Print Page - 4 police officers killed in Wash. state Shootings happened at coffee shop south

The cold-blooded killings of four Lakewood police officers in a Sunday morning ambush left Western Washington in shock, less than a month after the brutal killing of a Seattle police officer.

And it brought home once again the fact that law enforcement personnel put their lives on the line every time they put on a uniform and report for duty, local leaders said.

"I am shocked and horrified at the murder of four police officers this morning in Pierce County," said Gov. Chris Gregoire. "Our police put their lives on the line every day, and tragedies like this remind us of the risks they continually take to keep our communities safe."

"My heart goes out to the family, friends and co-workers of these officers, as well as the entire law enforcement community," she said.

Brian D. Wurts, president of the Lakewood Police Independent Guild that represents the fallen officers, could hardly contain his anger and grief as he responded to the tragedy.

Calling the shootings "a cold-blooded assassination" by "a complete coward and threat upon all of society," he said the shootings had left him numb.

"We were dealt a nasty blow; good men and women I have had the honor of knowing for years are senselessly gone," he said. "There is no way to comprehend it, to validate it, or to make sense of any of it. You cannot understand evil like this, as a community we must form a solid bond against criminals and hold them accountable."

He pleaded with the community to remember the fallen officers' families with their prayers and donations.

Pierce County Sheriff Paul A. Pastor called the shootings an attack on the entire community.

"This is an example of the danger faced by men and women in uniform every day," Pastor said. "The people or person who did this harmed not only these officers, but harmed the work we do every day in the community."

State Attorney General Rob McKenna said: "Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the police officers murdered today in Lakewood. This outrageous act of violence against our brave protectors is a direct assault on the safety of our entire community."

An impromptu memorial is taking shape near the scene of the shootings, and is growing as more people add flowers and notes of kindness.

The scene of the slayings, a Forza Co. coffee shop near Lakewood, is owned by Brad Carpenter, a retired police officer.

"As a retired police officer, this senseless shooting hits extremely close to home to me," Carpenter said. "These officers put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, and this crime cuts deep into the heart of the entire Forza family."

Rich Jennings, who owns the Forza Coffee Co. chain, said immediate action will be taken to establish a donation area at each Forza coffee house for the benefit of the families of the officers who lost their lives.

"Our prayers go out to the family and friends of these officers in the face of this horrific tragedy," Jennings said.

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/78095462.html

Four Lakewood police officers shot and killed in 'ambush'

Posted on November 29, 2009 at 9:41 AM
Updated today at 3:22 PM
Related:
Briefing by Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer
Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor statement
Pierce Co. Emergency Information - officer shooting
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4 officers killed in Parkland, WA
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PARKLAND, Wash. - Four Lakewood Police officers were shot and killed Sunday morning in what authorities called a targeted ambush at a coffee shop.
Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer says the officers - three male and one female - were in full uniform and wearing bulletproof vests, sitting in Forza coffee shop near 116th Street and Steele Street on the east side of the Air Force base at about 8:30 a.m.
Troyer says the officers were preparing for their shift when a suspect or suspects "walked in with a handgun, opened fire multiple times and then fled the scene," said Troyer.
Troyer called it an "ambush."
"They had marked police cars, marked uniforms, there were other people inside the facility, they weren't shot, wounded or hurt or even aimed at, just the police officers were," said Troyer.
It wasn't clear whether the officers even had time to draw their weapons to return fire, Troyer said.
"This was more of an execution. Walk in with the specific mindset to shoot police officers," Troyer said.
With no known suspects, there was no indication of any connection with the Halloween night shooting of a Seattle police officer. The suspect in that shooting remains hospitalized.
"We won't know if it's a copycat effect or what it was until we get the case solved," Troyer said. "We don't even have a suspect ID right now."
Troyer would not release the names of the victims in Sunday's shooting. He said Lakewood has a small police force and the deaths represent a loss of 10 percent to 15 percent of the department.
Troyer estimates a couple hundred officers from the Washington State Patrol and multiple surrounding police agencies in the area are at the scene, with some coming on their own time.
"We have no motive at all," Troyer said. "I don't think when we find out what it is, it will be anything that makes any sense or be worth it."
Two employees and a few other customers were in the shop during the attack. All are being interviewed by the Pierce County Sheriff's investigators.
"Some are in shock. They are very upset," Troyer said. "They are the ones who are going to put together for us how this happened."
The Forza Coffee Shop, part of a popular local chain, is in a small retail center alongside two restaurants, a cigar store and a nail salon.
Brad Carpenter, founder and owner of Forza Coffee, said his staff was OK and being interviewed by police, and that his main concern was with the families of the police officers.
"I'm a retired police officer, so this really hits close to home for me," he said.
Forza Coffee issued a press release, saying their "prayers go out to the family and friends of these officers in the face of this horrific tragedy."
"The cold-blooded ambush that took place at the Steele Street Forza Coffee House in Parkland," the release said.
Forza said a donation area will be established at each coffee house.
"It is Forza's goal to help the families of those who lost their lives during this difficult holiday season, and into the new year as they struggle to reconstruct their lives in the year ahead," said Rich Jennings, Forza owner.
Roads are blocked around the scene. Dave Gabrielson, a clerk at Foot Mart about a block away from the coffee shop, told the News Tribune that all was quiet when he opened the store at 8 a.m.
About 30 minutes later, "All of a sudden a million cops were zooming up and down the road," he said.
Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor said "this is an example of the danger that police officers and deputy sheriffs and state troopers face every day."
"The person or people who did this not only harmed us they harmed the good that we can do in the community. They harmed the good that we work to do every day in the community," he said.
"This is an example of the cost that is sometimes paid by people who believe in duty and obligation and sacrifice and people who do that on behalf of the community."
"We've lost people that we care about, we've lost people I'm sure the good people in the community care about as well," said Pastor.
Troyer said there were several active scenes that officers were working. A white pick-up truck was impounded from a parking lot at one scene and a person was taken into custody at another.
He said they are looking to see if there is any surveillance cameras that may have caught the suspect on video.
Troyer said the suspect is a black male, 5-foot-7 to 6 feet tall, 20s to 30s, scruffy appearance, wearing a black coat with a gray sweatshirt underneath, and blue jeans.
A $10,000 reward is being offered for information. Tiplines - for tips only - are (253) 591-5959 or 866-977-2362.
Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said she was "shocked and horrified" by the killings.
"Our police put their lives on the line every day, and tragedies like this remind us of the risks they continually take to keep our communities safe," she said in a written statement. "My heart goes out to the family, friends and co-workers of these officers, as well as the entire law enforcement community."
The President of the Lakewood Police Independent Guild, Brian D. Wurts, issued a statement, calling the murders a "cold blooded assassination."
"As I write this I am numb. We were dealt a nasty blow, good men and women I have had the honor of knowing for years are senselessly gone. There is no way to comprehend it, to validate it, or to make sense of any of it. You cannot understand evil like this, as a community we must form a solid bond against criminals and hold them accountable. I know my members and can say with certainty that as a group we will remain professional and will continue to work to protect those of you we have taken an oath to protect. If you know a cop tell them how much you appreciate them, it truly keeps us going. Please pray for these officers and their families. All of them had significant others and children who are left behind," he said.
Wurts said a benevolent account has been established for the families of the officers.
Send donations to LPIG Benevolent Fund at PO Box 99579 Lakewood, WA 98499.
"I will personally make sure it goes where it is intended. May God bless you four who are in a place so much better than this; you are some of the finest professionals I have ever known. God bless our community today," Wurtz said.
Prayer vigil
A prayer vigil for the officers and their families will be held tonight at 6 p.m. at Tacoma Champions Centre at 1819 E. 72nd St. in Tacoma.

http://www.king5.com/news/local/Police-officers-shot-78089882.html

Suspect in police shootings may have been shot himself

by KING5.com and Associated Press
Posted on November 29, 2009 at 9:41 AM
Updated today at 3:55 PM
Related:
Briefing by Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer
Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor statement
Pierce Co. Emergency Information - officer shooting
Gallery
SEE ALL 19 PHOTOS »
4 officers killed in Parkland, WA
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PARKLAND, Wash. - Investigators say the gunmen who shot and killed four Lakewood police officers inside a coffee shop may have been shot himself.
Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said at a press conference Sunday afternoon that there was a struggle inside the coffee shop, and there is evidence that the suspect may have been hurt.
"We believe after some of the officers were shot, one of them managed to fight his way with the suspect .. fight all the way out the doorway until he was shot and died of a gunshot wound," said Troyer.
"There is evidence that a Lakewood Police officer fired off some shots, and we hope that he hit him," said Troyer. "If he's hit, that means that he's injured somewhere with a gunshot wound."
Troyer said local hospitals have been contacted in case the suspect seeks medical attention.
"He's going to have to get that taken care of sometime, someplace and when that occurs we want to know where that person's at," said Troyer.
Troyer said the person may travel a distance and go to a hospital or medical center and claim that he accidentally shot himself.
"What we need is if somebody knows somebody who has a gunshot wound or has a fresh injury and is described as a black male between 25 and 35, rough face and hair, wearing a black coat, jeans, and has an injury, we want to know who that is," said Troyer.
The officers - three male and one female - were in full uniform and wearing bulletproof vests, sitting in Forza coffee shop near 116th Street and Steele Street on the east side of the Air Force base at about 8:30 a.m.
Troyer says the officers were preparing for their shift when a suspect or suspects "walked in with a handgun, opened fire multiple times and then fled the scene," said Troyer.
Troyer called it an "ambush."
"They had marked police cars, marked uniforms, there were other people inside the facility, they weren't shot, wounded or hurt or even aimed at, just the police officers were," said Troyer.
It wasn't clear whether the officers even had time to draw their weapons to return fire, Troyer said.
"This was more of an execution. Walk in with the specific mindset to shoot police officers," Troyer said.
With no known suspects, there was no indication of any connection with the Halloween night shooting of a Seattle police officer. The suspect in that shooting remains hospitalized.
"We won't know if it's a copycat effect or what it was until we get the case solved," Troyer said. "We don't even have a suspect ID right now."
Troyer would not release the names of the victims in Sunday's shooting. He said Lakewood has a small police force and the deaths represent a loss of 10 percent to 15 percent of the department.
Troyer estimates a couple hundred officers from the Washington State Patrol and multiple surrounding police agencies in the area are at the scene, with some coming on their own time.
"We have no motive at all," Troyer said. "I don't think when we find out what it is, it will be anything that makes any sense or be worth it."
Two employees and a few other customers were in the shop during the attack. All are being interviewed by the Pierce County Sheriff's investigators.
"Some are in shock. They are very upset," Troyer said. "They are the ones who are going to put together for us how this happened."
The Forza Coffee Shop, part of a popular local chain, is in a small retail center alongside two restaurants, a cigar store and a nail salon.
Brad Carpenter, founder and owner of Forza Coffee, said his staff was OK and being interviewed by police, and that his main concern was with the families of the police officers.
"I'm a retired police officer, so this really hits close to home for me," he said.
Forza Coffee issued a press release, saying their "prayers go out to the family and friends of these officers in the face of this horrific tragedy."
"The cold-blooded ambush that took place at the Steele Street Forza Coffee House in Parkland," the release said.
Forza said a donation area will be established at each coffee house.
"It is Forza's goal to help the families of those who lost their lives during this difficult holiday season, and into the new year as they struggle to reconstruct their lives in the year ahead," said Rich Jennings, Forza owner.
Roads are blocked around the scene. Dave Gabrielson, a clerk at Foot Mart about a block away from the coffee shop, told the News Tribune that all was quiet when he opened the store at 8 a.m.
About 30 minutes later, "All of a sudden a million cops were zooming up and down the road," he said.
Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor said "this is an example of the danger that police officers and deputy sheriffs and state troopers face every day."
"The person or people who did this not only harmed us they harmed the good that we can do in the community. They harmed the good that we work to do every day in the community," he said.
"This is an example of the cost that is sometimes paid by people who believe in duty and obligation and sacrifice and people who do that on behalf of the community."
"We've lost people that we care about, we've lost people I'm sure the good people in the community care about as well," said Pastor.
Troyer said there were several active scenes that officers were working. A white pick-up truck was impounded from a parking lot at one scene and a person was taken into custody at another.
He said they are looking to see if there is any surveillance cameras that may have caught the suspect on video.
Troyer said the suspect is a black male, 5-foot-7 to 6 feet tall, 20s to 30s, scruffy appearance, wearing a black coat with a gray sweatshirt underneath, and blue jeans.
A $10,000 reward is being offered for information. Tiplines - for tips only - are (253) 591-5959 or 866-977-2362.
Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said she was "shocked and horrified" by the killings.
"Our police put their lives on the line every day, and tragedies like this remind us of the risks they continually take to keep our communities safe," she said in a written statement. "My heart goes out to the family, friends and co-workers of these officers, as well as the entire law enforcement community."
The President of the Lakewood Police Independent Guild, Brian D. Wurts, issued a statement, calling the murders a "cold blooded assassination."
"As I write this I am numb. We were dealt a nasty blow, good men and women I have had the honor of knowing for years are senselessly gone. There is no way to comprehend it, to validate it, or to make sense of any of it. You cannot understand evil like this, as a community we must form a solid bond against criminals and hold them accountable. I know my members and can say with certainty that as a group we will remain professional and will continue to work to protect those of you we have taken an oath to protect. If you know a cop tell them how much you appreciate them, it truly keeps us going. Please pray for these officers and their families. All of them had significant others and children who are left behind," he said.
Wurts said a benevolent account has been established for the families of the officers.
Send donations to LPIG Benevolent Fund at PO Box 99579 Lakewood, WA 98499.

http://www.king5.com/news/local/Police-officers-shot-78089882.html

Ex-con wanted for questioning in Lakewood police slayings

A 37-year-old Tacoma man, Maurice Clemmons, is being sought for questioning in the execution-style shooting of four Lakewood police officers this morning, according to two law-enforcement sources.

Authorities are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the person involved in this morning's fatal shooting, described as a black man who is between 5-feet-7-inches and 5-feet-10-inches tall, and wearing a black coat and blue jeans in the Lakewood, Wash. area. Anybody with information is asked to call 253-591-5959 or 866-977-2362.

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A 37-year-old Tacoma man, Maurice Clemmons, is being sought for questioning in the execution-style shooting of four Lakewood police officers this morning, according to two law-enforcement sources.

Clemmons, who was recently released from jail, has an extensive criminal record in Pierce County and Arkansas, court records show. Clemmons is wanted in Arkansas and faces eight criminal charges in Washington state.

The four officers were killed at about 8:15 a.m. by a scruffy-looking man who walked into a coffee shop and opened fire. The officers — three men and one woman — were found dead by deputies who arrived at Forza Coffee at 11401 Steele St. S., said Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer.

Troyer said the investigation into the shootings indicate that the gunman "flat-out executed" two of the officers. One officer then stood up, tried to go for the gunman and was shot, Troyer said.

