FALL CITY, Wash. — A King County judge ruled that a private investigator will be allowed to enter the Fall City home where five family members were shot and killed on Oct. 21.
The 15-year-old boy, who is part of the same family, is accused of pulling the trigger. He remains in juvenile detention while he waits to find out if the case will be tried in adult court.
The 15-year-old is charged with five counts of first-degree murder and one count of first-degree attempted murder with a firearm enhancement. KING 5 is not naming the suspect at this time as he is a juvenile.
On Monday, Oct. 28, lawyers defending the 15-year-old said they need to see the crime scene themselves and want to bring in their own forensic expert. King County Superior Court Judge Kristin Richardson agreed. The defense team will be allowed into the Fall City home Oct. 29 and have the day to look around.
One week ago, police were called to the home of the Humiston family where they found parents Sarah and Mark and three of their children shot to death. The suspect called 911 himself and attempted to frame a younger brother, saying he was the one to shoot the victims before shooting himself.
An 11-year-old girl, another member of the family, survived and told neighbors and police what she saw; telling them she believed her 15-year-old brother used her father's Glock handgun to shoot the victims.
Washington State Patrol crime scene investigators documented the crime scene for two days before turning the house over to relatives of the family. The family started the process to get the home cleaned.
However, over the weekend, the 15-year-old's defense petitioned the court to lock down the scene.
“It is their job to investigate this case, they have a duty and obligation constitutionally to do so," Judge Richardson told prosecutors. "They have a duty and obligation on behalf of their client. And I understand the [state patrol] has been through it - your experts have been through it. They have a right to conduct an investigation of their own.”
The defense will only be allowed to take pictures of the scene, not collect physical evidence. They said their priority will be to take their own 3D scan of the home.
"Let me be clear about the guardrails – this is for the scene, this is not a search for documents," Judge Richardson said. "We’re not going to going through books to see if someone wrote a note. This is not for that purpose, I’m going to be very clear about that. This is not a search."