King County deputy and ‘subject’ end up in a ‘fire fight;’ deputy treated and released

SHORELINE, Wash. — A King County Sheriff’s deputy is out of the hospital after an early-morning shootout with someone he was investigating, according to the King County Independent Investigation Team.

That shooting happened just after 2 a.m. Sunday morning outside a Chevron gas station in Shoreline. The Chevron is across from a bustling strip mall with a QFC.

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That King County sheriff’s deputy and “subject” both suffered non-life-threatening injuries.

The shootout happened on Northeast 145th Street, a busy part of Shoreline, and occupied the attention of detectives for more than 15 hours.

Detectives worked late into Sunday, hours after gunfire pierced the air in this bustling stretch of Northeast 145th.

A neighbor who wishes to remain anonymous told KIRO 7 she heard an exchange of about a dozen shots.

“Oh, yes, it was obvious,” the neighbor said. It sounded, she added, “like gunshots, like you know, like a fire fight.”

It was difficult at first to figure out where the sound was coming from.

“Well, I understand now that it came from the gas station,” she said.

Because an officer is involved, all KIRO 7 knows is that just after 2 o’clock Sunday morning, a King County Sheriff’s deputy was investigating a suspicious car.

That’s when the deputy and a 34-year-old ‘subject’ got into an altercation at the Chevron station. Both men opened fire, striking each other. Other King County deputies and Seattle Police swarmed the scene.

Then the Independent Force Investigation Team for King County was brought in.

“What’s going to happen now is the IFIT Team-KC are canvassing the area,” said Meeghan Black, the IFIT Team Public Information Officer. “They’re looking for videotape, for witnesses.”

But Black could not tell us whether this is the deputy’s patrol car, nor whether this vehicle belonged to the subject or was simply caught in the crossfire. The investigation shut down this Goodwill for the day; its manager on duty was glad the shooting wasn’t worse.

“Well, I’m certainly happy no one’s going to die,” said Anthony Poster, a Goodwill manager. “That’s always good news. No one wants more death.”

“This is typical for this neighborhood,” said the anonymous neighbor. “It’s not getting better. It’s getting worse.”

Business returned to normal at the Chevron as soon as detectives left.

The 34-year-old man was cleared from Harborview Medical Center and then arrested and booked into jail on investigation of assault.

Now that the deputy is out of the hospital, he is on paid administrative leave, as is customary.

He has been employed with the King County Sheriff’s Office since June 2021.

There are still several unanswered questions. What was “suspicious” about the vehicle? And why did the encounter turn violent?

KIRO 7 could get those answers later this week.

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