The fourth officer was involved in some kind of struggle with the gunman.

"What happened in there wasn't just a shooting. One of the officers managed to fight his way with the suspect, wrestled him out the door when he was shot and killed," Troyer said.

Before that fourth officer was killed, Troyer said, he apparently managed to fire at the shooter.

Troyer said if the gunman was shot, he could be traveling some distance to get care. Troyer suggested the man may try to visit a medical facility and claim he had suffered an accidental gunshot wound.

The officers who were shot made up one patrol unit, including a sergeant. Their families have been notified, but their identities have not been released.

"It's carnage out front everywhere," Troyer said, describing the front of the coffee shop. "It's like a bad horror movie, it's horrible."

The officers were in uniform, including bulletproof vests, and were working on their laptop computers as they prepared to start their day shifts, Troyer said.

"This was a targeted, selective ambush," Troyer said.

Troyer said there may have been a driver who helped the suspect get away, and police had a description of the possible driver.

The gunman was described as a black man in his 20s or 30s, between 5-feet-7 inches and 5-feet-10-inches, and ran north on Steele Street South after the shooting. He was wearing a black coat over a gray hooded sweat shirt and bluejeans, Troyer said.

Police took a man into custody at a Parkland house nearby after he apparently called 911, claiming to be the shooter. But the man was not linked to the crime, Troyer said.

Dozens of officers were searching the area near the coffee shop, including the parking lot of Evergreen Self Storage. Troyer, carrying an assault rifle, told members of the media, "this is kind of a hot area, so you're kind of on your own."

He urged the reporters not to roam off and assigned three officers to stand near the media.

At least a dozen officers also have surrounded another nearby house. Three cars were parked in the driveway but there was no indication whether anyone was inside the property.

Washington State Attorney General Rob McKenna said he has directed his office to help in the investigation, including the Homicide Investigation Tracking System and the unit's criminal investigators. That system includes a central repository for detailed information on violent crimes occurring in Washington and Oregon.

Two coffee-shop employees and several customers are being interviewed by police and considered critical witnesses, Troyer said. "As you can imagine, they are traumatized, they are in shock," said Troyer. No one else was hurt.

Brad Carpenter, CEO of Forza Coffee, met with the two young female baristas after they were interviewed by police and said they were "shaken up." The slain officers were "well-known to our staff," Carpenter, a retired police officer from Oakland and Gig Harbor.

"It's supposed to be a safe haven for everybody," Carpenter said about the coffee shop.

Police seized a white pickup parked in a nearby parking lot and took it away on a flatbed truck. Detectives were preparing search warrants for multiple locations, Troyer said.

The shootings come about a month after the killing of Seattle Police Officer Timothy Brenton, who was targeted for being a police officer when he was gunned down while sitting in his patrol car the night of Oct. 31.

A $10,000 reward has been offered for information leading to an arrest in the Lakewood officer's deaths.

Forza Coffee is in a strip mall across the street from McChord Air Force Base and at a crossroads between Parkland and Lakewood, with a mix of residences and industrial businesses.

Immediately after the 911 call came in, police from Lakewood, Tacoma, the Pierce County Sheriff's Department and other jurisdictions raced to the area.

"I have never seen this many scramble to a particular spot, ever," said David Gabrielson, 27, who works as clerk at a gas station near the coffee shop.

Troyer said officers "were self-dispatching from multiple agencies" to help. He also said law enforcement had not received any threats or warnings.

"We don't know if this is related to other shootings around the country or the one in Seattle," Troyer said. "It could be because someone saw this happening around the country and got himself ramped up."

Troyer said a KING-5 TV helicopter was interfering with "tactical operations" of police investigating the shootings, slowing down the search for suspects. The pilot had been asked to leave and refused, but KING apparently called off the helicopter.

Monty Norman, 44, of Lakewood works at a carwash and detailing shop three blocks from the Lakewood Police Department headquarters. Officers come in the shop every day to have their cars cleaned.

"It's just crazy. Just insane. Words can't explain. It's just a bad feeling, We see them [officers] every day. They're really good people," Norman said.

According to the department's Web site, the Lakewood Police Department has 123 staff members including 120 commissioned officers.

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http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010385339_webshootingupdates29m.html

Dispatches on the Lakewood police shooting and manhunt

Sgt. Mark Renninger and Officers Ronald Owens, Tina Griswold and Greg Richards were identified as the officers killed this morning in the...

By Seattle Times staff

Reward information

Authorities are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the person involved in this morning's fatal shooting, described as a black man who is between 5-feet-7-inches and 5-feet-10-inches tall, and wearing a black coat and blue jeans in the Lakewood, Wash. area. Anybody with information is asked to call 253-591-5959 or 866-977-2362.

UPDATE 6:02 PM

Sgt. Mark Renninger and Officers Ronald Owens, Tina Griswold and Greg Richards were identified as the officers killed this morning in the coffee shop in Parkland.

UPDATE 5:09 PM

Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer said a hoax was behind officers' search of vehicles at a storage facility near the shooting scene today. The Pierce County bomb squad also had been dispatched to Evergreen Self Storage.

A man in Tacoma had called his girlfriend and some other people and falsely claimed responsibility for the shooting, Troyer said. The man has since been arrested on suspicion of obstructing a police investigation.

UPDATE 4:54 PM

One of the four officers shot and killed early Sunday struggled with the gunman and fired some shots, said Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer.

Troyer said the investigation into the shootings indicate that the gunman "flat-out executed" two of the officers after he walked into Forza Coffee around 8:15 a.m. One officer then stood up and tried to go for the gunman and was shot, Troyer said.

After that, the fourth officer was involved in some kind of struggle with the gunman and apparently managed to fire shots, Troyer said.

"What happened in there wasn't just a shooting. One of the officers managed to fight his way with the suspect, wrestled him out the door when he was shot and killed," Troyer said.

UPDATE 3:58 PM

A KING-TV news crew hovering in a helicopter above the scene has been interfering with the investigation, according to Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer. But KING says the station has done nothing wrong.

Troyer said the helicopter was following sheriff's deputies as they carried out various tactical operations and had hindered the investigation at least three times. He said KING had not respected requests to back off and that the department is considering pursuing charges.

But Mark Ginther, KING's executive news director, said the helicopter backed off when asked. He said the station has followed Federal Aviation Administration rules for the airspace over the scene.

"It's important to recognize that it's a very stressful situation down there," Ginther said. He said the station has been happy to comply with a number of requests by Troyer to help the investigation by posting suspect information, tipline numbers and the like.

Ginther said the station has led television coverage of the event all day, but he puts that down to good journalism rather than being too aggressive.

UPDATE 3:33 PM

Pierce County's bomb squad rolled up around 3:30 p.m. to the Evergreen Self Storage facility near the scene of this morning's shooting. It's unclear what they are looking for. Police have been searching the parking lot of the facility.

UPDATE 3:23 PM

The Lakewood Police department plans to escort the bodies of their four slain officers to the Pierce County Medical Examiner's office in an extensive motorcade within two hours.

Officers from other jurisdictions will cover the duties of Lakewood officers taking part in the motorcade, said Pierce County Sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer.

Crime scene investigators continue to analyze the crime scene, and will work into the evening to reconstruct the shooting, Troyer said.

Detectives think the shooter may be on foot and still in the Parkland neighborhood where the shooting took place, Troyer said.

UPDATE 2:45 PM

Police have closed off a long stretch of 112th Street South near the coffee shop where the shooting occurred. The stretch of road is also next to the Evergreen Self Storage facility. Police have been searching the parking lot of the storage facility. Law-enforcement helicopters also have been circling overhead.

4 Police Officers Shot Dead in Washington State; Person of Interest Named

(http://www.foxnews.com/images/589276/21_64_maurice_320.jpg)

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,577691,00.html

Investigators identified a man with an extensive criminal past as a "person of interest" in the ambush on four police officers, who were shot to death Sunday morning at a coffee shop.

Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer told reporters that Maurice Clemmons, 37, was one of several people investigators want to talk to and that he could not be called a suspect at this point.

In a news release, the sheriff's office said Clemmons has an extensive violent criminal history from Arkansas, including aggravated robbery and theft. Clemmons also recently was arrested and charged in Pierce County in Washington state for third-degree assault on a police officer, and second-degree rape of a child.

The four officers were with the 100-member police department of Lakewood, which adjoins the unincorporated area of Parkland, where the shootings took place. The city identified the victims as Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39; Ronald Owens, 37; Tina Griswold, 40; and Greg Richards 42.

Troyer said one of those officers fought with the gunman and may have wounded him before the officer died just outside the doorway. He told reporters that investigators were asking area medical providers to report any people wounded by gunshots.

Troyer said investigators believe two of the officers were shot dead while sitting in the shop, and a third was killed after standing up. The fourth apparently struggled with the gunman out the doorway and "gave up a good fight," getting off a few shots before he was either shot there or succumbed to earlier wounds.

"We believe there was a struggle, a commotion, a fight ... that he fought the guy all the way out the door," Troyer said.

He added, "We hope that he hit him."

Troyer said the gunman entered the coffee house and walked up to the counter as if to place an order. A barista saw a gun when the man opened his jacket and fled out the back door. The man then turned and opened fire on the officers as they sat working on their laptops, killing the three men and one woman in what Troyer described as a targeted ambush.

Troyer said the attack was clearly targeted at the officers, not a robbery gone bad.

"This was more of an execution. Walk in with the specific mindset to shoot police officers," he said.

Troyer said the officers — all from the Lakewood Police Department — were catching up on paperwork at the beginning of their shifts when they were attacked at 8:15 a.m. Sunday.

"There were marked patrol cars outside and they were all in uniform," Troyer said.

There was no indication of any connection with the Halloween night shooting of a Seattle police officer. The suspect in that shooting remains hospitalized.

"We won't know if it's a copycat effect or what it was until we get the case solved," Troyer said. "We don't even have a suspect ID right now."

Troyer estimated that a couple of hundred officers from the Washington State Patrol and multiple surrounding police agencies in the area were at the crime scene, with some coming on their own time.

"We have no motive at all," Troyer said. "I don't think when we find out what it is, it will be anything that makes any sense or be worth it."

Two employees and a few other customers were in the shop during the attack. All were interviewed by the Pierce County sheriff's investigators.

"Some are in shock. They are very upset," Troyer said. "They are the ones who are going to put together for us how this happened."

The Forza Coffee Shop, part of a popular local chain, is on a side street near McChord Air Force Base in Tacoma, about 35 miles south of Seattle. The shop is in a small retail center alongside two restaurants, a cigar store and a nail salon.

Brad Carpenter, founder and owner of Forza Coffee, said his staff was OK and being interviewed by police, and that his main concern was for the families of the police officers.

"I'm a retired police officer, so this really hits close to home for me," said Carpenter, of nearby Gig Harbor.

Troyer said the Lakewood officers were two blocks outside their jurisdiction, and the coffee shop was a popular place for officers from surrounding jurisdictions to meet and share information.

Streets around the coffee shop were blocked off late Sunday morning, and a police helicopter hovered over a large crowd of investigators. TV video showed police taking possession of a pickup truck parked in a grocery store in Parkland.

Troyer said investigators were checking surveillance video from multiple sources, trying to identify a possible getaway car.

Dave Gabrielson, a clerk at Foot Mart about a block away from the coffee shop, told the newspaper all was quiet when he opened the store at 8 a.m. About 30 minutes later, "All of a sudden a million cops were zooming up and down the road," Gabrielson said.

He said he saw officers bring a police dog into a nearby apartment complex.

Last month, Seattle police officer Timothy Brenton was shot and killed Halloween night as he was sitting in a cruiser with trainee Britt Sweeney. Sweeney was grazed in the neck.

Authorities say the man charged with that shooting also firebombed four police vehicles in October as part of a "one-man war" against law enforcement. Christopher Monfort, 41, was arrested after being wounded in a firefight with police days after the Seattle shooting. He remains hospitalized in stable condition, the hospital said Sunday.

The officers killed Sunday were a patrol squad made up of three officers and their sergeant. No threats had been made against them or other officers in the region, sheriff's officials said. Their families have been notified.

"We lost people we care about. We're working to find out who did this and deal with him." Pierce County Sheriff Paul Pastor told reporters at the scene.

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire said she was "shocked and horrified" by the killings.

"Our police put their lives on the line every day, and tragedies like this remind us of the risks they continually take to keep our communities safe," she said in a written statement. "My heart goes out to the family, friends and co-workers of these officers, as well as the entire law enforcement community."

Published Monday, November 30, 2009
Police say suspect in police shootings is in Seattle house, wounded and possibly dead

A suspect in the slaying of four police officers who were gunned down in a suburban coffee shop was holed up at a Seattle house early Monday, wounded and possibly dead, police said.

Negotiators were trying to communicate with Maurice Clemmons, 37, using loudspeakers and explosions to try to prod him from hiding. At one point, gunshots rang through the neighborhood, about 30 miles from the original crime scene.

"We have determined that in fact he has been shot," said Ed Troyer, a spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriff. "He may be deceased from his gunshot wound."

Clemmons, who has a long criminal history _ including a long prison sentence commuted by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee nearly a decade ago _ became the prime target Sunday in the search for the killer of Lakewood police Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39, and Officers Ronald Owens, 37; Tina Griswold, 40; and Greg Richards 42.

Authorities had speculated early Sunday that the gunman might have been wounded at the coffee shop by one of his victims. Troyer said interviews with others detained in the investigation confirmed that theory.

Police surrounded the house late Sunday, and a negotiator used a loudspeaker early Monday to call him out by name, saying: "Mr. Clemmons, I'd like to get you out of there safely. I can tell you this, we are not going away."

Any response from inside the house was inaudible from the vantage of a photographer for The Associated Press. But shortly thereafter, police began using sirens outside the house, and there were several loud bangs before the negotiator resumed speaking, saying: "This is one of the toughest decisions you'll make in your life, but you need to man up."

By 3 a.m. Pacific time, the loudspeakers and explosions had fallen silent.

Clemmons is believed to have been in the area around the time of the shooting, but Troyer declined to say what evidence might link him to the shooting.

Investigators say they know of no reason that Clemmons or anyone else might have had to open fire on the four as they sat working on their laptops early Sunday morning, catching up on paperwork at the beginning of their shifts.

"We're going to be surprised if there is a motive worth mentioning," said Troyer, who sketched out a scene of controlled and deliberate carnage that spared the employees and other customers at the coffee shop in suburban Parkland, about 35 miles south of Seattle.

"He was very versed with the weapon," Troyer said. "This wasn't something where the windows were shot up and there bullets sprayed around the place. The bullets hit their targets."

Officer Richards' sister-in-law, Melanie Burwell, called the shooting "senseless."

"He didn't have a mean bone in his body," she said. "If there were more people in the world like Greg, things like this wouldn't happen.

