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Armed civilian kills teen suspect after downtown Seattle shooting
King5 ^ | May 29, 2025 | Bridget Chavez

Posted on 05/29/2025 8:29:39 PM PDT by hiho hiho

SEATTLE — A legally armed civilian shot and killed a 16-year-old boy Wednesday night after the teen allegedly opened fire on two people in downtown Seattle, according to police.

The shooting happened just after 10 p.m. near First Avenue and Union Street. Police said the teen shot two people before he encountered a 57-year-old man licensed to carry a firearm, who then shot the teen.

“One individual produced a weapon, fired on the two individuals and then began to flee the scene,” said Seattle Police Chief Shon Barnes. “When he did, he encountered a private citizen that was licensed to carry and that private citizen fired his weapon, striking the suspect.”

The teen, along with both shooting victims, was taken to Harborview Medical Center, where the 16-year-old later died. One of the victims has since been released from the hospital, while the other remains in satisfactory condition, police said.

Barnes said the teen’s weapon was recovered at the scene. The 57-year-old man who opened fire is cooperating with the investigation and is not currently considered a suspect.

Detectives are still working to determine what led up to the shooting and whether the victims and the suspect knew each other.

“We need people to have cooler heads to prevail,” Barnes said. “People who are carrying weapons — just know that our officers are out here, we are doing proactive patrols.”

KING 5 law enforcement analyst John Urquhart says the case is likely being viewed through the lens of Washington’s self-defense laws.

“Washington is what they call a ‘no duty to retreat’ state,” Urquhart said. “Other states call it ‘stand your ground.’ The idea is exactly the same — when a person is confronted by a bad guy, he is not required to back away or run away.”

Urquhart added that the timing and proximity of the shooting will be key in determining whether the use of deadly force was legally justified.

“Did he intervene when the suspect was running away and a block away — or when the suspect was still on scene and clearly armed?” he said. “The fact that the citizen was not arrested, was not booked, is not being described as a suspect, leads me to believe Seattle police see this as a legal and justified use of force. But again, they don’t make the final decision — the prosecutor’s office does.”


TOPICS: Culture/Society; News/Current Events; US: Washington
KEYWORDS: armedcitizen; banglist; bridgetchavez; crime; johnurquhart; seattle; seattlepd; seattlepolice; shonbarnes; washington
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1 posted on 05/29/2025 8:29:39 PM PDT by hiho hiho
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To: hiho hiho
“We need people to have cooler heads to prevail,” Barnes said. “People who are carrying weapons — just know that our officers are out here, we are doing proactive patrols.”

Cripes on that. when seconds matter, you are minutes away....
2 posted on 05/29/2025 8:33:25 PM PDT by stylin19a ("Death Smiles At Everyone - Marines Smile Back" - 250 years of smiling - 11/10/2025)
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To: hiho hiho
Ahhh, wonderful news! Now I can got to bed and sleep the sleep of the saved and thankful. Sweet dreams, everyone!

3 posted on 05/29/2025 8:37:40 PM PDT by Governor Dinwiddie ( O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is gracious, and His mercy endures forever. — Psalm 106)
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To: hiho hiho

That’s a shame.


4 posted on 05/29/2025 8:38:15 PM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum (Democrats are the Party of anger, hate and violence.)
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To: hiho hiho

Race not mentioned. Seattle. Everybody White?


5 posted on 05/29/2025 8:39:01 PM PDT by Salman (Avoid foreign entanglements.)
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To: hiho hiho

Hope this guy got an attorney before he started his interview.


6 posted on 05/29/2025 8:39:55 PM PDT by thescourged1 (Rush, is it time to panic yet? )
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To: hiho hiho

There will be some furious leftists when they hear about this.


7 posted on 05/29/2025 8:40:57 PM PDT by toddausauras (47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 47 )
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To: Salman
#5: "Race not mentioned. Seattle. Everybody White?"

I have my gut feeling on the race, but it doesn't really matter here. A punk wasn't "lucky". Now he sleeps with the fishes.

