Hours before fatal shooting, deputies respond to unrelated drive-by on Marine Drive
Hours before the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office found the Sunnyland Elementary principal had been fatally shot in her Marine Drive home, deputies responded to the same neighborhood for the report of a drive-by shooting on Christmas they believe was unrelated.
At approximately 8 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 25, deputies responded to a home near the intersection of Marine Drive and Locust Avenue for the report of shots fired, according to information provided to The Bellingham Herald by sheriff’s office spokesperson Deb Slater.
Deputies spoke to a male victim, who told them that he found three to five men he did not know prowling cars in his driveway, Slater said. When the victim approached, the men reportedly walked away.
The victim followed them to Locust Avenue, where one of the men pulled a handgun and fired two shots toward the victim, Slater said. The victim was not struck in the incident, and no injuries to bystanders were reported.
The men fled north on Locust Avenue, Slater said, and a K-9 track was unsuccessful in locating any suspects, Slater said.
Deputies located one shell casing and one bullet hole in a nearby fence, and Slater said both matched the description of the gun the victim provided.
Slater said there are not any current leads on the suspects’ identities, but she encouraged anyone with information on the incident to contact the sheriff’s office.
At approximately 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 26, deputies responded to the 900 block of Marine Drive and found Sunnyland Elementary School Principal Lynn Heimsoth had been fatally shot. She was 58.
Kevin Heimsoth, 56, was identified as the suspected shooter by the Sheriff’s Office. He also killed the couple’s pets and reportedly shot himself. He remained in the ICU unit at Harborview Medical Center Monday with a self-inflicted gunshot wound and is under guard by law enforcement.
This story was originally published December 31, 2019 at 5:00 AM.