Clemmons has an extensive violent criminal history from Arkansas. He also recently charged in Washington state with assaulting a police officer, and second-degree rape of a child. Using a bail bondsman, he posted $150,000 _ only $15,000 of his own money _ and was released from jail last week.

Documents related to the pending charges in Washington state indicate an unstable and volatile personality. In one instance, he is accused of punching a sheriff's deputy in the face, The Seattle Times reported. In another, he is accused of gathering his wife and young relatives and forcing them to undress, according to a Pierce County sheriff's report.

"The whole time Clemmons kept saying things like trust him, the world is going to end soon, and that he was Jesus," the report said.

Troyer said investigators believe two of the officers were killed while sitting in the shop, and a third was shot dead after standing up. The fourth apparently "gave up a good fight."

"We believe there was a struggle, a commotion, a fight ... that he fought the guy all the way out the door," Troyer said.

In 1989, Clemmons, then 17, was convicted in Little Rock for aggravated robbery. He was paroled in 2000 after Huckabee commuted a 95-year prison sentence.

Huckabee, who was criticized during his run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 for granting many clemencies and commutations, cited Clemmons' youth. Clemmons later violated his parole, was returned to prison and released in 2004.

On Sunday, Huckabee issued this statement on his Web site: "Should he be found to be responsible for this horrible tragedy, it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington state."

http://www.inforum.com/event/apArticle/id/D9C9RH200/

Slain officers respected for careers, family life

The four victims of Sunday morning's shooting were veteran officers who brought a range of talents to the fledgling Lakewood Police Department when it was created in 2004, according to Lakewood Police Chief Bret FarrarBy Jack Broom, Lynda V. Mapes, Bob Young and Susan KelleherSeattle Times staff reportersPREV 1 of 4 NEXTOfficer Gregory RichardsThe four victims of Sunday morning's shooting were veteran officers who brought a range of talents to the fledgling Lakewood Police Department when it was created in 2004, according to Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar."This is a very difficult time for our families and our officers," he said. "Please keep our families and Lakewood Police in your prayers."The slain officers "all have been outstanding professionals," he added.

Officer Tina Griswold
Tina Griswold, 40, joined the Lakewood Police Department in 2004 and earlier this year won its Lifesaving Award."She was likable and enjoyed life," said her former father-in-law, Carroll Kelley of Shelton, Mason County.She and Kelley's son met when both were students at Shelton High School, Kelley said. Griswold became a police officer after they divorced, he said.She is survived by her husband, a daughter, 21, and a son, 8, police and relatives said.She previously worked as a police officer in Shelton for three years, public records show. She was an officer and SWAT team member for the Lacey Police Department from 1998 to 2004, according to Sgt. Scott Eastman, her former supervisor. The group was responsible for serving high-risk warrants and conducting high-risk entries, he said."Tina was an outstanding officer," Eastman said. "She was very assertive, and had no fear in dealing with high-risk situations and suspects that were larger than her. She had this presence about her that was in charge and you were going to do what she said. She had the verbal skills and the confidence to pull it off."Griwold was avid about physical fitness, and lifted weights and ran regularly, Eastman said. She stood about 5 feet and weighed less than 100 pounds."She could do 30 to 40 pull-ups," Eastman said. "A lot of the guys were talking about that this morning. We'd always joke that she didn't have much to lift."Griswold was one of the first members of Lacey's tactical team, and the first woman to hold the job, Eastman said."She was a very hard worker and just a fun person to work with," he said. "She spent most of her free time with family. ... That was her priority."Although she left Shelton to join the Lacey department, she still lived in town and would run into her former colleagues."The young officers looked up to her," Eastman said. "And she was a great partner for the experienced officers. She knew what she was doing."Lacey officers are still in shock over the news, he said, adding, "We're looking for an opportunity to honor her and her family."

Officer Gregory Richards
He was known as one of the sweet guys, the one everyone liked to work with.Gregory Richards, 42, of Graham had eight years of law-enforcement experience, starting with work as a patrol officer in Kent.He worked there from September 2001 until October 2004, before hiring on with the Lakewood Police Department.The Kent department was going through layoffs because of budget cuts, and Richards sought a more secure situation for his family, said Lt. Lisa Price, public-information officer for the Kent department."He was a very well-respected and well-liked co-worker, and when he left we were sad to see him go," Price said. "People loved working alongside him. I firmly believe Greg would still be with Kent if we hadn't been going through layoffs."He was just a nice, cute, angelic guy."He had a lighter side too. Richards was the drummer in an all-police officer rock band called Locked Down. The band played at social gatherings, including a recent police officers' motorcycle rally in Ocean Shores.The killing was devastating news. "It was a complete shock to my system, it's a horrific crime and it hits close to home," Price said.Richards is survived by his wife, Kelly, a daughter and two sons."Everyone is just here," said Melanie Burwell, a sister-in-law answering the door at Richards' home. "We are staying together."Burwell said she last saw Richards at Thanksgiving. "It was wonderful," she said, fighting tears. "All he ever wanted was his family. He didn't want to do anything but be with them."If there were more people in this world like Greg, nothing like this would ever happen."

Sgt. Mark Renninger
A decorated veteran officer and popular law-enforcement instructor, Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39, is survived by his wife and three children."Mark was a professional, dedicated police officer who made the ultimate sacrifice. More importantly, he was a loving and devoted father, husband and family member who will be missed by many," said Renninger's brother, Matt, on a statement published on the Web site of WFMZ-TV in Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley, where Renninger grew up.He joined the Tukwila Police Department shortly after leaving military service in 1996. He was a patrol officer, a SWAT team member and was, for a time, president of the Tukwila police officers' guild."Mark was an outstanding police officer and a well-liked member of the department during his time with us," said a statement issued by the Tukwila Police Department.He moved to the Lakewood department in 2004. According to the program for a state 2008 law-enforcement conference, Renninger was an instructor in SWAT courses and served as an instructor for courses in firearms, chemical munitions and patrol responsibilities.On a Facebook tribute page set up by his relatives Sunday, more than 1,000 message of tribute were posted by early evening.Among the postings was one from Rick Fisher, who said he coached Renninger's daughter in fastpitch softball two seasons ago. "Mark was a fun and compassionate man," Fisher wrote. "He was always willing to help me and the girls out when he could. He was a tremendous help."

Officer Ronald Owens
Friends describe Ronald Owens, 37, as a dedicated officer and devoted father. He was also an "ideal tenant," said Toni Strehlow, who managed a property Owens rented, a house with a white-picket fence near downtown Puyallup."When he rented from us, the first thing he did was replace walls and a patio door and he never charged us, never wanted a rent deduction. He just wanted to do for people," said Strehlow.He was a good neighbor, too, said Charley Stokes who lived next door to him in Puyallup. "We'd talk over the back fence, have a beer once in a while."Owens, who was divorced, was very proud of his daughter, he said.Strehlow and Stokes said Owens was excited about going from his job as a State Patrol trooper to the Lakewood Police Department in 2004, saying Owens looked forward to more regular hours and better advancement opportunities.Strehlow said she was speechless when she heard the news. "It's just wrong. He was truly an unforgettable man and a kind, kind person."Owens went into police work because his father, who died in 2006, was a detective, according to a neighbor, Edie Wintermute.Owens checked in on her husband after surgery, she said. "He was a good father and very caring guy."

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010386301_officers30m.html

Some may wonder why I have taken such an interest in the shooting of the four Lakewood police officers. This has hit me at a very personal level because for many years I was a LE dispatcher and married to an officer for most of those years. Of course, over the years since then, officers have been shot and killed on duty answering a citizen complaint and going about their police business. Even one I remember was walking into a donut shop.

I guess what really hung me on this shooting is I can’t really say how many times I have sat in a coffee shop with a group of officers and realized how relaxed they would have been in a familiar setting. My guess is they have been in that spot hundreds of times in the past five years. They probably even had a regular table. The employees would have known them by name, and felt safe anytime they or their buddies on the force would be in there. It was a Sunday morning, notoriously quiet on the radio and usually on the streets. I understand they were not on duty, but you can be sure they were closely listening to any traffic on their portable radios.

In the years I was on the department where I worked, which was much larger, we had officers killed on duty, either shot or by traffic accident, or by heart attack. Each time it was wrenching. Each death hit the department, and even in the surrounding area departments hard. It also hit most of the citizens hard.

I watched the news conference today, where the whole Lakewood Police Department stood behind their chief as he explained how it hurt, but they were there, and would continue. I saw the stricken looks on the faces of the officers and even the chief, the black bands of mourning across their badges. It was just like yesterday I could remember seeing those same faces on people I held dear, and realized there was nothing anyone could do to make it better. Even catching the perpetrator would not ease it, and will probably make it worse as the weeks and months go by and the judicial system takes hold.

I don’t even know if this is the proper place to post this. If it isn’t, a mod or KLAAS will surely move it. I just felt a need to put my words down in writing. We are aware of our military and I pray for them daily. I also pray for our law enforcement personnel. They are the only things that sometimes stand between us and utter chaos. I hope anyone reading this will pray for them too. ::MonkeyAngel::

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010388783_weblakewoodupdate30m.html

Latest on Lakewood shooting: Police looking for green 1997 Mazda Millenia

1:34 p.m.
Latanya Clemmons, 34, is Maurice Clemmons' sister.

She said her brother bought the house she lives in in Tacoma, but he lives elsewhere. She said she was in Leschi last night, and when she got home she could tell police had been there.

There was smoke-bomb residue on the carpet, and a search warrant on the coffee table. Police had taken her poodle, which she retrieved from the Humane Society today.

She said police had taken cameras, her computer and paperwork Â -- mostly papers for research she was doing regarding crisis intervention and mental health, stemming from her brother's Nov. 5 court date when he found competent to stand trial after evaluation.

1:27 p.m.
Washington State's Child Protective Services confirmed that the agency had "founded" - or substantiated - a complaint of child sexual abuse in October against Maurice Clemmons, the suspect in the fatal shooting of four Lakewood Police officers.

DSHS spokeswoman Sherry Hill said the agency received a complaint from police about Clemmons on May 26, 2009, two weeks after the Pierce County Sheriff began a child rape investigation involving a 12 year-old female relative. CPS began investigating the next day, Hill said.

The Pierce County Sheriff's investigation led to a child rape charge being filed on July 2. Clemmons was arrested the same day.

After reviewing the police records and doing interviews of its own, CPS finished the investigation and issued it's "founded" conclusion on Oct. 23, 2009. It closed the case the same day, ending CPS oversight of Clemmons, his wife and girl, said Hill. She explained the four-month gap between CPS starting and finishing its investigation by noting that the agency defers to law enforcement when CPS and police are pursuing the same allegations.

A "founded" child abuse conclusion can lead to a child being placed in custody or with relatives, but CPS instead referred the victim and Nicole Smith, who is Clemmon's wife, to counseling. "As far as we can tell, it looks like they were accessing the services we offered," said Hill. "And (Clemmons) was not in the home. He was in jail by then."

The child-rape allegation against Clemmons was the only complaint CPS has received involving him, Smith, or the girl.

1:24 p.m.
About six officers in SWAT gear pulled up to Nicole Smith's Tacoma home and four went inside. They were escorted in by a young man who pulled up in a silver Honda.

Smith is Clemmons' wife. Police are seeking her and are looking for her car.

1:04 p.m.

Police are at Cowen Park in Ravenna after someone spotted what appeared to be fresh blood.

12:33 p.m.
Lt. Dave McDonald of the Puyallup Police Department said detectives believe Clemmons was armed with more than one handgun during Sunday morning's attack. One handgun used in the shootings was recovered at the coffee shop. Police think he dropped it during a fight with one of the officers. He was able to kill that officer, likely with a second handgun.

12:13 p.m.
Police are searching for a green 1997 Mazda Millenia with Washington license plate 208-SSX. The vehicle is registered to Clemmons' wife. Police said she may be headed to Arkansas.

12:04 p.m
Seattle police have closed off an area near South Dearborn Street and Maynard Avenue South near Qwest Field after some bloody gauze was found in the street. It's too early to say if it's connected to this case.............

Quote from: Fanny Mae on November 30, 2009, 01:49:02 PM

::MonkeyAngel::

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010385617_webmansought29.html

Maurice Clemmons, man wanted for questioning, has troubling criminal history

The man sought for questioning in the execution of four Lakewood police officers was granted clemency in 2000 by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and released on bail just six days ago on a child rape charge in Washington state.

By Seattle Times staff

Maurice Clemmons, the 37-year-old Tacoma man being sought for questioning in the killing this morning of four Lakewood police officers, has a long criminal record punctuated by violence, erratic behavior and concerns about his mental health.

Nine years ago, then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee granted clemency to Clemmons, commuting his lengthy prison sentence over the protests of prosecutors.

"This is the day I've been dreading for a long time," Larry Jegley, prosecuting attorney for Arkansas' Pulaski County said tonight when informed that Clemmons was being sought for questioning in connection with the killings.

Clemmons' criminal history includes at least five felony convictions in Arkansas and at least eight felony charges in Washington. The record also stands out for the number of times he has been released from custody despite questions about the danger he posed.

Huckabee, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination last year, issued a statement tonight calling the slaying of the police officers "a horrible and tragic event."

If Clemmons is found responsible, "it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington State," Huckabee said.

He added that Clemmons' release from prison had been reviewed and approved by the Arkansas parole board.

Clemmons had been in jail in Pierce County for the past several months on a pending charge of second-degree rape of a child. He was released from custody just six days ago, even though was staring at seven additional felony charges in Washington state.

Clemmons posted $15,000 with a Chehalis company called Jail Sucks Bail Bonds. The bondsman, in turn, put up $150,000, securing Clemmons' release on the pending child-rape charge.

Clemmons lives in Tacoma, where he has run a landscaping and power-washing business out of his house, according to a police interview with his wife earlier this year.

He was married, but the relationship was tumultuous, with accounts of his unpredictable behavior leading to at least two confrontations with police earlier this year.

During the confrontation in May, Clemmons punched a sheriff's deputy in the face, according to court records. As part of that incident, he was charged with seven counts of assault and malicious mischief.

In another instance, Clemmons was accused of gathering his wife and young relatives around at 3 or 4 in the morning and having them all undress. He told them that families need to "be naked for at least 5 minutes on Sunday," a Pierce County sheriff's report says.

"The whole time Clemmons kept saying things like trust him, the world is going to end soon, and that he was Jesus," the report says.

As part of the child-rape investigation, the sheriff's office interviewed Clemmons' sister in May. She told them that "Maurice is not in his right mind and did not know how he could react when contacted by Law Enforcement," a sheriff's report says.

"She stated that he was saying that the secret service was coming to get him because he had written a letter to the President. She stated his behavior has become unpredictable and erratic. She suspects he is having a mental breakdown," the report says.

Deputies also interviewed other family members. They reported that Clemmons had been saying he could fly and that he expected President Obama to visit to "confirm that he is Messiah in the flesh."