8 posted on 05/29/2025 8:45:11 PM PDT by Governor Dinwiddie ( O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is gracious, and His mercy endures forever. — Psalm 106)
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To: hiho hiho

The “boy” was not a “teen” at first in the article but his “allegedly” is working just fine to protect his full rights. /S

“encountered a private citizen that was licensed to carry and that private citizen fired his weapon...”
(satire: “And we police are jealous as hell. Armed citizens make us look bad. We were having second cups of coffee at the donut shop and couldn’t even finish them as we had to respond to the call. Now comes the paperwork.”☕☕🍩🍩🍩🍩🚓🚓


9 posted on 05/29/2025 8:46:03 PM PDT by frank ballenger (There's a battle outside and it's raging. It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls. )
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To: Salman

Chief Shon is black.


10 posted on 05/29/2025 8:47:54 PM PDT by gundog (The ends justify the mean tweets. )
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To: hiho hiho

I reiterate: The first responder to any emergency situation involving you ... is YOU. YOU are the first responder. Plan accordingly.


11 posted on 05/29/2025 8:50:21 PM PDT by NorthMountain (... the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed)
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To: Salman

Good question.


12 posted on 05/29/2025 8:50:30 PM PDT by No name given ( Anonymous is who you’ll know me as)
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To: hiho hiho

TV news:
KING 5
Law enforcement analyst John Urquhart says the case is likely being viewed through the lens of Washington’s self-defense laws.

“Washington is what they call a ‘no duty to retreat’ state,” Urquhart said. “Other states call it ‘stand your ground.’ The idea is exactly the same — when a person is confronted by a bad guy, he is not required to back away or run away.”


13 posted on 05/29/2025 8:50:42 PM PDT by frank ballenger (There's a battle outside and it's raging. It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls. )
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To: Salman
Race not mentioned. Seattle. Everybody White?

The lack of details in the report indicates that all the participants of this event were of the same race. They could be Whites or Blacks.

Put me down for a bet that they were all Blacks. That guess is based on no information at all from the report, only from observations and follow ups from other incidents.

In a White-on-Black shooting, the White guy is usually arrested, although charges may be dropped later. The report stated that the old guy who shot the young guy was not arrested and "is cooperating with investigators".

White or Black, the best advice for the old guy is to shut up and let his lawyer do all the talking and "cooperating with investigators".

14 posted on 05/29/2025 8:56:09 PM PDT by flamberge (The times, they are a' changing.)
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To: stylin19a
“People who are carrying weapons ...”

I wonder if Chief Shon is addressing the illegally armed teens, or the legally armed citizens.

15 posted on 05/29/2025 9:04:38 PM PDT by gundog (The ends justify the mean tweets. )
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To: hiho hiho
"We need people to have cooler heads to prevail," Barnes said. “People who are carrying weapons — just know that our officers are out here, we are doing proactive patrols.”

Yeah, they really helped out there, Chief.

16 posted on 05/29/2025 9:07:52 PM PDT by scott7278 (Those who beat their swords into plowshares usually end up plowing for those who kept their swords.)
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To: hiho hiho

Note to writer: Cops are civilians.


17 posted on 05/29/2025 9:08:26 PM PDT by Mr.Unique (My boss wants me to sign up for a 401K. No way I'm running that far! )
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To: hiho hiho

The deceased 16 year old yout was looking forward, not just his high school graduation; he looking forward to pursuing his Associate of Science in Firearms Technology Degree.


18 posted on 05/29/2025 9:11:43 PM PDT by Ronaldus Magnus III (Do, or do not, there is no try)
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To: stylin19a

The perp shot two people.
This should be the end of it.
If everyone was legally armed, the criminals would think twice.


19 posted on 05/29/2025 9:15:30 PM PDT by doc maverick
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To: gundog
Chief "Shoe" Shon boy.

20 posted on 05/29/2025 9:20:46 PM PDT by Governor Dinwiddie ( O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is gracious, and His mercy endures forever. — Psalm 106)
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