In the latest brazen example of the criminal justice system running off the tracks in Democrat-controlled states and cities, Seattle police officers arrested a convicted murderer last Wednesday who was out of prison on Department of Corrections (DOC) supervision. They found him asleep and possibly drunk in an area hotel lobby — with a handgun sticking out of his waistband and a bottle of liquor next to him.
What the whatever?
That, folks, is a microcosmic view of the deteriorated and dangerous state of criminal justice in multiple Democrat-run jurisdictions across this great country. Questions abound, in this case, which we’ll address as we continue.
According to the police report and charging documents, employees at the Level Hotel on Boren Avenue North called police around 8:43 a.m. on November 13 after spotting a man asleep on a lobby couch with a handgun visible and a bottle of liquor beside him. Staff told officers the suspect appeared intoxicated.
Responding officers devised a tactical approach before entering the hotel, then contacted and arrested the man without incident. Police also recovered a .45-caliber semiautomatic handgun loaded with six rounds.
The suspect later claimed he carried the weapon for protection due to previous gang violence, even though he’s barred from possessing firearms because of prior felony convictions and ongoing supervision by the DOC [rolling-eyes emoji].
Did I mention that the firearm had no distinguishable serial number?
Having watched more episodes of NBC’s Dateline than I can remember, if the above scenario doesn’t look like yet another violent crime waiting to happen, I’m not sure what does.
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Here’s more:
The man, identified as 38-year-old Barry Lee Saunders Jr., has an extensive criminal history, including convictions for Murder in the Second Degree and Assault in the Second Degree in 2008, as well as Theft in the Third Degree in 2002.
Both violent felony convictions carried firearm enhancements, resulting in a 17-year prison sentence. Court records also show Saunders has accumulated multiple warrants over the years, including two from Superior Court and six for misdemeanors. At the time of the arrest, Saunders was actively being supervised by the Department of Corrections for his murder conviction, making firearm possession a direct violation of his supervised release.
Prosecutors filed a charge of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm in the First Degree on November 17, emphasizing Saunders’ repeated history of violence and the risks associated with an armed, intoxicated individual with a prior murder conviction inside a public building.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office requested that the court maintain bail at $25,000, arguing that Saunders’ disregard for firearm prohibitions and the circumstances of his arrest demonstrated a continued threat to community safety.
The salient question that begs to be answered is why: why was a convicted killer with multiple prior felony convictions out on DOC supervision in the first place? And just as troubling, if not even more so, where were the “supervisors” who were supposed to be supervising this dangerous dirtbag?
Again, the whole thing sounds like a Dateline episode gone terribly wrong. In this case, it appears, intentionally so.
Oh, I almost forgot: The convicted killer was also found with a balaclava (also called a ski mask), which is typically used to conceal a person’s identity. Go figure.
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