an argument. The argument became physical. At some point the other man pulled a knife. A short time later a passerby found Jiskoko bleeding from a stab wound. He was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital where he later died, becoming Tacoma’s 11th homicide this year.

Police soon arrested the 36-year-old man who stabbed him, but prosecutors declined to press charges and released him pending further investigation.

The parking garage in which this happened is somewhat notorious for criminal activity though this is the first homicide to occur there.

I have been writing about homicides in Tacoma for eleven years and yet I still have difficulty fully explaining just what happens when someone in your life is murdered. Part of the reason for this site is to add a little more depth beyond the news headlines and to remind us that this isn’t just a homeless person getting killed in a bad area. This is a world ending. The world of Jiskoko Shaw is over. The impact of that echoes through the lives of his loved ones. Each of them feels a hole that cannot ever be fully patched. And Jish has been denied any possible future. His Tacoma Story ends here. But his memory remains. And who he was will not be forgotten by those who loved him.

As always the comment section is moderated and reserved for family and friends of Jiskoko Shaw who want to share memories or thoughts about him and his life.

– Jack Cameron

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Tenth Tacoma Homicide of 2018: DeAngelo Reese

Posted on August 25, 2018 | Leave a comment

deangelo reese

In the early morning hours of August 17th, 36-year-old DeAngelo Reese was riding bicycles with a female acquaintance in Tacoma’s Hilltop neighborhood. Near South 21st Street a 46-year-old man approached them. The man said to them, “”You’re not gonna be hanging around here, these are my streets.”

DeAngelo stopped his bicycle and said, “We do what we want.” The two then continued riding.

The man ran after them, at which point DeAngelo got off his bike and said, “Don’t run up on me.” The two of them got into a physical fight. DeAngelo pulled a knife. The man knocked it out of his hand and picked it up. DeAngelo ran toward a traffic circle on South 21st and Sheridan. He lost his footing, tripping on a curb. The man caught up to him and stabbed him repeatedly.

Shortly afterward, a passerby approached in response to the commotion. The man ran, getting into his girlfriend’s car as she drove away. DeAngelo was taken to a local hospital where he later died from his wounds becoming Tacoma’s tenth homicide this year.

Both the man who stabbed DeAngelo and his girlfriend were arrested and charged in DeAngelo’s murder days later.

This is the sort of murder that used to be fairly commonplace in Tacoma, especially in the Hilltop neighborhood. These days this kind of homicide is a rarity in this town. It can be easy to dismiss something like this as fairly trivial, but that of course ignores the hole left in the lives of DeAngelo’s loved ones that can never fully be repaired.

As always the comment section is reserved for those who knew DeAngelo and want to share thoughts or memories of him with us. Each comment is approved and moderated before it appears. All other comments are deleted and not seen.

My thoughts go out to DeAngelo’s loved ones.

– Jack

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Ninth Tacoma Homicide of 2018: Josh Youell

Posted on July 30, 2018 | 1 comment

joshyouell

According to charging papers, Josh Youell was looking for a man he claimed owed him money.  They’d talked on the phone earlier and it seemed as though the man was disrespecting Josh. Josh wanted to talk face to face. He and some others went looking for the man in an SUV. They found him near the 4400 block of Portland Avenue. It was 8pm on July 24th. It’d been a hot day. Though there were at least five other people in the SUV ranging in ages from 16-30, Josh was the only one to step out initially. Josh and the man got into a scuffle. The scuffle ended with Josh having been stabbed repeatedly. Three people in the SUV stepped out. Two had guns and shot the man who stabbed Josh as he ran away. They then drove Josh to Allenmore Hospital where they helped him get inside. Josh later died from his stab wounds during surgery becoming the ninth Tacoma homicide victim this year.

It isn’t known how much money the man owed Josh, but it certainly was not worth both of their lives. It is often not until horrific tragedy has struck that we see how minor our differences really are. It helps to remember that everyone you know has sides you may not see. I doubt the man who stabbed Josh knew that Josh had a sister who was also his best friend. I doubt that the people who shot the man who stabbed Josh knew he had a three year old daughter who had already lost her mother. And I would bet anything that given the option everyone involved would take back everything that happened.