Prosecutors in Pierce County were sufficiently concerned about Clemmons' mental health that they asked to have him evaluated at Western State Hospital. Earlier this month, on Nov. 6, a psychologist concluded that Clemmons was competent to stand trial on the child-rape and other felony charges, according to court records.

Clemmons moved Washington in 2004, after being released from prison in Arkansas, state Department of Corrections records indicate. That would mean he had gone five years or so before landing in serious trouble with authorities here, according to a review of his criminal record.

Clemmons started Sea-Wash Pressure Washing Landscaping with his wife, Nicole Smith, in October 2005. The license for the business expired last month.

Long history of trouble in Arkansas

News accounts out of Arkansas offer a confusing — and, at times, conflicting — description of Clemmons' criminal history and prison time.

In 1990, Clemmons, then 18, was sentenced in Arkansas to 60 years in prison for burglary and theft of property, according to a news account in Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Newspaper stories describe a series of disturbing incidents involving Clemmons while he was being tried in Arkansas on various charges.

During one trial, Clemmons was shackled in leg irons and seated next to a uniformed officer. The presiding judge ordered the extra security because he felt Clemmons had threatened him, court records show.

Another time, Clemmons hid a hinge in his sock, and was accused of intending to use it as a weapon. Yet another time, Clemmons took a lock from a holding cell, and threw it toward the bailiff. He missed and instead hit Clemmons' mother, who had come to bring him street clothes, according to records and published reports.

On another occasion, Clemmons had reached for a guard's pistol during transport to the courtroom.

When Clemmons received the 60-year sentence, he was already serving 48 years on five felony convictions and facing up to 95 more years on charges of robbery, theft of property and possessing a handgun on school property. Records from Clemmons' sentencing described him as 5-foot-7 and 108 pounds. The crimes were committed when he was 17.

Clemmons served 11 years before being released.

News accounts say Huckabee commuted Clemmons' sentence, citing Clemmons' young age at the time the crimes were committed.

But Clemmons remained on parole — and soon after landed in trouble again. In March 2001, he was accused of violating his parole by committing aggravated robbery and theft, according to a story in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

He was returned to prison on a parole violation. But in what appears to have been a mistake, Clemmons was not actually served with the arrest warrants until leaving prison three years later. As a result, Clemmons' attorney argued that the charges should be dismissed because too much time had passed. Prosecutors dropped the charges.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010393433_webarrest01m.html

Lakewood police shooting suspect shot dead by police in South Seattle early this morning
Maurice Clemmons, the suspect wanted in slaying of four Lakewood police officers, was shot and killed in South Seattle early this morning.

By Jennifer Sullivan, Mark Rahner, and Jack Broom
Seattle Times staff reporters

Maurice Clemmons, the suspect wanted in slaying of four Lakewood police officers, was shot and killed in South Seattle early this morning.

Clemmons, who reportedly was armed with a gun from one of officers he is accused of killing, was standing outside in the 4400 block of South Kenyon Street when he was confronted by officers. He challenged the officers and was shot around 2:40 a.m.

No police were injured in the incident.

Jessica Breznau, who lives near the shooting scene, said she came outside after the shots were fired and saw police.

"One of policemen took me aside and said, 'Let me tell you what's going on.' He was kind of emotional and he said, 'This is the guy who shot the people in Lakewood. He's gone.' "

Breznau said the officer told her that Clemmons had a gun.

At the scene, a couple of dozen police officers milled around, shaking hands and patting each other on the back after one of the largest manhunts in the region's history.

Sylvester Dennis, 50, lives in the area where Clemmons was killed and walked to scene before 5 a.m.

"Sounds like he got what he deserved. Those were police officers, man. You just can't just go around killing people," said Dennis, a truck driver who has lived in the area since he was 11.

Clemmons has been the focus of a manhunt since Sunday morning when he is accused of killing four Lakewood police officers in a coffee shop in Parkland.

Police have said Clemmons received help since the Sunday morning shooting from friends and family who gave him places to stay, medical aid, rides and money, police said. Officers detained a sister of Clemmons who they think treated the 37-year-old suspect's gunshot wound.

Police believe people close to Clemmons have misled officers, and Troyer said anyone helping him could face charges. Clemmons' sister wasn't in custody late Monday, and her name wasn't released.

Authorities said the gunman singled out the Lakewood officers and spared employees and other customers at the coffee shop in Parkland, a Tacoma suburb about 35 miles south of Seattle. He then fled, but not before he was apparently shot in the torso by one of the dying officers.

Killed were Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39, and Officers Ronald Owens, 37, Tina Griswold, 40, and Greg Richards, 42.

Police said they aren't sure what prompted Clemmons to shoot the officers as they did paperwork on their laptops. Clemmons was described as increasingly erratic in the past few months and had been arrested earlier this year on charges that he punched a sheriff's deputy in the face.

Pierce County Sheriff Office spokesman Ed Troyer told the Tacoma News-Tribune that Clemmons indicated the night before the shooting "that he was going to shoot police and watch the news."

Police surrounded a house in a Seattle neighborhood late Sunday following a tip Clemmons had been dropped off there. After an all-night siege, a SWAT team entered the home and found it empty. But police said Clemmons had been there.

Police frantically chased leads on Monday, searching multiple spots in the Seattle and Tacoma area and at one point cordoning off a park where people thought they saw Clemmons.

Authorities found a handgun carried by the killer, along with a pickup belonging to the suspect with blood stains inside. They posted a $125,000 reward for information leading to Clemmons' arrest and alerted hospitals to be on the lookout for a man seeking treatment for gunshot wounds.

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/78211742.html

Lakewood shooting suspect shot dead by Seattle police

SEATTLE - The man suspected of gunning down four police officers in a suburban coffee shop was shot and killed by Seattle police early Tuesday, a sheriff's spokesman said.

Maurice Clemmons was shot to death around 2:40 a.m. on Kenyon Street outside a home in South Seattle.

Seattle Police Assistant Chief Jim Pugel said a Seattle police officer on patrol in South Seattle came upon an unoccupied running car that had been reported stolen earlier in the night.

As the officer radioed in the license plate and began his investigation of the stolen car, he noticed someone behind his police cruiser. The officer got out and recognized the person as Clemmons, Pugel said.

The officer ordered the person to stop and show his hands, but the man did not comply and began to run away around the vehicle.

The officer fired several rounds and struck the man, gravely wounding him. Seattle medics responded and loaded the wounded man into an ambulance, but he was pronounced dead a short time later. Officers later confirmed the man was Clemmons.

Pugel said Clemmons had a weapon on him that was traced back to a weapon stolen from one of the killed officers at the Lakewood coffee shop.

The officer was not hurt. Pugel has not identified him, except to say he is a seven year veteran of the force. He has been placed on administrative leave as per standard policy. Police are also talking to two witnesses to the event.

Pugel said police are unsure why Clemmons was in that neighborhood and as of yet, have not connected him to any home in the area.

In addition to Clemmons, three other people were arrested overnight for aiding and abetting in Clemmons' escape, said Pierce County Sheriff's Department spokesman Ed Troyer.

One of those included the driver of the getaway vehicle in the original shooting. Troyer said he expects more arrests Tuesday. Troyer said these people tried to hide Clemmons, moved him from location to location, provided him with cell phones and money, and was helping him make arrangements to leave the state.

"They are going to pay for it," Troyer said.

Authorities say Clemmons, 37, killed the four Lakewood officers at a coffee shop Sunday morning in Parkland, a Tacoma suburb about 35 miles south of Seattle.

Police said they aren't sure what prompted Clemmons to shoot the officers as they did paperwork on their laptops. Clemmons was described as increasingly erratic in the past few months and had been arrested earlier this year on charges that he punched a sheriff's deputy in the face.

At the scene, a couple of dozen police officers milled around, shaking hands and patting each other on the back after one of the largest manhunts in the region's history.

Clemmons had stayed on the run for nearly two days with help from a network of friends and family who gave him places to stay, medical aid, rides and money, police said. Troyer told Fox News police arrested three people overnight on suspicion of rendering criminal assistance.

On Monday, officers detained a sister of Clemmons who they think treated the suspect's gunshot wound.

"We believe she drove him up to Seattle and bandaged him up," Troyer said.

Police believe people close to Clemmons have misled officers, and Troyer said anyone helping him could face charges. Clemmons' sister wasn't in custody late Monday, and her name wasn't released...........

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010392869_shootingjustice01m.html

Four days in May set stage for Sunday's tragedy

By Nick Perry, Maureen O'Hagan, Jonathan Martin and Ken Armstrong
Seattle Times staff reporters
PREV 1 of 2 NEXT

ELLEN M. BANNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Maurice Clemmons took his rage out on his Parkland neighborhood, throwing rocks at houses, cars and people, according to police records. He was charged with child rape after molesting a young female relative in his house in May.
Complete coverage

Over four days in May, Maurice Clemmons' behavior and mental state deteriorated. Family members worried he had gone crazy, that he was verging on collapse. His conduct became so erratic — punching a sheriff's deputy, forcing relatives to strip naked, according to police reports — that authorities eventually charged him with eight felonies, including one count of child rape.

Still, at the end of those four days, Clemmons wound up on the loose — a delusional man with a propensity for violence, who had managed to escape the grip of authorities.

What happened in those four days — and in the months that followed — reflects a system governed by formula and misguided incentives.

That legal system, both in Arkansas and Washington, failed to account for the entirety of Clemmons' violence and his disdain for the law. Individual crimes, viewed in isolation, trumped a long and disturbing pattern of warning signs.

As a result, Clemmons walked out of jail Nov. 23. A week later, he was on the run again — this time accused of shooting and killing four Lakewood police officers in a Parkland coffee shop, in one of the most horrific crimes in Puget Sound history.

May 9

It may have been an argument — precipitated by his wife's discovery that he had a child with another woman — that set Clemmons off.

Whatever it was, Clemmons took his rage out on his Parkland neighborhood, throwing rocks at houses, cars and people, according to police records.

A woman who was visiting family that day says she was leaving the neighborhood when a man hurled a landscaping brick through the driver-side window of her SUV.

"I was just in shock," said the woman, who asked not to be identified because Clemmons remains at large. "The look in his eyes is something I will not forget."

The woman called 911 only after rounding a corner a safe distance away.

A Pierce County sheriff's deputy responded to the disturbance at 12:45 p.m. Outside Clemmons' home, the deputy encountered two of Clemmons' cousins.

When the deputy tried going into the house in search of Clemmons, one cousin grabbed the deputy's wrist. A struggle followed, during which Clemmons emerged from the house and punched the deputy in the face. Clemmons also assaulted a second deputy who arrived to help, according to court records.

Ultimately, all three men were arrested and taken to jail. When being booked, Clemmons refused to cooperate and said, "I'll kill all you bitches," according to a psychological evaluation obtained by The News Tribune.

The two cousins pleaded guilty to felony assault and were sentenced to several months in jail.

But the charges against Clemmons would defy such easy resolution.

May 10

After spending one night in jail, Clemmons caught a break.

May 10 was a Sunday, Mother's Day. Judges rarely work Sundays — but bail-bond agents do.

Pierce County has devised a system that allows people to post bond without ever facing a judge, if it happens to be a holiday or a weekend.

Called "booking bail," this system works according to a hard-and-fast formula. Clemmons was booked on four felony charges — two for assault, two for malicious mischief — and, by schedule, his booking bail was set at $10,000 per charge, for a total of $40,000.

"If you post booking bail, you can walk out without seeing a judge. And that appears to be exactly what he did," said Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Lindquist. "When it's booking bail, it doesn't take into account particular details like somebody's history. And that's problematic ... it's one of the dangers of booking bail."

If his history had been taken into account, Clemmons would have fared poorly. He had a criminal record dating to his teen years, with at least five prior felony convictions in Arkansas.

Aladdin Bail Bonds posted Clemmons' bond on Mother's Day, and Clemmons walked free. Defendants typically pay 10 percent of the bond, with the bonding company on the hook for the rest.

Stephen Kreimer, executive director of the Professional Bail Agents of the United States, said he doesn't think "booking bail" is common nationwide. In most states, he said, defendants must wait until they've seen a magistrate or court representative before being released on bail.

May 11

After his release on May 10, Clemmons' mental state degenerated, with his wife saying he was acting "crazy," according to a Pierce County sheriff's report.

At about 1 a.m. May 11, Clemmons appeared naked in his living room and demanded that two young female relatives — ages 11 and 12 — sit on an ottoman and fondle him, one of the girls later told police. They obeyed, the girl said, because they were "scared." The 11-year-old soon fled, and wasn't seen for days.

But Clemmons continued to assault the 12-year-old until she cried herself to sleep, police records say. Clemmons, still naked, soon woke her and demanded she join him and his wife, Nicole Smith, in their bedroom. Clemmons referred to himself as Jesus and Smith, naked and wrapped in a bedsheet, as Eve. Smith begged her husband to let the girl go, and Clemmons complied, the girl later told police.

But Clemmons wasn't finished. At about 4 a.m., he assembled his family back in the living room and demanded they strip naked. He talked about how "beautiful it was that they were sharing the moment."

Pierce County sheriff's deputies arrived at about 5:30 a.m. after a family member called 911. With Clemmons now gone from the house, the family described his recent erratic behavior, including his statements that the world was coming to an end and he was "going to fly to heaven."

Acting on a tip from Smith, deputies saw Clemmons nearby, at a second house he was building. But Clemmons ran away before deputies could stop him, and a K-9 unit could not pick up his trail.

Child Protective Services (CPS), alerted by deputies, also investigated the incident and substantiated the sexual-abuse complaint. A CPS spokeswoman said the agency closed the case in October because Smith and the young relative went to counseling and Clemmons was in jail.

May 12

Clemmons was supposed to show up in Pierce County Superior Court May 12, to be arraigned on charges stemming from the rocks and punches he was accused of throwing three days before.

By now, prosecutors had filed a formal set of charges accusing Clemmons with two counts of assault and five for felony malicious mischief.

But at 1:30 p.m., when a court official polled the courtroom gallery to see who was there, Clemmons was a no show. Three hours later, at the close of the court's day, he still was nowhere to be found.

A judge later issued a bench warrant, calling for Clemmons' arrest for failure to appear.

Clemmons was on the run — with seven felony charges already filed against him and another on the way, given what had happened in his house just one day before.

July 1

Clemmons wound up being arrested seven weeks later, on July 1, when he showed up in court, in apparent hopes of having the bench warrant thrown out.

The next day, prosecutors charged him with second-degree rape of a child, accusing him of molesting his 12-year-old relative in May.

Prosecutors also filed a separate charge on July 2 — this one accusing Clemmons of being a fugitive from Arkansas. They cited the chain of events involving the alleged assault on the deputies as evidence that Clemmons had violated his parole in Arkansas. If sent back, he faced the prospect of being returned to prison for years.

