Man Accused In Woodinville Stabbing Charged, Denied Bail

Seattle WA

19 May, 2021

8:47 PM

Description

WOODINVILLE, WA — King County prosecutors filed a first-degree murder charge Wednesday, accusing a 21-year-old Woodinville man of stabbing his grandfather to death in an unprovoked attack Sunday evening. In charging documents, prosecutors identified the defendant as Sean Hammonds. According to investigators, the attack happened just before 8:30 p.m. on May 16, inside a car parked near a trailhead at 152nd Avenue Northeast and Northeast 154th Street. Court filings allege Hammonds was in the back seat of a car, with both grandparents in the front, when he reached forward and started to stab his grandfather, John Hammonds, 56, repeatedly. Investigators said the grandmother tried to stop the attack unsuccessfully, then fled the vehicle to seek help. An autopsy from the King County Medical Examiner's Office determined there were 28 separate stab wounds. According to detectives, a responding deputy spotted a man walking briskly, about half a mile from the scene of the stabbing. As he pulled over and exited his patrol car, the deputy said he noticed Hammonds' hair, hands and clothing appeared to be covered in blood. During the arrest, the deputy said he found a folding knife in Hammonds' pocket, which also appeared to be coated in blood. Hammonds told the deputy that someone else had stabbed his grandfather, and he had picked up the knife and ran away out of fear, detectives said. Investigators said Hammonds' grandmother told them he was committed to a Kirkland behavioral health hospital last fall, after an incident, but had seemed to be doing better before he stopped taking medications. On the Friday before the stabbing, extended family members in Renton shared concerns about a shift in Hammonds' behavior during a recent visit, prosecutors said. In an interview with detectives, Hammonds declined to answer questions and requested a lawyer, investigators wrote. During a first appearance earlier in the week, the court had set bail at $500,000, and prosecutors argued Wednesday that the amount was insufficient to ensure community safety. "Until the Court has all of the information pertaining to the defendant's mental health diagnosis and history and whether there are any safe alternatives to pretrial detention, no bail is appropriate given that the defendant's egregious conduct in this matter demonstrates an inclination for violence that creates an extraordinary danger to the community and to other persons," prosecutors wrote. Prosecuting attorneys also told the judge that Hammonds had relatives outside the state who might seek to secure his release prematurely. "Although the defendant himself is unemployed, it is the State's understanding that somemembers of his family have access to considerable resources, including those that do not live in Washington State. These family members have expressed concern that this is being handled as a criminal matter. However, at this time, the victim's wife, who also raised the defendant, and her family have expressed grave concerns about their safety given the defendant's conduct and their recent interactions with him." On Wednesday, a judge granted prosecutors' request to deny bail. An arraignment hearing, where Hammonds will enter a plea, is scheduled for June 2.