This year continues to be a year in which the homicide rate in Tacoma is higher than normal. We’ve had literally twice as many homicides as we did at this time last year. This means more grieving family and friends and the loss of more Tacomans.

As always the comments section is reserved for friends and family of Josh who want to share memories or thoughts about him. All comments are moderated and approved before they are posted.

– Jack Cameron

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Eighth Tacoma Homicide of 2018: Francisco Beiza

Posted on July 30, 2018 | 2 comments

Image

It was 8pm on Tuesday July 24th in the 4400 block of Portland Avenue. 30-year-old Francisco Beiza was walking down the street. Charging papers say that he had talked on the phone earlier with a 23-year-old man who claimed Francisco owed him money. The phone conversation had not gone well. Now the 23-year-old man showed up in an SUV with a group of others ranging in ages from 16-30. The man got out of the vehicle. The man and Francisco got into a scuffle. The scuffle ended with the man being stabbed. Three individuals then got out of the SUV. Two had guns. Francisco ran.

Inside the nearby Eastside Community Church they were having a bible study. The gunfire they heard was so loud that they initially thought it was in the building. Francisco Beiza died on the scene from gunshot wounds. Police found twenty-two 9mm shell casings and a knife near his body. Francisco was the eighth Tacoma homicide this year.

The 23-year-old man was taken to Allenmore Hospital by the individuals in the SUV. He later died during surgery. Six individuals were arrested in connection with the death of Francisco Beiza.

Francisco had a three-year-old daughter who lost her mother in 2015. I was unable to find much else about Francisco online, but here is what I know from covering all types of homicides in Tacoma for the last eleven years. There are people who knew and loved Francisco. There are people who will never be the same because of his murder. He will be missed. And not soon forgotten by those who care. Any killing is a tragedy and sometimes that tragedy hits home.

My thoughts go out to all of the friends and family involved in this. It’s not easy for anyone. If any friends or family have a photo of Francisco they’d like to send for this article, please send it to jackcameronis@gmail.com.

As always the comments section is reserved for friends and family of Francisco who want to share memories or thoughts about him. All comments are moderated and approved before they are posted.

– Jack Cameron

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Seventh Tacoma Homicide of 2018: Robert Doss II

Posted on July 27, 2018 | 1 comment

DavidDoss

Around 10:30pm on July 18th Tacoma Police received a tip about three young men in an SUV confronting people about their gang affiliation. About twenty minutes later 24-year-old Robert Doss II and a 20-year-old woman had parked near the intersection of South 14th and L Street in a 2004 Ford Explorer. They were eating when the SUV pulled up. The man in the passenger seat of the SUV asked them where they were from. Robert told them he was from Hilltop. The driver pulled the SUV slightly forward. The man in the backseat, a hooded sweatshirt over his face opened fire and drove away.

Robert was hit in the chest. His female companion was hit in the hand. She managed to drive to the nearby St. Joseph’s Medical Center where Robert was pronounced dead and she was given medical treatment.

The three men were found six days later in a house in Graham and have been arrested for their part in Robert’s murder. A surveillance camera at the East Side convenience store helped identify the driver. The driver admitted that they were looking for rival gang members to attack in retaliation for a shooting in May. The driver claimed that Robert was responsible, but there’s no evidence that Doss was in a gang much less responsible for any violence whatsoever.

This is the seventh Tacoma homicide this year. Typically in the city of Tacoma we have about one homicide a month. But we’ve had three in the last week. It’s worth noting though that though this shooting occurred on Hilltop this is only the second homicide in the past year to take place in that neighborhood. This is a marked difference from the violent days of the 1990s.

When violent crime increases it’s easy for the human experience to be lost in the statistics and the law. Of course this is impossible if a loved one is the victim of a homicide. Robert was a security guard at a downtown fast food restaurant. He was a good guy with a great smile. And he will be missed by those who knew and loved him in a way that most media will ignore and I will fail to do justice to.