But July 22, the Arkansas Department of Community Correction notified Pierce County, by letter, that Arkansas had no interest in taking Clemmons back.

"Arkansas is releasing its hold on the offender and will not extradite at this time," the letter said. "The subject has pending charges in the state of Washington and appropriate action will be taken once the charges have been adjudicated."

Arkansas rescinded its warrant. Had Arkansas not done so, Clemmons would have been held without bail on the alleged parole violation.

Stephen Penner, a deputy prosecuting attorney in Pierce County, said he sees Arkansas' decision to leave Clemmons to Washington this way: "There's a built-in incentive to not following through. In a way, the more violent they are, the less you want them in your community."

Lindquist, Pierce County's chief prosecutor, was asked Monday if he believes Arkansas dumped Clemmons on Washington.

Only Arkansas can answer that question, Lindquist said, but he added: "You could draw that inference."

A spokeswoman for the Arkansas prison system told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that the state issued a second warrant in October that would have allowed Clemmons to be held without bail.

Penner said if a second warrant was issued, no one told him.

Nov. 23

In Washington, the courts had to determine bail for the two sets of charges Clemmons faced.

Phil Sorensen, a deputy prosecutor in Pierce County, said his office asked for $100,000 bail in the assault case — an amount higher than normal for such charges — based on Clemmons' history. The judge, John McCarthy, set the bail at $40,000, Sorensen said.

In the child-rape case, prosecutors wanted $200,000 bail, Lindquist said. The judge, Thomas Felnagle, set bail at $150,000.

Lindquist said he thought both judges set bail too low.

"As prosecutors, we face an uphill battle walking into court," he said. "We have to show that the defendant is a danger to the community and a flight risk."

Neither judge could be reached for comment Monday.

In the end, Clemmons needed to come up with $190,000 bail.

Penner, the deputy prosecuting attorney, said Clemmons was turned away by two bail-bond agencies, based on his history of failing to appear in court. But then Clemmons found a taker: Jail Sucks Bail Bonds, based in Chehalis.

At 8:20 p.m. Nov. 23, bond was posted for Clemmons. That same night he walked out of the Pierce County Jail.....

Police: Suspect dead; had slain cop's gun
December 1, 2009

Seattle, Washington (CNN) -- The suspect in Sunday's fatal shooting of four police officers was shot and killed early Tuesday in south Seattle after he challenged an officer who approached him, authorities said.

Maurice Clemmons was carrying a weapon taken from one of the dead officers and had suffered a bullet wound to his abdomen in Sunday's shooting, Pierce County Sheriff's Department spokesman Ed Troyer said at an early morning news conference.

Clemmons was killed around 2:45 a.m. by a seven-year veteran of the Seattle police force who had noticed a parked stolen car that was unoccupied but running, said Jim Pugil, an assistant Seattle police chief.

The officer approached Clemmons outside the car and asked him to show his hands, but the suspect refused and started to run around the car, Pugil said.

The police officer, who recognized Clemmons from photographs, then shot and killed him, the assistant chief said.

The officer, who was not identified, was not injured.

Follow local coverage on CNN affiliate KIRO-TV

Authorities said they regretted the shooting death but are glad the two-day ordeal is over.

"Right now, it's just a feeling of relief," Pugil said. "Another tragic time has come upon us, and we're just happy that it's over."

Seattle police Chief John Diaz said, "This is a tragedy. Nobody feels good about this."

Watch police give details of the suspect's death

"I am thankful the suspect in this horrible crime is no longer a threat to our community," Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire said in a statement. "I hope this provides some closure for the families and colleagues of our fallen officers ... We should now focus our attention on providing comfort and support to those who have lost a loved one."

Authorities have arrested at least three people on suspicion of aiding Clemmons after the shooting, Troyer said. Police also arrested a man Tuesday morning suspected of driving the getaway car after Sunday's killings, Troyer said.

The people accused of trying to help Clemmons provided medical aid, housing, a cell phone and money and were trying to get him out of the state, Troyer said. They also called in false leads to police to divert investigators, Troyer said.

"They're going to pay for it," he said. "They're guests of ours."

Troyer did not identify the suspects but said authorities expected to make more arrests Tuesday.

Clemmons had made comments before the shooting that he was going to kill some officers -- comments that were not reported to authorities until after the shootings -- but officials believe he was the lone gunman.

"We don't think anyone helped him plan this murder," Troyer said.

A two-day manhunt for Clemmons, 37, began Sunday after the ambush-style killing of four police officers from Lakewood, about 40 miles south of Seattle. The officers were at a local coffee shop when Clemmons walked in and shot them, police say.

Clemmons was an ex-convict with a long rap sheet in Washington and Arkansas, according to authorities and documents.

Watch a profile of Clemmons

Clemmons slipped away from a home in Seattle's Leschi neighborhood Sunday night before police surrounded the residence for about 12 hours. He was not found in the home when investigators moved in Monday morning, Seattle police spokesman Jeff Kappel said.

Officials said Tuesday they missed him by mere minutes.

Clemmons was accused of child rape and assaulting a police officer in May. He had been released on $150,000 bail five days before the shootings, according to court records.

After his arrest, Clemmons' sister told police that he "had not been himself lately" and that his behavior was "unpredictable and erratic."

"He had said that the Secret Service was coming to get him because he had written a letter to the president," an affidavit quoted her as telling investigators.

In addition, neighbors had complained that he had been throwing rocks through their windows. Clemmons' wife told deputies that she and her husband had argued over a "newly discovered child," and she suggested that was why he went on his rock-throwing spree, according to an arrest affidavit.

In 2000, then-Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee commuted a 95-year prison sentence for Clemmons, according to documents from the Arkansas Department of Community Correction. He returned to prison in 2001 but was paroled in 2004.

Sunday's shooting was the first for the Lakewood Police Department, which was created five years ago for the town of nearly 60,000. Until then, the Pierce County Sheriff's Department provided law enforcement services.

The slain officers were identified as Sgt. Mark Renninger, 39; Officer Ronald Owens, 37; Officer Tina Griswold, 40; and Officer Greg Richards, 42. All of them were parents and had been with the department since its inception.

"My worst nightmare has come true," Tiffany Ryan, Griswold's sister, told reporters. "I can't tell you how painful it is to lose my sister."

The coffee shop on Steele Street where the shootings occurred is a popular hangout for law enforcement officers and is one of 22 Forza Coffee Co. locations in Washington.

Police said the gunman walked past the officers to the counter as if to order, then pulled a gun out of his coat and began shooting at 8:15 a.m. Two of the officers were "executed" as they sat at a table, Troyer said.

Another was shot when he stood up, and the fourth was shot after struggling with the gunman all the way out the door, Troyer said.

Clemmons suffered a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Officials said Tuesday they know which officer shot him but were withholding that information pending conclusive confirmation. The wound was serious, Troyer said.

"I'm surprised he survived it," Troyer said. "He was lucky."

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2 men charged, several others suspected of aiding alleged cop killer

By Sara Jean Green and Maureen O'Hagan
Seattle Times staff reporters
Two Auburn men have been charged with helping Maurice Clemmons evade authorities after the shooting of four Lakewood police officers in a coffee shop on Sunday.

Charging documents filed today say several other people also helped him, both before and after the shooting — including someone who drove a getaway vehicle from the coffee shop, and a female relative who bandaged wounds he sustained when one of the slain officers returned fire.

Most of those people are not identified by name in the documents.

Clemmons was shot dead this morning by a Seattle police officer.

The two men charged with first-degree rendering criminal assistance are brothers Eddie Lee Davis, 20, and Douglas Davis, 22.

Both pleaded not guilty Tuesday to the charges. Pierce County Judge Bryan Chushcoff set bail for Eddie Davis at $700,000 and bail for Douglas Davis at $500,000.

Clemmons' half-brother, Rickey Hinton, has not been charged yet, but has been booked into jail for investigation of rendering criminal assistance. Chushcoff set his bail at $2 million.

According to charging documents, after the officers were shot, Clemmons showed up, bleeding, at a house where the Davises and Hinton lived. Clemmons told them he had been shot by police. Hinton then told the Davises to get Clemmons out of the area, and gave them the keys to a white Pontiac, the charges allege.

The two men drove off with Clemmons, who told them he had shot or killed police officers, charges allege. They made their way to a residence in the Algona/Pacific area, the home of one of Clemmons' relatives, according to the charges. There, the female relative and the Davises helped Clemmons treat his gunshot wound, the charges allege.

Afterward, the relative drove Clemmons to the Auburn Super Mall and then to an apartment complex, where Clemmons got in a car driven by another woman and took off, according to the charges.

Eddie Lee Davis is also one of Clemmons' co-defendants in a third-degree assault case stemming from the alleged assault on a Pierce County sheriff's deputy in May. Clemmons was accused of punching the deputy in the face, and Eddie Lee Davis allegedly fought with the same deputy, according to court documents filed in the case in Pierce County Superior Court.

Prosecutors say they expect to file additional charges against others who also helped Clemmons get away.

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(http://i844.photobucket.com/albums/ab6/fannymae66/2010399279.jpg)

Kelly Richards, center, widow of slain Lakewood police Officer Gregory Richards, and their daughter Jami-Mae, center right, are comforted at a court hearing for three people accused of helping Maurice Clemmons. Behind Kelly is her brother-in-law, Tacoma Police Officer Steve Thornton.

Loyal friends, family helped Clemmons flee police

Even as Maurice Clemmons announced he had gunned down police officers in a Pierce County coffeehouse Sunday, a network of friends and family stood by him, helping him hide from a massive manhunt that had hundreds of officers scouring two counties, according to charging documents.

By Maureen O'Hagan, Susan Kelleher and Christine Clarridge
Seattle Times staff reporters

He spent time in prison for robbery, burglary and firearms possession. He claimed to be the Messiah, threatened violence and, as his family cried, demanded they all strip. He was facing charges of rape.

And yet even as Maurice Clemmons announced he had gunned down police officers in a Pierce County coffeehouse Sunday, a network of friends and family stood by him, helping him hide from a massive manhunt that had hundreds of officers scouring two counties, according to charging documents.

Tuesday, two men were charged with rendering criminal assistance for allegedly helping Clemmons evade capture during the nearly two days he was on the run.

Another person, who was arrested, allegedly drove the getaway car from the shootings; yet another bandaged the gunshot wound Clemmons sustained when one of the officers in the coffeehouse returned fire, the charges allege.

Three others ve been arrested, one man and two women, and authorities say they're likely to file additional charges against those who aided Clemmons in his flight from the worst single act of violence against police in Washington state history.

Clemmons himself didn't live to face charges after he was fatally shot by a Seattle police officer early Tuesday.

To some who knew Clemmons, 37, offering assistance seemed to be almost automatic — a way of protecting a man who, despite a troubled, violent past, had given them help.

"The man was charismatic," said Tim Bean, a Lakewood counselor whom Clemmons consulted last spring. "He had a whole community of family and friends. They loved him."

To outsiders, it makes no sense.

It may have been just a part of a "thug mentality and thug culture," said Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer. "To us, it's not going to make sense."

Troyer said some 50 detectives are working furiously to figure out who, exactly, helped Clemmons evade capture, and to untangle the relationships among them.

Clemmons was 17 when he was convicted of punching a woman and stealing her purse, burglarizing the home of a state trooper and carrying a gun at his high school in Little Rock, Ark.

A judge sentenced him to more than 100 years for the crimes, a term Clemmons and his family believed was excessive and would never have been given to a white suspect found guilty of the same crimes, said Bean, whom Clemmons called his "psychological and spiritual adviser."

"His family was well aware of the injustice that had been done to him," Bean said. "It doesn't make the family and friends any friendlier to the system."

His sentence was commuted, and he came to Washington in 2004 with a wife, Nicole Smith.

The Washington Department of Corrections agreed to supervise him, and he did well enough that he was required only to check in once a year.

He started a business and developed a network of friends and family.

"He'd repair their cars, give them cars and help them," Bean said of Clemmons. "He was such a giving, loving man that it was too much sometimes. They'd call him first because he'd always help them out."

But last spring, he began acting bizarrely, family members told police.

In May, he allegedly started throwing rocks at cars and through the windows of his Tacoma home, then assaulted a Pierce County sheriff's deputy who came to stop him.

Out on bail the next day, Clemmons awoke family members in the middle of the night and demanded they all strip, yelling, calling himself the Messiah, and saying "trust me," according to charging documents. A 12-year-old relative told investigators and Smith, Clemmons' wife, that he had sexually assaulted her.

That day, Smith told investigators she was scared.

Yet when Clemmons was charged, she refused to cooperate, saying it was all "a lie," charging documents state.

Over the summer and fall, Clemmons spent some time in jail for violating the terms of his Arkansas parole — in part because of the back-to-back incidents in May.

On Nov. 23, he got out on bail.

Five days later, according to charging papers, he showed guns to three men in Auburn: Rickey Hinton, 47; Douglas Davis, 22; and Eddie Davis, 20, a co-defendant in the earlier rock-throwing altercation.

Clemmons asked Hinton, described as his half-brother, for keys to his white pickup, and told the men they should keep their eyes on the TV because he planned to kill police, according to charging documents and Troyer.

The next morning — Sunday — four Lakewood police officers were killed in a coffee shop in Parkland. Witnesses said they saw the gunman hop in a white pickup that sped off. Another man was at the wheel.

Details in charging documents get a little murky after that. Several unnamed people are alleged to have offered rides and other assistance to Clemmons over the next 40 hours or so.

But the documents are clear on one point: When Clemmons returned to the home Hinton and Davis share after Sunday's shootings, they allegedly didn't hesitate to help him — even after Clemmons told the men he had been shot by police, charging papers allege. Hinton told the Davises, who are brothers, to get Clemmons out of the area, and gave them the keys to a white Pontiac, according to the documents.

Clemmons allegedly told the Davises he had killed police. They kept driving.

They made their way to the Algona/Pacific-area home of one of Clemmons' relatives, according to the charges. There, an unnamed female relative and the Davises helped Clemmons treat his gunshot wound, the charges allege.

Afterward, the relative drove Clemmons to the Auburn SuperMall and then to an apartment complex, where Clemmons got in a car driven by another unnamed woman, according to the charges.

At some point, the papers say, a female friend took Clemmons to her house in Seattle and he admitted he had shot police. She "bought medical supplies, helped treat a gunshot wound to his torso; he changed his clothes, washed and dried a load of [HIS] laundry," according to charging documents. She later dropped him off in Seattle's Leschi neighborhood.

By then, Clemmons was one of the most wanted fugitives in state history.

At least one relative wanted no part in the getaway. Clemmons allegedly phoned an aunt in Leschi, saying he had been shot and needed a place to hide. She thought better of it, drove to the police station before his arrival and filed a report.

The Davis brothers pleaded not guilty Tuesday to the charges of rendering criminal assistance. Bail for Eddie Davis is $700,000; Douglas Davis' bail is $500,000.

