Fife reports its first murder in three years

Residents of a quiet neighborhood in Fife were stunned over the weekend, following what’s been described by their police chief as the city’s first murder in years.

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Police followed up on numerous 911 calls around 2 p.m. on Sunday, responding to reports of a fight inside of a home near the Puyallup River. First responders found a 42-year-old woman stabbed to death inside that home, and a 54-year-old man was arrested on-site, and booked for second degree murder.

“It’s devastating. I think everybody in the neighborhood was kind of shocked by this whole thing,” Russell Bowman, a neighbor, told KIRO 7.

According to Fife Police Department Assistant Chief of Police David Woods, the city hasn’t seen a murder since 2015, involving abuse to a juvenile who later succumbed to their injuries. Before that, the last reported homicide was in 2003.

That all being said, statistics compiled by City-Data.com claim the city also experiences an above-average number of other crimes on a yearly basis. They calculate that Fife consistently features higher totals than the nationwide average for assault, burglaries, and auto thefts.

All that makes this particular crime that much more of a shock for Fife residents, especially given that the crime was said to not be random. “We’re confident the victim and suspect knew each other,” Fife Police Chief Pete Fisher told KIRO7’s Deedee Sun.

Regardless, it’s always stunning when this long passes between murders in any town.

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