As always, the comment section is reserved for those who knew Robert who might want to share thoughts or memories of him. Comments are moderated and approved before they are posted.

– Jack Cameron

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Sixth Tacoma Homicide of 2018: Robert ‘Big Dave’ Crall

Posted on July 20, 2018 | Leave a comment

Robert Big Dave Crall
It was just after 5:00am on Thursday March 15th when 54-year-old Robert ‘Big Dave’ Crall took his last cab fare near the 5800 block of South Montgomery. The 19-year-old man got in the cab. They made it about a quarter mile. The 19-year-old pulled a bandana over his face and tried to rob Big Dave. The confrontation ended with Big Dave shot in the chest and the 19-year-old on the run. The shooter would be arrested later that day and implicated in a couple of home invasions and at least one other robbery.

As Robert ‘Big Dave’ Crall lay dying outside his cab with a chest wound, a nearby neighbor held his hand. He becomes the sixth Tacoma homicide this year. Six homicides by March is nearly double our typical homicide rate. It is difficult to find a cause for this sudden uptick in violence in the city. It’s also worth noting that the amount of homicides is not a very good measure of such things as there are aggravated assaults that are just as violent and amount to attempted homicides.

Family and friends say that Robert ‘Big Dave’ Crall was incredibly friendly and generous. He had a 27-year-old son and an ex-wife who he was good friends with. He was funny.  He’d been driving a cab for two years. That particular morning they had asked him to skip work because he was tired, but he went out to do the job like so many of us do.

Once again I have to apologize for the delay in getting this article written. It has been four months since Big Dave’s death. I am sure friends and family still feel like it was yesterday. It’s difficult to explain to someone who hasn’t lost anyone close what it means when there’s a hole in your life where there used to be a smiling person you loved. It’s not just something that happened. It’s something that happens every day when you look at the world and don’t see them in it.

As always the comments section is reserved for those who knew and loved Big Dave. Comments are moderated and have to be approved by me before they appear. By all accounts Big Dave was one of those people who made Tacoma what it is and the city is a little less having lost him.

– Jack Cameron

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Fifth Tacoma Homicide of 2018 Tyler Zimmerman

Posted on June 29, 2018 | 1 comment

TylerZimmerman

It’s was almost 2am on Wednesday, February 21st. 27-year-old Tyler Zimmerman was at a friend’s house in the 6110 block of South Fawcett. They decided to purchase some magic mushrooms and invited a dealer over. The 26-year-old dealer showed up with a friend. Tyler handed over $300. The dealer pulled out the mushrooms, but when Tyler saw them he decided they weren’t worth the money and asked for the money back. The dealer refused. A fight ensued. The fight spilled into the yard. At one point the dealer pulled a knife and stabbed Tyler in the back.

“Ow, what did you hit me with? What did you hit me with?” Tyler said before collapsing to the ground. After police arrived, Tyler was transported to the hospital where he later died.

The drug dealer and the drug dealer’s friend were both arrested. This is the fifth Tacoma homicide this year. This is a sharp increase in homicides compared to last year.

Tyler was the oldest of five children and had a seven-year-old daughter. He worked at a company that set up offices. In his off time he liked working on cars. He also liked gardening. He grew roses in his mother’s yard.

There are some who would argue that anyone involved in illegal drugs should not find it unexpected when things turn violent or fatal, but those people lack empathy, compassion, or awareness. Odds are that those same people have close friends and relatives who engage in such behavior and would feel very differently if the victim were one of their own.

Every death matters. Every killing is a loss. Right now there is a seven-year-old little girl who will grow up without her father because another man chose to end her father’s life over $300.

As always, the comments section is reserved for those who knew Tyler to share memories or thoughts of him. All comments are monitored and approved by me.

I would also like to take this moment to apologize to Tyler’s friends and family for the delay in getting this article written. I have been writing about Tacoma homicides for over a decade. This sort of writing and research takes a toll. I had to give myself some time away and as this is a one-man website, that meant a delay in getting this done. Tyler is not forgotten.

  • Jack Cameron

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