The court hearing was attended by relatives of Gregory Richards, one of the four slain officers, including his widow and one of his daughters. Many struggled in vain to hold back their tears.

Afterward, Richards' sister-in-law, Melanie Burwell, said of the defendants, "They're not human to me."

Hinton was ordered to jail on a 72-hour hold while prosecutors prepare to file charges against him. His bail was set at $2 million, and Troyer said authorities believe he may have played "a larger role" in the crime.

Arrested Tuesday but not yet charged was a man The Associated Press identified as a convicted murderer who served prison time with Clemmons in Arkansas. He is being held for investigation of four counts of rendering criminal assistance.

Troyer said police have yet another man in custody who is believed to have driven the getaway car after the slayings. If police determine this man knew what was going to happen, he could be charged with murder, Troyer said.

Two women were also arrested Tuesday, both for investigation of multiple accounts of rendering criminal assistance. One, in her 50s, was taken into custody in Pacific. The other was arrested in Des Moines.

"We want to hold everybody involved accountable," Troyer said.

Seattle Times staff reporters Mike Carter and Sara Jean Green contributed to this report.

Maureen O'Hagan: 206-464-2562 or mohagan@seattletimes.com

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Trusted aunt chose to do the 'right thing'

By Nicole Brodeur
Seattle Times staff columnist
Complete coverage

NEW - 10:58 PM
Trusted aunt chose to do the 'right thing'

NEW - 11:08 PM
Clemmons' driver denies knowledge of plot to kill

Over 2,000 attend Lakewood vigil for 4 slain officers

NEW - 10:52 PM
Graham neighborhood embraces grieving family

Alleged accomplice used an alias

Who leaked photo of Clemmons' body? Investigations launched

Clemmons couldn't be held after 'safety net' dissolved

Calendar of memorials and vigils for slain Lakewood officers

Loyal friends, family helped Clemmons flee police

Gregoire: no more Arkansas parolees

Alleged getaway driver in officers' slaying could face murder charges

Uncle: 'He was all about money ... suddenly, he was all about God'

Routine stolen-car check led to Lakewood police-slaying suspect

Danny Westneat | Fixing blame won't fix this mess

Jerry Large | Answers more than skin deep

Public brings flowers, candles, prayers for fallen officers

E-mails show Washington state battled to keep Clemmons in custody

States at odds over warrant that might have kept Clemmons in jail

2 men charged, several others suspected of aiding alleged cop killer

Lakewood police shooting suspect shot dead by police in South Seattle early this morning

Memorial for slain officers to be next Tuesday at Tacoma Dome

Outpouring of support for families of slain officers grows

Four days in May set stage for Sunday's tragedy

Clemmons' diagnosis: stress

Persuasive appeal helped Clemmons win clemency

Political death blow for Huckabee?

How you can help

Law-enforcement officials believe Clemmons has been sheltered by family, friends

Attack on Lakewood police likely worst in state history

Slain Lakewood officers leave holes in community fabric

Furious hunt for suspect in Lakewood police slayings creates unease for black men

Grief, gratitude for slain officers

'Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom': Neighbors describe shooting of suspect

Nicole Brodeur: Breathless in Leschi — and it's not the view

RAW VIDEO: Scene where Clemmons shot by police

AUDIO | Suspect killed in Seattle

Interactive map and timeline

See the latest tweets on #WAshooting, #lakeshoot and #WAshoot

Gallery | Maurice Clemmons Killed, Community Mourns Slain Officers

Monday coverage
Suspect released in Arkansas after claiming he had changed

Gallery | Police search for suspected cop killer

Gallery | Lakewood police officers killed

Video | Community reflects on slain police

Video | Police shooting: Man who helped baristas

Video | SPD Det. Jeff Kappel speaks about 11-hour standoff

Brenton family statement on slain Lakewood officers

Latest on Lakewood shooting: Police searching near Dr. José Rizal Park

Police still searching for suspected cop killer

Sunday coverage

Police union sets up fund for slain officers

Former Arkansas Gov. Huckabee has controversial record of freeing criminals

Lakewood Police Department created just 5 years ago

Police again see themselves as targets

Slain officers respected for careers, family life

Lakewood police slayings appear to be worst of their kind in state history

Shocked, grieving community holds vigil for officers

Coffee house owner: Shootings 'hit close to home'

Maurice Clemmons clemency and parole documents (PDF)

Statement from Mayor Douglas Richardson and City Manager Andrew Neiditz (PDF)

City of Lakewood identifies officers (PDF)

Related links
Law justifying use of deadly force

Facebook page honoring fallen officers

** | Eyewitness accounts

Video | Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer discusses Lakewood slaying

"I am coming to your house," he said. "I have killed four policemen and I need a place to rest and hide."

We know now who that was: Maurice Clemmons, the man who ambushed four Lakewood police officers Sunday morning, killing them all.

But to Chrisceda Clemmons, 45, the voice on the phone Sunday night belonged to her nephew Maurice. Her sister Dorothy Mae's son. The kid she used to baby-sit back home in Arkansas. The man who seemed determined to succeed, but who had also started to lose his mind last May.

He was in a car, on his way to his aunt's Leschi home, where she lives with her husband, Michael Shantz, 58; their two children, Atticus, 13, and Juno, 7, and a friend's daughter, Alanna, 15. Shantz's two older sons, Ab, 25, and Teo, 21, who rent a house nearby, were also there.

They knew almost nothing about the events of the day: the shootings in the Lakewood coffee shop or the massive manhunt for Clemmons, who had been shot by one of the officers before the officer died.

Chrisceda Clemmons and Shantz had spent the day in Lynnwood, where their band, Bakra Bata, had played at the opening of a transit station. Shantz had glanced at The New York Times online that morning and saw something about four officers in Tacoma, but forgot about it.

Their performance ended at 4 p.m., but they didn't get home until 6. It was almost 7 when the phone rang.

"Maurice sounded pretty normal, just a little hyped," Chrisceda Clemmons remembered Wednesday. "He didn't sound weak from his gunshot."

He would call a total of four times, talking for a bit, then hanging up — but always getting closer. He said he was trying to get as far away from Tacoma as he could. He felt safe in her neighborhood, he said, and thought she and her husband might help him by renting a car and driving him to Arkansas — the place he always considered home.

"He trusted me," Chrisceda Clemmons said. "He trusted that I wouldn't turn him in."

But she did. And she was the only one. Other friends and family are accused of helping Clemmons escape the shooting scene, tending to his gunshot wound, washing his bloody clothes and keeping him out of law enforcement's reach.

But Chrisceda Clemmons couldn't do that. She had to think of her family. And she knew her nephew was not well. There was the time last May at his house in Tacoma when "he got angry at something" and started throwing rocks at his neighbors' houses and cars. One hit an elderly man. Later Clemmons assaulted two sheriff's deputies.

And there were allegations of child rape and "religious delusions," Shantz said, that included Clemmons' belief that he was God, and that swine flu was the apocalypse.

Now this. Four cops dead, and he was headed their way.

"I was in shock," Chrisceda Clemmons said. "That's when we gathered the kids up and sent them away. I believed Maurice when he said he had killed people. I knew he was very angry and frustrated. He was paranoid, and he was very frustrated and sick of the police."

"Tired of these bitches," is how he put it. He told her he had shot the officers intentionally, and believed that they were trying to charge him with rape, which would have given him "three strikes" and sent him back to prison for life.

She asked Maurice if he was armed. Yes, he said.

Shantz told him: "You cannot come to the house. Period."

He asked Maurice if he was willing to get rid of the gun. No.

"Probably an hour passed, and I was getting more panicked," Chrisceda Clemmons said. "Then I just got into the car with Michael and said, 'Let's go.' "

It was about 8 p.m. when they drove to the Seattle Police Department's East Precinct. Shantz went in and left his wife in the car. They knew that it was going to be a long night and hoped that at least one of them would be able to get to their kids, who were staying with Shantz's sons.

"I'm here to talk to someone about Maurice Clemmons," Shantz told the officer at the desk. "I have factual information about his whereabouts."

The officer, who was on the phone, told him to take a seat.

Fifteen minutes later, Shantz told his story, Chrisceda Clemmons was brought in and before long, an army of police officers descended on their neighborhood. There were snipers on roofs, police everywhere. Neighbors couldn't get to their homes. The siege went on all night.

Still, "we don't know if Maurice was ever in the house," Shantz said. "The sergeant on the scene called and told me he saw 'him' get out of a car and go up on the porch, but then we got cut off."

Dawn arrived. Maurice Clemmons was nowhere to be found.

His aunt doesn't understand how he could have gotten away.

"They have all this manpower, snipers on all these roofs and they let this wounded man escape," she said.

A wounded man who was her nephew. Who trusted her.

"Do I feel badly?" she asked. "Yes, I feel bad, but it was the right thing to do because I didn't want him to hurt any more people."

Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer agrees.

"Absolutely, she did the right thing," he said.

But her nephew is dead, shot by a Seattle police officer early Tuesday morning.

"I was actually relieved," she said. "That he died was the best thing for him. He would rather die than go back to prison."

Still, "I felt it was a terrible tragedy that he had to lose his life because of his mental disability," she said.

And she feels awful about the Lakewood officers. Their families. Their children. "It's a terrible tragedy for anyone to lose their lives this way, and I'm sorry."

Now the cleanup begins.

Chrisceda Clemmons is looking for a lawyer to volunteer to help her family through their legal morass.

And the house where she and Shantz have lived for 21 years is trashed from the long police siege. The couple will have to clear a judicial review, they said, before they can receive restitution for the damage that was done.

There is a lot of it: Every window broken, furniture and musical instruments tossed all around. There are tear-gas casings piled by the front door, which has a hole punched in it.

Shantz has been researching how to clean up the tear-gas residue that covers almost everything, and purchased jumpsuits and gas masks for the task.

Stand inside too long and your eyes begin to water.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010446829_webshootinghelp07m.html

Judge orders Clemmons' sister held in custody

By Steve Miletich
Seattle Times staff reporter
Complete coverage

TACOMA — A Pierce County judge this afternoon has ordered the sister of Maurice Clemmons to be held until Wednesday so prosecutors can continue to look into allegations that she helped a man who drove her brother to the area where four Lakewood police officers were killed Nov. 29.

Judge Lisa Worswick scheduled a hearing for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday. Prosecutors must decide by then whether to charge LaTanya Clemmons, 34, possibly with rendering criminal assistance.

LaTanya Clemmons was taken into custody Friday afternoon during the arraignment of two other women who allegedly helped Clemmons. She was booked into Pierce County Jail over the weekend, but has not been charged.

Maurice Clemmons fatally shot four Lakewood police officers Nov. 29. He was able to elude police until early Tuesday morning, when he was shot and killed by a Seattle police officer. Sgt. Mark Renninger and officers Ronald Owens, Tina Griswold and Greg Richards were killed by Clemmons as they sat in the Forza Coffee shop.

Police allege LaTanya Clemmons helped her brother escape a manhunt after the shootings and, according to a search warrant, was seen entering one of Clemmons' residences with him hours after the officers were killed.

Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said told reporters today that LaTanya Clemmons allegedly helped Darcus Allen, 38, during the two-day manhunt. Allen, who did time with Maurice Clemmons in an Arkansas prison, is being held in custody as a fugitive from Arkansas.

In court, Lindquist said she had helped an individual or individuals after she became aware of the slaying of the police officers.

Prosecutors allege Allen drove Clemmons to and from the scene of the shootings. They say he could face murder charges depending on his level of involvement.

Lindquist said LaTanya Clemmons has not been truthful with investigators since she was taken into custody Friday.

Six relatives and friends of Clemmons have been arrested so far for allegedly helping him elude police.

Two women, Clemmons' aunt Letricia Nelson and Quiana Maylea Williams, 26, were arraigned Friday on charges of providing transportation, medical treatment and medical supplies to Maurice Clemmons, 37, after he killed the four officers.

Nelson was charged with six counts of rendering criminal assistance and one count of illegal possession of a handgun that came from one of the Lakewood officers.

She pleaded not guilty, and bail was set at $1.5 million. If convicted as charged, she could face up to 40 years in prison, according to Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Lindquist.

Quote from: Fanny Mae on December 08, 2009, 12:41:55 PM

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010400526_shootinghelp02m.html

Loyal friends, family helped Clemmons flee police

He spent time in prison for robbery, burglary and firearms possession. He claimed to be the Messiah, threatened violence and, as his family cried, demanded they all strip. He was facing charges of rape.

And yet even as Maurice Clemmons announced he had gunned down police officers in a Pierce County coffeehouse Sunday, a network of friends and family stood by him, helping him hide from a massive manhunt that had hundreds of officers scouring two counties, according to charging documents.

Tuesday, two men were charged with rendering criminal assistance for allegedly helping Clemmons evade capture during the nearly two days he was on the run.

Another person, who was arrested, allegedly drove the getaway car from the shootings; yet another bandaged the gunshot wound Clemmons sustained when one of the officers in the coffeehouse returned fire, the charges allege.

Three others have been arrested, one man and two women, and authorities say they're likely to file additional charges against those who aided Clemmons in his flight from the worst single act of violence against police in Washington state history.

Clemmons himself didn't live to face charges after he was fatally shot by a Seattle police officer early Tuesday.

To some who knew Clemmons, 37, offering assistance seemed to be almost automatic — a way of protecting a man who, despite a troubled, violent past, had given them help.

"The man was charismatic," said Tim Bean, a Lakewood counselor whom Clemmons consulted last spring. "He had a whole community of family and friends. They loved him."

To outsiders, it makes no sense.

It may have been just a part of a "thug mentality and thug culture," said Pierce County sheriff's spokesman Ed Troyer. "To us, it's not going to make sense."

Troyer said some 50 detectives are working furiously to figure out who, exactly, helped Clemmons evade capture, and to untangle the relationships among them.

Clemmons was 17 when he was convicted of punching a woman and stealing her purse, burglarizing the home of a state trooper and carrying a gun at his high school in Little Rock, Ark.

A judge sentenced him to more than 100 years for the crimes, a term Clemmons and his family believed was excessive and would never have been given to a white suspect found guilty of the same crimes, said Bean, whom Clemmons called his "psychological and spiritual adviser."

"His family was well aware of the injustice that had been done to him," Bean said. "It doesn't make the family and friends any friendlier to the system."

His sentence was commuted, and he came to Washington in 2004 with a wife, Nicole Smith.

The Washington Department of Corrections agreed to supervise him, and he did well enough that he was required only to check in once a year.

He started a business and developed a network of friends and family.

"He'd repair their cars, give them cars and help them," Bean said of Clemmons. "He was such a giving, loving man that it was too much sometimes. They'd call him first because he'd always help them out."

But last spring, he began acting bizarrely, family members told police.

In May, he allegedly started throwing rocks at cars and through the windows of his Tacoma home, then assaulted a Pierce County sheriff's deputy who came to stop him.

