Burien, WA: Neighbors: Teens fought constantly before deadly shooting

Friday, January 1, 2010
Last updated 9:13 p.m. PT

By THERON ZAHN
KOMO-TV STAFF

Neighbors say they're not surprised that a teenage couple's relationship took a deadly turn on New Year's Eve, with the girlfriend shot dead and the boyfriend suspected of shooting her, then himself.

The couple had lived at the Burien apartment complex at 12445 Ambaum Blvd. SW for only a couple of months -- but during that time there were obvious signs of trouble, according to neighbors.

"They were always fighting," says one neighbor, Claudia Ochoa.

Another neighbor, Kristi Steinacker, says, "That's all they did was fight. That's all they did. I never saw them when they were happy."

Police say shots rang out at about 9:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Investigators believe the 16-year-old boy shot his teenage girlfriend, then himself.

Carolyn Jimerson says the boy then stumbled upstairs to her apartment, leaving a trail of blood.

"He came in and he just started slumping down," Jimerson says. "He said, 'I'm shot. Help me. I don't think I'm going to make it.'"

At first, investigators with the King County Sheriff's Office thought a gunman had shot both teens, then fled. The young couple was rushed to Harborview Medical Center, where the girl died of her injuries. The boy is still there, with serious injuries, but is expected to survive.

Detectives have not had the opportunity to interview the boy. He is under police guard at the hospital while the investigation continues, says Sgt. John Urquhart of the King County Sheriff's Office.

Steinacker says it was just a matter of time before the young couple's troubles turned violent.

"They were always so loud and fighting so often, it sounded as if they were in my bedroom," she says.

But Jimerson says she saw another side of the pair.

"They was good kids. She was a good girl, and he was a good boy."

They all agree it's another sad story in this tough neighborhood.

Steinacker says there was a severe beating at another apartment there about a month ago.

"You can still see the blood," she says.