Guilty Verdict in 2011 DV Murder: A jury returned a guilty verdict yesterday in the trial of State v. Johnnie Lee Wiggins, finding him guilty of Murder in the Second Degree for the death of his girlfriend Prudence Hockley in Seattle on Christmas Eve 2011. The verdict included an aggravating factor that the assault was committed in the presence of a minor child, the victim’s teen daughter, who found Hockley unconscious on the home’s driveway. During a short proceeding after the verdict, the jury found a second aggravating factor that the defendant had an aggravated history of domestic violence with other victims. Wiggins, 49, will be sentenced on July 19 at 1 p.m. before Judge Laura Middaugh at the King County Courthouse. Although the standard sentence range is approximately 20 to 30 years in prison, the Court can go above the standard range based on the two aggravating factors in the case. The case was handled by Senior DPA David Martin.

June 17:

Charges Filed in Copper Wire Theft: King County Prosecutors have charged two men with what prosecutors believe to be the largest known metal theft in Washington State for stealing approximately 4.3 miles of copper wiring from the Sound Transit Light Rail System. Defendants Donald Howard Turpin, 54, and Lee Russell Skelly, 44, are accused of stealing the wire from November 2010 through August of 2011. Both men are charged with Burglary Second Degree and Trafficking in Stolen Property First Degree. Turpin is also charged with Theft First Degree with a special sentencing aggravator.

The defendants allegedly committed the theft by entering maintenance hatches in a tunnel that runs below the light rail between the SeaTac and Rainer Beach Rail Stations. They would enter at night and remove the copper wire, which is designed to ground “stray voltage” in the track system, by using standard bolt cutters. They allegedly dropped the wire through air vents and then drove along the line, picking up the cut wire at various locations. Detectives believe that the theft occurred over several months, with the defendants working through the night to cut and strip the wire. Evidence gathered by King County Sheriff’s Detectives shows that the men allegedly took the wire to various scrap metal recycling businesses in King County and sold the metal. The investigation focused on Turpin after detectives found DNA evidence on items in the tunnel. Turpin made approximately $39,000 in profit while Skelly received over $4000. Turpin had a state issued business license which would allow him to scrap the metal with little if any scrutiny by the scrap metal buyers. The replacement cost of the 70,000 pounds of copper wire is estimated at $1.3 million so far.

King County Prosecutors worked this year on a statewide metal theft taskforce to help pass House Bill 1552, which creates new requirements for scrap metal buyers to document their purchases from would be sellers. Those requirements include either video tapping the sale or taking copies of the seller’s valid identification. The new law also increases penalties for selling stolen scrap metal. It will go into effect in July but will not impact the thefts committed by Turpin and Skelly.

“This crime shows the astounding lengths that some criminals will go to take what isn’t theirs,” said King County Prosecuting Attorney Dan Satterberg. “The defendants in this case literally stripped away at our public transportation infrastructure," he added.  “Stealing miles of copper wire must be hard work, because it was the defendants’ Gatorade bottles left at the scene which ultimately was their undoing,” Satterberg added. Arraignment is scheduled for June 27 at 8:30 a.m. at the King County Courthouse. Both defendants are currently out of custody. If convicted as charged, the sentence range for Turpin is 63 to 84 months in prison. Skelly faces up to one year in jail. Prosecutors wish to thank Detectives JD Williams and Paula Bates for their hard work on this case.

June 14:

State v. Cu Van Truong: Deputy Prosecutors Alex Voorhees and Jennifer Worley have secured a conviction against Cu Van Truong, who was accused in the shooting death of Jason Saechao after an argument in White Center on December 28, 2011. Truong, 27, was convicted by a jury of Murder in the First Degree with a Firearm Enhancement. The trial was before Judge Catherine Shaffer. A sentencing date has not yet been set. Truong is facing a possible sentence of 40 to 50 years in prison

Defendant Sentenced in 2011 Bus Shelter Shooting: Defendant Say Keodara was sentenced this morning to 69 years in prison after being convicted of one count of Murder First Degree and three counts of Assault First Degree for a September 2011 shooting during a robbery attempt at a Seattle bus shelter that left one man dead and three other people wounded. All four charges included firearm sentencing enhancements. He was also convicted of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm based on his previous felony conviction. The defendant tried to rob three homeless men at the bus shelter and became angry when they didn't have any valuables or cash. A woman who had been waiting for a bus was also wounded in the shooting. Senior DPA Carla Carlstrom prosecuted the case before Judge Laura Middaugh.