Out on bail the next day, Clemmons awoke family members in the middle of the night and demanded they all strip, yelling, calling himself the Messiah, and saying "trust me," according to charging documents. A 12-year-old relative told investigators and Smith, Clemmons' wife, that he had sexually assaulted her.

That day, Smith told investigators she was scared.

Yet when Clemmons was charged, she refused to cooperate, saying it was all "a lie," charging documents state.

Over the summer and fall, Clemmons spent some time in jail for violating the terms of his Arkansas parole — in part because of the back-to-back incidents in May.

On Nov. 23, he got out on bail.

Five days later, according to charging papers, he showed guns to three men in Auburn: Rickey Hinton, 47; Douglas Davis, 22; and Eddie Davis, 20, a co-defendant in the earlier rock-throwing altercation.

Clemmons asked Hinton, described as his half-brother, for keys to his white pickup, and told the men they should keep their eyes on the TV because he planned to kill police, according to charging documents and Troyer.

The next morning — Sunday — four Lakewood police officers were killed in a coffee shop in Parkland. Witnesses said they saw the gunman hop in a white pickup that sped off. Another man was at the wheel.

Details in charging documents get a little murky after that. Several unnamed people are alleged to have offered rides and other assistance to Clemmons over the next 40 hours or so.

But the documents are clear on one point: When Clemmons returned to the home Hinton and Davis share after Sunday's shootings, they allegedly didn't hesitate to help him — even after Clemmons told the men he had been shot by police, charging papers allege. Hinton told the Davises, who are brothers, to get Clemmons out of the area, and gave them the keys to a white Pontiac, according to the documents.

Clemmons allegedly told the Davises he had killed police. They kept driving.

They made their way to the Algona/Pacific-area home of one of Clemmons' relatives, according to the charges. There, an unnamed female relative and the Davises helped Clemmons treat his gunshot wound, the charges allege.

Afterward, the relative drove Clemmons to the Auburn SuperMall and then to an apartment complex, where Clemmons got in a car driven by another unnamed woman, according to the charges.

At some point, the papers say, a female friend took Clemmons to her house in Seattle and he admitted he had shot police. She "bought medical supplies, helped treat a gunshot wound to his torso; he changed his clothes, washed and dried a load of [HIS] laundry," according to charging documents. She later dropped him off in Seattle's Leschi neighborhood.

By then, Clemmons was one of the most wanted fugitives in state history.

At least one relative wanted no part in the getaway. Clemmons allegedly phoned an aunt in Leschi, saying he had been shot and needed a place to hide. She thought better of it, drove to the police station before his arrival and filed a report.

The Davis brothers pleaded not guilty Tuesday to the charges of rendering criminal assistance. Bail for Eddie Davis is $700,000; Douglas Davis' bail is $500,000.

The court hearing was attended by relatives of Gregory Richards, one of the four slain officers, including his widow and one of his daughters. Many struggled in vain to hold back their tears.

Afterward, Richards' sister-in-law, Melanie Burwell, said of the defendants, "They're not human to me."

Hinton was ordered to jail on a 72-hour hold while prosecutors prepare to file charges against him. His bail was set at $2 million, and Troyer said authorities believe he may have played "a larger role" in the crime.

Arrested Tuesday but not yet charged was a man The Associated Press identified as a convicted murderer who served prison time with Clemmons in Arkansas. He is being held for investigation of four counts of rendering criminal assistance.

Troyer said police have yet another man in custody who is believed to have driven the getaway car after the slayings. If police determine this man knew what was going to happen, he could be charged with murder, Troyer said.

Two women were also arrested Tuesday, both for investigation of multiple accounts of rendering criminal assistance. One, in her 50s, was taken into custody in Pacific. The other was arrested in Des Moines.

"We want to hold everybody involved accountable," Troyer said.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010453457_webmemorial08m.html

Memorial for slain Lakewood police officers begins

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Seattle Times staff

With four flag-draped caskets cradled around a stage and nearly 20,000 law enforcement officers watching in silence, a ceremonial honor guard opened the memorial for four slain Lakewood Police officers at the Tacoma Dome about 2 p.m.

Officers from around North America crisply saluted the families — including nine children — of the slain officers as they were seated for a service expected to last more than three hours.

The memorial was proceeded by a procession of 2,000 law enforcement vehicles, red-and-blue lights flashing, that began at 10:05 a.m. crawling along a somber, 10.3-mile route from McChord Air Force Base to the Tacoma Dome.

The procession, which took three-and-a-half hours, was so sprawling that the tail end was still at the base nearly a half-hour after the memorial was scheduled to begin at the Tacoma Dome.

Gov. Chris Gregoire, scheduled to speak at the memorial, called it "the darkest day in the history of law enforcement in Washington."

The service began about an hour later than the planned 1 p.m. start time because of the size of the procession.

The enormous contingent represented more than 300 agencies and thousands of law-enforcement officers, among them an estimated 600 from British Columbia, 100 each from Chicago and New York, and others from Boston, Bozeman, Mont., Salem, Ore., and every corner of Washington state. FBI Director Robert Mueller planned to attend.

One of last vehicles in the procession, from the Delta Police Department near Vancouver, B.C., flew Canadian and U.S. flags side by side.

Lakewood police Sgt. Mark Renninger and Officers Tina Griswold, Gregory Richards and Ronnie Owens were gunned down by Maurice Clemmons on Nov. 29 at a Pierce County coffee shop. It was worst attack on law enforcement in the state's history.

About 19,200 law-enforcement officers were anticipated at today's memorial, making it the biggest such event in state history. About 2,500 additional seats were set aside for the public, on a first-come basis. Others will be watching on live television and at three off-site viewing locations.

Bryan Tearson, assistant chief of Central Pierce Fire and Rescue, said planning for the memorial began at about 10 a.m. Nov. 30, little more than 24 hours after the shooting. He said more 100 police, fire, emergency management and public works staff from around the Puget Sound were involved in planning.

With so many law enforcement and political leaders gathered, there were extensive security preparations, including sweeps of the Tacoma Dome beginning last night. Heavily armed SWAT team members patrolled the perimeter of the arena, while camouflaged snipers were in position on the roof.

After leaving McChord Air Force Base under a bright, sunny sky, the long line of cars stopped at the Lakewood police station, where several hundred people gathered outside in 23-degree cold. A large American flag hung from crossed fire ladders erected by the University Place Fire Department.

"We're here to respect the officers and to show our support," said Everett police Officer Gregory Sutherland, 37, a 15-year veteran who was waiting to join the procession. "There's a real sense of commonality, even with people you don't know. Because of the profession, this is the ultimate sacrifice these guys made."

The procession was joined there by a motorcade of hearses and limousines carrying the fallen officers and their families as well as four Lakewood police cruisers, each with a black band over the front door in the officers' memory.

Hundreds lined a stretch of South Tacoma Way in the punishing cold to observe the funeral procession. Some held flags others held signs, officers saluted as cars passed, some people took photos and videos, some stood with their hands over their hearts and some stood and wept quietly. Officers touched their hands to their car windows as they passed.

Roxanne Clouse, barely able to speak without weeping, said she "wanted to be a part of this, support the ones who are here and let them know they all matter. I'm here to feel the cold for those that can't."

The sight of the four hearses brought home the tragedy for some of the onlookers. Eileen Melberg, who works at a law firm along the route, said seeing the flag-draped coffins made her gasp. "This isn't a picture. This is a person who should still be alive."

At the service, the flags draped over each casket will be presented to their families. The event will be capped by a 21-bell salute.

Josh Warner, a military police officer from Fort Lewis, said he used to have coffee with Renninger and Owens. Owens, he said, responded earlier this year to a domestic-violence call involving a family friend and spent hours helping her fill out paperwork.

"He was the kind of officer who would go above and beyond," Warner said. "They will be missed very much."

Across the street from the McChord gate where the procession began, Jerome Wahl, 33, sat with a table of coffee and cookies for officers and a 4-foot sign reading, "Comfort Design supports the Lakewood Police Department and their families."

"I live in the area; I do all my shopping in Lakewood," said Wahl, service manager for the window and door company across the street. "We appreciate the Police Department in everything they do and we are deeply saddened by this tragedy that happened right here in our back yard."

The memorial, including the procession of cars, was arranged in less than four days.

Seattle Times staff writers Marc Ramirez, Jack Broom, Lynn Thompson, Christine Clarridge, Maureen O'Hagan, Mark Rahner and Jonathan Martin contributed to this report.

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A tear-filled tribute to slain officers

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Seattle Times staff

MIKE SIEGEL / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Police and fire vehicles line-up along 112th Street SW headed to McChord Air Force Base early Tuesday morning for the memorial procession for the four slain Lakewood Police Officers.
Complete coverage

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Moving tributes to the four slain Lakewood police officers were delivered by co-workers, friends and their children at today's memorial service the Tacoma Dome.

Austin Richards, the 16-year-old son of Greg Richards, said his father viewed his job as an honor despite the stresses inherent to law-enforcement work.

"He didn't become more hardened or angry, just more thankful," Richards said. "I guess you could say he didn't see the point in anger."

In moments heart-wrenching and funny, Michael Villa described Sgt. Mark Renninger tracking a suspect without the help of a K-9 unit, twice guessing correctly which way the suspect had fled.

"I remember thinking, 'Who is this guy? We don't need a K-9 unit. We have the man tracker on our crew,' " said Villa, now the assistant police chief in Tukwila.

Tina Griswold was described by her friend as being a dedicated mother, good cook and as tough an officer — pound-for-pound — as could be found. "The fastest way to break up a bar fight was to throw Tina in the middle of it," said Pamela Battersby, Griswold's friend.

Ronnie Owens' sister, Ronda LaFrancois, remembered her brother hamming it up in high school, break dancing on the kitchen floor and singing Barry Manilow songs.

"You could never go anywhere with Ronnie without someone knowing who he was," said LaFrancois. Owens, she said, had been looking forward to watching his young daughter's first basketball season.

After a 20-minute video full of snapshots of four officers' childhoods, weddings, family moments and on-the-job events, Gov. Chris Gregoire said the state would honor their memory by continuing to support law enforcement.

"We will remember them today. We will remember them always. We owe these children — all nine of them — a future that is safe and secure," said Gregoire.

The eulogies were delivered on a stage surrounded by four flag-draped caskets and a crowd of nearly 20,000 law-enforcement officers, who watched mostly in silence, except for moments of applause and laughter.

The memorial service began as officers from around North America crisply saluted the families — including the nine children — of the slain officers as they were seated for a service expected to last more than three hours.

The memorial was preceded by a procession of about 2,000 law-enforcement vehicles, red-and-blue lights flashing, that began at 10:05 a.m. It crawled along a somber, 10.3-mile route from McChord Air Force Base to the Tacoma Dome.

The procession, which took three-and-a-half hours, was so sprawling that the tail end was still at the base at 1:30 p.m., a half-hour after the memorial was scheduled to begin. The service began more than an hour later than planned.

Gregoire had called it "the darkest day in the history of law enforcement in Washington."

The enormous contingent represented more than 300 agencies and thousands of law-enforcement officers, among them an estimated 600 from British Columbia, 100 each from Chicago and New York, and others from Boston, Bozeman, Mont., Salem, Ore., and every corner of Washington state. FBI Director Robert Mueller planned to attend.

One of last vehicles in the procession, from the Delta Police Department near Vancouver, B.C., flew Canadian and U.S. flags side by side.

Lakewood police Sgt. Mark Renninger and Officers Tina Griswold, Gregory Richards and Ronnie Owens were gunned down by Maurice Clemmons on Nov. 29 at a Pierce County coffee shop. It was worst attack on law enforcement in the state's history.

About 19,200 law-enforcement officers had been anticipated at today's memorial, making it the biggest such event in state history.

Bryan Tearson, assistant chief of Central Pierce Fire and Rescue, said planning for the memorial began at about 10 a.m. Nov. 30, little more than 24 hours after the shooting. He said more 100 police, fire, emergency-management and public-works staff from around the Puget Sound were involved in planning.

With so many law-enforcement and political leaders gathered, there were extensive security preparations, including sweeps of the Tacoma Dome beginning last night. Heavily armed SWAT team members patrolled the perimeter of the arena, while camouflaged snipers were in position on the roof.

After leaving McChord Air Force Base under a bright, sunny sky, the long line of cars stopped at the Lakewood police station, where several hundred people gathered outside in 23-degree cold. A large American flag hung from crossed fire ladders erected by the University Place Fire Department.

"We're here to respect the officers and to show our support," said Everett police Officer Gregory Sutherland, 37, a 15-year veteran who was waiting to join the procession. "There's a real sense of commonality, even with people you don't know. Because of the profession, this is the ultimate sacrifice these guys made."

The procession was joined there by a motorcade of hearses and limousines carrying the fallen officers and their families as well as four Lakewood police cruisers, each with a black band over the front door in the officers' memory.

Hundreds lined a stretch of South Tacoma Way in the punishing cold to observe the funeral procession. Some held flags others held signs, officers saluted as cars passed, some people took photos and videos, some stood with their hands over their hearts and some stood and wept quietly. Officers touched their hands to their car windows as they passed.

Roxanne Clouse, barely able to speak without weeping, said she "wanted to be a part of this, support the ones who are here and let them know they all matter. I'm here to feel the cold for those that can't."

The sight of the four hearses brought home the tragedy for some of the onlookers. Eileen Melberg, who works at a law firm along the route, said seeing the flag-draped coffins made her gasp. "This isn't a picture. This is a person who should still be alive."

Josh Warner, a military police officer from Fort Lewis, said he used to have coffee with Renninger and Owens. Owens, he said, responded earlier this year to a domestic-violence call involving a family friend and spent hours helping her fill out paperwork.

"He was the kind of officer who would go above and beyond," Warner said. "They will be missed very much."

Across the street from the McChord gate where the procession began, Jerome Wahl, 33, sat with a table of coffee and cookies for officers and a 4-foot sign reading, "Comfort Design supports the Lakewood Police Department and their families."

"I live in the area; I do all my shopping in Lakewood," said Wahl, service manager for the window and door company across the street. "We appreciate the Police Department in everything they do and we are deeply saddened by this tragedy that happened right here in our back yard."

Seattle Times staff writers Marc Ramirez, Jack Broom, Lynn Thompson, Christine Clarridge, Maureen O'Hagan, Mark Rahner and Jonathan Martin contributed to this report.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010468150_shootinghelp10m.html

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Maurice Clemmons' sister charged in Lakewood officers case

LaTanya Clemmons, the sister of Maurice Clemmons, was charged Wednesday with helping to hide the man who allegedly drove Clemmons to the area where he killed four Lakewood police officers Nov. 29.

