No charges filed following Bellingham Police investigation into South Hill homicide
Charges will not be filed by the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney’s office against a woman who in early November aided in the suicide of her mother and then attempted her own suicide in Bellingham’s South Hill neighborhood.
The mother’s method of death was ruled a homicide by Whatcom County Medical Examiner Dr. Gary Goldfogel.
Following an investigation by the Bellingham Police Department, Whatcom County Prosecutor Eric Richey reviewed reports on the incident and evidence submitted and said in a statement emailed to The Bellingham Herald this week that he considered charging murder or promoting suicide. But he ultimately decided against filing charges.
“I decline to charge the individual in this case for several reasons,” Richey’s statement read.
“1) The individual is not a further threat to endanger others in the community. The individual’s motive to aid suicide was limited to her mother and herself. Prosecuting her would make our community no safer.
“2) The other family members have written to me and have strongly asked that no charges be filed. Under the law, the wishes of victims are to be given great weight by this office.”
Richey went on to say that the woman is receiving treatment and he agreed with family members who stated prosecuting her could create more harm in her recovery.
“I do not believe that a jury would convict a person of homicide under these facts,” Richey’s statement read. “Specifically, the mother wished to die, was not unduly influenced by the individual and sought help from the individual to fulfill her wishes to die. I believe a jury might convict the individual for promoting suicide, but I do not believe that the law was written to address the facts of this case.”
The Herald generally does not publish identifying information of anyone who attempts suicide beyond age and gender.
Nov. 2 incident
Bellingham Police were called at 4:31 p.m. Nov. 2 to the 800 block of 10th Street to conduct a welfare check after family members reported receiving a concerning email from one of the people who lived there, Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Herald this week.
Officers received no response when they knocked, Murphy reported, and based on the concern family members had expressed, they entered the residence and found an 82-year-old woman who was deceased and a 52-year-old woman who needed immediate medical attention. Fire crews arrived and transported the 52-year-old woman to St. Joseph hospital, where she received life-saving care, according to Murphy.
Dr. Goldfogel ruled the 82-year-old woman’s death a homicide and the cause of death the intravenous administration of a controlled anesthetic, he told The Herald in an email.
Bellingham Police investigated the incident and forwarded their findings to the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney’s office to consider charges, Murphy reported.
Resources
▪ Lt. Claudia Murphy of the Bellingham Police Department recommends if people find themselves or a friend in crisis or emotional distress that they call the national National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at any time at 800-273-TALK (8255). For more information about the Lifeline, visit suicidepreventionlifeline.org.
▪ Washington state’s Death with Dignity Act, which went into effect in 2009, allows terminally ill adults who have less than six months to live to request lethal doses of medication from physicians. More information about end-of-life care for patients can be found on the Washington State Hospital Association and End of Life Washington websites.
This story was originally published December 18, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
