powered by Bonneville Seattle - News Talk 97.3 KIRO FM, 710 ESPN Seattle and 770 KTTH: The Truth

Updated Sep 20, 2009 - 6:42 pm

Insane killer caught in Goldendale

Comments (36)   |   Print this   |   E-mail this   |   Tweet this   |   digg this
An insane killer who slipped away from the staff of a mental institution on a field trip to the Spokane County International Fair was recaptured Sunday without injury more than 220 miles away in south-central Washington state.

With a helicopter overhead and dozens of federal, state and local law enforcement officers swarming around Goldendale, Phillip Arnold Paul seemed ready to surrender when he walked out to the Goldendale-Bickleton road about 22 miles east of town shortly after 4 p.m., just as search personnel arrived at the scene, Klickitat County Sheriff Rick McComas told The Associated Press.

Spokane County sheriff's Capt. Dave Reagan said Paul, 47, was preparing to hitchhike, but McComas said Paul offered no resistance.

"It appeared that he was going to voluntarily turn himself in because of the pressure of the ground force we had in the area," McComas said. "He chose not to stay hidden any longer. ...

"He came out of the brush, onto the roadway, as law enforcement officers were going by. His intent was to voluntarily give himself up because he knew we were going to find him."

The sheriff said he didn't know how Paul reached the area, adding the information that he might be nearby came from Spokane.

Reagan said the arrest was made by Spokane County Detective Roger W. Knight, who also nabbed Paul after he gave Eastern State Hospital personnel the slip during a field trip in Medical Lake, where the mental institution is located, in 1991.

Following that arrest, Paul knocked Knight unconscious in the jail booking area, separating his shoulder, and was convicted of first-degree escape and second-degree assault.

McComas said Paul would be taken to Yakima following a brief checkup by medics in Goldendale.

© 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

You might also be interested in...


Comments (36)   |   Print this   |   E-mail this   |   Tweet this   |   digg this


More headlines...

Comments (36)
  • Add A Comment

  • OneMoreVoice wrote...
    Why in the
    H*ll is this guy even out of his cage to begin with. And on top of that the state morons at Eastern say oh it be ok until his meds wear off. Jump'n J why do we put up with this crap.
  • Chuck Gould wrote...
    Sick but dangerous people....
    shouldn't be turned loose outside the grounds of the appropriate institution. If a "field trip" is a medical necessity then an ankle bracelet with a GPS tracking unit should be worn.
  • rollingmyeyes wrote...
    This is completely unacceptable.
    Change the policy - NOW. No more "field trips" to the fair or anywhere else, EVER, for someone with this kind of history.
  • ljtjava wrote...
    escapee
    It is insanity that this man was ever allowed to leave a locked facility, but to go to the fair with thousands of children and families pressent... and on our tax dollars... who's brilliant was this?
  • demscornhole wrote...
    Are you F@#cking kidding me
    This is why Government Especially in this state cannot be trusted with public safety and as private citizens we must be vigilant and prepared to clean up there mess when this guy comes bouncing through somebody’s window at 2:00 am. Hopefully it is at Casa de Gregoire…..
  • gingersnapd wrote...
    Sheesh
    Field trips for the criminally insane? Sounds like a great premise for a new horror movie..and it's not the first escape on a "field trip" for this guy. I wish I could afford to go to the fair...maybe I need to be committed, then I can go to the fair, the ball game, etc., on the taxpayer's dime.
  • SeattleNative wrote...
    What the...?
    Who is crazier? A criminally-insane murderer, or somebody who thinks it's a good idea to take criminally-insane murderers out on field trips to county fairs? To me, it's a toss-up.
  • nurwho wrote...
    What where they thinking
    What the heck where they thinking. “Harold E. Wilson, chief executive of the hospital, cannot recall any previous escape of a forensic patient “ This is wrong he did try escaping before read…. “It was the second escape for Paul, who slashed an elderly woman’s throat in Sunnyside in 1987, soaked her body in gasoline to throw off search dogs and buried the remains in her flower garden. He was acquitted by reason of insanity and committed to Eastern State Hospital indefinitely. In 1991 he walked away from custody during a day trip in Medical Lake, where Eastern State is located, and was captured at Fishtrap on the western Spokane County line. He subsequently attacked a sheriff’s deputy in the jail booking area, knocking him unconscious and separating his shoulder.” http://www.yakima-herald.com/stories/2009/09/17/man-ruled-insane-in-1987-sunnyside-murder-case-escapes-during-outing-at-spokane-fair
  • Dark Jedi wrote...
    I've said it before and I'll say it again
    People who have to remain on their meds to remain sane and have a normal life MUST have their medication implanted in their arm with a norplant like device. That way they're always on their meds. On Dave Ross's show the official said that the meds he is on wears off in 48 hours. The clock is ticking! Who will die first? A child? A grandma? A college student? Don't place your bets tho because the WA State gambling gestapo will spend every dollar they have to find you!
  • kidjon wrote...
    if he was truly insane
    how would he have the mental capacity to find his way to Sunnyside?







News
Local
National
World
Money
Lifestyle
Sci/Tech
Odd News
Politics

Multimedia
Photo Galleries
Videos
Sports
Mariners
Seahawks
Sounders
College
Storm
Blogs
NBA
Golf
NHL
Tennis
Olympics
Auto Racing
Entertainment
Dining
Movies
Movie Times
Calendar of Events
Entertainment News
Television
Travel
Chef Jeremy
Tom Tangney
Fit in the City
Seattle Fashionistas
the mixtape
Weather
Local Conditions
School Closings
Earthquake Tracker

Traffic
Current Conditions

Podcasts
Download past shows
Daily audio roll
Blogs
Dave Ross
Dori Monson
Ron and Don
TBTL
David Boze
Michael Medved
Frank Shiers
Phil the News Junkie
MyNorthwest Blog
Shannon Drayer
Kevin Calabro
Brock and Salk
The Groz
97.3 KIRO FM
Shows/Hosts
Schedule
Events/Contests
Press Releases
Community Outreach

770 KTTH: The Truth
Shows/Hosts
Schedule

710 ESPN Seattle
Shows/Hosts
Schedule
Home   |   Contact Us   |   Terms of Use   |   Privacy Statement   |   Copyright Infringement   |   Employment   |   EEO Public File Report   |   Contest Rules   |   Set Us as Your Home Page   |   RSS
Copyright © 2010 Bonneville International. All rights reserved.