By Steve Miletich and Christine Clarridge
Seattle Times staff reporters

LaTanya Clemmons
Related
Read the charging documents (PDF)
'Clemmons Seven'

Five relatives and two friends of Maurice Clemmons have been accused of impeding investigators after he shot four Lakewood police officers on Nov. 29.

Darcus D. Allen, 38. Court papers say he drove Maurice Clemmons to the area where Clemmons killed four Lakewood police officers.

Rickey Hinton, 47. He allegedly led efforts to get Clemmons out of Lakewood area.

Douglas Edward Davis, 22. He allegedly knew of Clemmons' plans to kill police, and helped Clemmons elude police after the shooting.

Eddie Lee Davis, 20. He allegedly knew of Clemmons' plans to kill police, and helped Clemmons elude police after the shooting.

Quiana Maylea Williams, 26. She allegedly treated Clemmons' wounds and drove him, knowing he had killed police.

Letrecia Nelson, 52. She allegedly helped Clemmons, her nephew, because "family's more important."

LaTanya Clemmons, 34. She allegedly paid for a motel room for Allen, and gave him cash for a bus ticket to Arkansas.

Source: Pierce County Prosecutor's Office

TACOMA — The sister of Maurice Clemmons was charged Wednesday with helping to hide the man who allegedly drove Clemmons to the area where he killed four Lakewood police officers Nov. 29.

At a court appearance Wednesday afternoon, LaTanya Clemmons pleaded not guilty to four counts of rendering criminal assistance in the first degree. She was ordered held on $1.5 million bail.

LaTanya Clemmons, 34, who works at Swedish Medical Center and the Muckleshoot Casino, is one of five relatives and a friend of Maurice Clemmons' who have been charged with rendering criminal assistance in the aftermath of the slayings.

The seventh person in custody, Darcus D. Allen, lived with LaTanya Clemmons, according to court documents that don't describe the nature of the relationship.

Referring to the group as the "Clemmons Seven," Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist told reporters he did not expect any more arrests beyond the seven people accused of impeding investigators.

In charging documents, prosecutors allege LaTanya Clemmons paid for a Federal Way motel room for Allen and gave him bus money to leave the state after she learned he had information about the killing of the officers in a Parkland coffee shop.

Detectives are investigating Allen's role in driving Maurice Clemmons to and from a carwash near the coffee shop at the time of the shootings. In an exchange of gunfire, one officer wounded Clemmons.

Maurice Clemmons, 37, eluded police for nearly two days until he was shot and killed Dec. 1 by a Seattle police officer.

In asking for the high bail for LaTanya Clemmons, Lindquist said she poses a flight risk because, if convicted, she faces up to 20 years in prison. The others charged with helping Maurice Clemmons could be sentenced to between 15 and 40 years in prison.

Allen, 38, was booked into the Pierce County Jail Dec. 1 on suspicion of rendering criminal assistance and as a fugitive from Arkansas, where he has been linked to a March 22 bank robbery in Little Rock. He previously served 14 years for a 1990 double murder in Arkansas, where he did prison time with Maurice Clemmons.

Police say he could face murder charges in the officers' slayings depending on his level of involvement. Allen has told investigators he wasn't aware of what happened after Maurice Clemmons briefly left the carwash.

According to the charging documents, LaTanya Clemmons and Allen went to a house in Algona the day the officers were shot. Earlier that day, Maurice Clemmons had received first aid for the bullet wound at the house before leaving with two other relatives, the documents say.

LaTanya Clemmons and Allen watched news coverage about the slain officers and Allen told those gathered at the home, "we was just there," referring to the murder site, the documents say.

Allen went on to describe how he drove Maurice Clemmons to and from the carwash, prosecutors allege.

While at the Algona home, LaTanya Clemmons said she was going to take Allen to a motel so he could go back to Arkansas and "lay low" until this all "blew over," prosecutors allege. She drove him to a Federal Way motel and paid for a room, then returned to the Algona residence, the documents say.

The next day, she drove to the motel to pay for another night's stay and to give Allen $300 cash for a bus ticket to Arkansas, prosecutors allege.

LaTanya Clemmons was present when Allen was arrested with $297 on him at the motel in the early morning hours of Dec. 1, and when questioned by a detective, she "omitted material information" about the killings of the four officers, the documents say.

LaTanya Clemmons has denied she heard Allen discuss his role while they were at the Algona house, saying she was outside smoking, according to the documents. She said he didn't tell her of his involvement until the next day.

But she also told detectives that on the day the officers were slain, Allen woke her up at their home and that they watched news about the shootings, the documents say. She said she then drove to look at the pickup shown on the news as the getaway vehicle and realized it belonged to her brother.

Seattle Times researcher Miyoko Wolf contributed to this report, which includes information from Times archives.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010482691_apusofficersshotpa4thldwritethru.html

Slain Lakewood officer remembered at Pa. funeral

BETHLEHEM, Pa. —
Mark Renninger grew up 250 paces from the Boys & Girls Club of Bethlehem. When he heard the lawn mower start up, he would come running - and insist on doing the club's lawn himself.

Renninger, one of four police officers gunned down in a Washington state ambush, was remembered Friday as a dedicated volunteer and public servant at a funeral service in his eastern Pennsylvania hometown.

"Very often I would be behind the club or in front of the club cutting grass and ... before I got two swipes done, Mark was there. And he said, 'Gary, let me do that,'" Gary Martell, executive director of the boys and girls club, told hundreds of friends, family members and police officers gathered at Lehigh University's Stabler Arena.

"Mark was a young man of great substance and someone we all knew that worked at the club that Mark was going places and he was going to be something," he said.

Renninger, 39, a police sergeant in Lakewood, Wash., was gunned down with three colleagues inside a coffee shop Nov. 29. The killer, ex-convict Maurice Clemmons, was later shot to death by a Seattle police officer. The slain officers were remembered jointly at a memorial service Tuesday in Tacoma, Wash., attended by 20,000.

A former Army Ranger and nationally known SWAT trainer, Renninger was a "fast-tracker" in the military, rising from private to sergeant first class in just seven years, Army Chief Warrant Officer Mario Contreras told mourners Friday.

"In corporate America, that's like going from the mail room to vice president in seven years," said Contreras, pausing at times to compose himself as he eulogized his friend.

Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan called Renninger a hero and denounced the "cowardly events of 12 days ago" as "not some random act, but an attack on our society itself because its victims were targeted for no reason other than the fact that they were working for the good of all of us."

Roman Catholic Bishop of Allentown John Barres offered prayers for Renninger and soloists sang "Amazing Grace" and "Ave Maria." A slide show, set to Toby Keith's "American Soldier," portrayed Renninger in all his roles: husband, father, military man, police officer, SWAT instructor.

At the conclusion of the service, officers from dozens of police departments across the nation slowly filed past Renninger's flag-draped casket, saluting. Then they joined a procession to nearby Holy Savior Cemetery for the burial.

Renninger leaves behind a wife and three children, as well as his mother, four brothers and a sister. One brother, former Easton, Pa., police officer Matt Renninger, accidentally shot and killed a fellow officer inside the police station in 2005.

On the opposite end of the state Friday, more than 500 mourners filled a Pittsburgh church for the funeral of Penn Hills police officer Michael Crenshaw, who was shot and killed in the line of duty Sunday night.

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010491065_webcoffeeshop12m.html

Parkland coffee shop reopens to hundreds

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By Linda Shaw
Seattle Times staff reporter

ELLEN M. BANNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Forza Coffee shop, where four Lakewood police officers were killed Nov. 29, reopened this morning at 8:14 a.m. Hundreds of people showed up and waited outside in the cold for over an hour to buy a drink.
PARKLAND — At 8:14 a.m. on the dot today, Forza Coffee shop in Lakewood turned on its open sign for the first time since four officers were killed there two weeks ago.

Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar emerged from inside, after purchasing the first cup of coffee, and along with Forza Coffee Company co-founder Brad Carpenter, thanked each and every one of the hundreds of people who braved the cold to help reclaim the coffee shop from the violence that occurred there.

Lakewood Police Sgt. Mark Renninger and Officers Ronald Owens, Tina Griswold and Greg Richards died Nov. 29 after they were ambushed at 8:14 a.m. in the shop by Maurice Clemmons, who was later shot and killed by Seattle police.

This morning, the crowd, which grew throughout the morning, included neighbors, friends, and representatives from law enforcement agencies as far away as Bellingham. Inside the cafe, about a half-dozen Lakewood officers sat at the table where their four colleagues were ambushed by Clemmons.

"We're reclaiming this as a place for the community and for law enforcement," said Lakewood Police Sergeant Mark Eakes.

Chief Farrar said he was overwhelmed by the amount of support, saying it helped bring home why he and his officers choose to work at a dangerous job.

"We're out here to support the community, and the community supports us," he said.

The shop remained largely the same as it was before the shootings. Some of the furniture had been taken for evidence, and replaced, but otherwise the only big change was a large poster honoring the four fallen officers. Plans call for placing a plaque honoring them in all 22 Forza franchises, which are mostly in Pierce County.

Carpenter said Forza staff didn't even start talking about reopening until after the memorial for the four officers last Tuesday, but then, with strong support from Lakewood police and the officers' families, decided to go forward.

"It's our responsibility to honor these guys," he said.

http://www.king5.com/news/Coffee-shop-where-officers-were-murdered-to-reopen-79014372.html

by KING5.com Staff and Associated Press
Posted on December 11, 2009 at 6:52 PM
Updated today at 1:20 PM
Related:
Benefits for Lakewood police officers' families
Lakewood officers remembered
Gallery
SEE ALL 3 PHOTOS »
PARKLAND, Wash. – Hundreds of police officers and other customers lined up early Saturday for the reopening of the Washington state coffee shop where four officers were shot and killed two weeks ago.
Bagpipers played as the Forza Coffee shop opened its doors at 8:14 a.m., the hour on Nov. 29 when Maurice Clemmons ambushed Lakewood Police Sgt. Mark Renninger and Officers Ronald Owens, Tina Griswold and Greg Richards.
Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar was the first customer. He hugged patrons who turned out to reclaim the shop from tragedy. Some waited up to three hours in line.
"It's just so heartwarming," Farrar said. "It really pounds home the point as to why we do this. It's a dangerous job and bad things happen sometimes, but we're out here to support the community and the community supports us."
One customer, Mathew Kilner, came from Gig Harbor to participate.
"I think it's important to show support for the law enforcement community and for the Lakewood Four. My brother and I came down to grab a cup of hot chocolate and support the Forza Coffee Company and their efforts and what they've done to support these families. We believe it's very important to be here and to show the community that we're not going to be scared away by violence," he said.
On Thursday, a blessing was held at Forza Coffee at 11401 Steele Street South. Performed by Associated Ministries, the blessing was done "to reclaim that space as a place for life," according to the coffee chain.
During a private ceremony in the cafe for the officers' families, Lakewood Police officers and the Forza staff, the decision was made to reopen the store Saturday at 8:14 a.m.
Sgt. Mark Renninger and officers Tina Griswold, Ronald Owens and Greg Richards were ambushed at 8:14 a.m. on Nov. 29.
The suspected killer, Maurice Clemmons, was shot and killed by a Seattle police officer two days later. Seven associates of Clemmons have now been charged with helping him elude police after the shooting.
Donations for the Lakewood Police Independent Guild to benefit the families of the officers can be made by clicking here.
Each of the 21 Forza branches in Washington and one in Colorado will feature plaques honoring the four officers, plus a Seattle officer shot and killed in an unrelated attack Oct. 31, the company said, and every new branch will open on its first day at 8:14 a.m.
The company's chief executive, Brad Carpenter, is a retired police officer and said he was touched by Saturday's turnout.
"The whole community is coming together and really showing us that evil and hate can stay in the darkness," he said. "We're turning on the lights and we're coming back."

GO TO LINK TO SEE MORE PICTURES AND VIDEO

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010494733_coffeeshop13m.html

Cafe where Lakewood officers were shot reopens

(http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ABPub/2009/12/12/2010494145.jpg)
As 8:14 a.m. approached Saturday outside the coffee shop where four Lakewood police officers died two weeks ago, more than 100 people had already lined up, waiting to infuse the room with hope and love to counter all the pain.

By Linda Shaw
Seattle Times education reporter

As 8:14 a.m. approached Saturday outside the coffee shop where four Lakewood police officers died two weeks ago, more than 100 people had already lined up, waiting to infuse the room with hope and love to counter all the pain.

Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar, who had asked to be the first in line, said there really was no choice: Forza Coffee Company on Steele Street had to reopen.

"You can't let the bad guys win," he said.

It was 8:14 a.m. on Nov. 29 when Maurice Clemmons opened fire on Lakewood Police Sgt. Mark Renninger and officers Ron Owens, Tina Griswold and Greg Richards. Clemmons eluded police for two days before he was shot and killed by a Seattle police officer.

One of the first people in line Saturday — aside from a small group that entered early — was Laurie Tenorio, who played on a recreational softball team with Owens. It was the first memorial event she's been able to bring herself to attend.

"I wanted to celebrate Ron's life, and today was it," she said.

At 8:14 a.m. on the dot, the store's neon "open" sign was switched on. The crowd clapped and cheered. Bagpipes played. Chief Farrar, coffee cup in hand, emerged from the store along with Forza Coffee Company Chief Executive Officer Brad Carpenter. They greeted every person in the line, which by then stretched more than a block from the store's front door.

It was so cold that Forza staff handed out free coffee to help people stay warm.

Many police and fire personnel showed up, but so did neighbors and friends, longtime Forza customers, and people who had never been inside the store before.

Carpenter said Forza staff didn't start talking about whether to reopen until after Tuesday's memorial service. With support from Lakewood police and the officers' families, they decided to go forward, in part to keep the officers' memories alive.

"It's our responsibility to honor these guys the way they should be," he said.

Inside the store Saturday, as the staff hustled to serve everyone, about a half-dozen Lakewood police officers sat quietly in the spot where their colleagues were working on laptops when they were ambushed.

The table and chairs are new (the furniture the officers used the day of the murder is now in evidence), but the shop otherwise is nearly unchanged — except for a big poster with the four officers' pictures hanging on the wall. Plans call for replacing that with a plaque, with similar ones placed in all 22 Forza Coffee locations. The plaque also will honor Tim Brenton, the Seattle police officer killed on Halloween.

Lakewood Police Sgt. Mark Eakes, who had finished his shift just a few hours before the murders, said he wanted to reclaim Forza for all the coffee shops across the nation that are hubs of their communities — places where people go on dates, meet with friends, sign mortgage papers, even get married.

At 9 a.m., with at least 100 people still in line, Ben Benthien, a chaplain with Central Pierce Fire and Rescue, said many people over the past few weeks approached the store with sadness and fear. He said he told them not to equate the place with the tragedy.

"I kept saying, 'A bad thing happened here, but it's not a bad place,' " he said.

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Current Events and Musings => News of the Day => Topic started by: Fanny Mae on November 29, 2009, 01:09:47 PM