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Police looking for information after man shot at 22nd and Union — UPDATE: Homicide investigation

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UPDATE 4/19/14 4:23 PM: SPD says the victim has died:

The shooting from early this morning is now officially a homicide investigation.

The 24-year-old male victim was transported to Harborview Medical Center where he died as a result of his injuries.

Original report: Police and medics found a man in his 20s suffering from life-threatening injuries after a burst of gunfire was reported early Saturday morning near 22nd and E Union. Detectives are looking for information about what led to the 2:35 AM shooting. If you saw or heard something that might help, call 911 or the Seattle Police Homicide/Assault Unit at (206) 233-5000.

Man Shot in the Central District
Written by Detective Jeff Kappel on April 19, 2014
The suspect(s) remain at large after a man was discovered shot in the chest in the Central District early this morning.

On April 19th at approximately 2:35 a.m. officers responded to the 2200 block of East Union Street for 911 reports of multiple shots fired. Additional calls to 911 reported someone had been shot.

Officers arrived on scene and discovered an adult male victim with a gunshot wound to the chest lying on the sidewalk outside of a residence. A woman associated with the victim was standing nearby who claimed to have found the victim and subsequently called 911. She did not however, see the events that lead up to the shooting. Officers located shell casings in the vicinity of the victim that were collected up and placed into evidence for further forensic analysis.

Fire department medics responded to the scene and transported the victim, a man believed to be in his 20′s, to Harborview Medical Center with life-threatening injuries.
Unfortunately, there is no suspect or suspect vehicle description available at this time.
Homicide/Assault, CSI and Gang Unit detectives responded to the scene and continue to actively investigate.

Anyone with information about this incident or who may know the identities or whereabouts of the suspect(s) is asked to call 911 or the Seattle Police Homicide/Assault Unit at (206) 233-5000 and refer to this incident. Anonymous tips are welcome.
This remains an active and on-going investigation.

UPDATE 4/19/14 9:00 PM: SPD reports that there had been gunplay nearby earlier Friday evening that resulted in the arrest of a man wanted on warrants and the recovery of two handguns. Police have not said the arrest and the fatal shooting are related.

UPDATE 4/20/14 9:30 PM: Friends of the victim slain in an early Saturday shooting in the street at 22nd and Union say the young man’s name was Kevin Brown, a 24-year-old police and prosecutors say had a lengthy criminal history and was affiliated with the Deuce 8 Central District gang.

A graffiti tribute to Brown appeared over the weekend near Flo Ware Park.Blr0L1lCMAA16zC

Brown’s criminal record included a conviction on two counts for selling crack cocaine to a police informant during a 2009 sweep of the Central District designed to stem violence at the annual SeaFair Torchlight Parade that summer. Brown was 19 at the time. His sentence called for treatment not imprisonment. His name returns a long list of Seattle Municipal Court and King County District Court records in the years since. In mid-March of this year, he was arrested by officers who said they saw him rifling through a fallen man’s pockets in an alleged street robbery in progress on 1st Ave. Brown was booked and released from jail the next day but apparently had not been charged with a crime. He posted a $35,000 bond according to court records.

In the prosecution of his 2009 arrest in the crack cocaine sting, the King County District Attorney wrote that Brown was a “self-proclaimed” Deuce 8 member and that members of the gang were “actively selling drugs in the area of 28th and S. Jackson near Flo Ware Park.” In the sting, Brown was busted after a series of small drug transactions involving a police informant. The final buy of the 2009 sting took place near 21st and Union.

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23 Comments
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Alex
Alex
9 years ago

This woke me up. It sounded like 2 separate guns firing in 3 bursts, for a total of 10 or 15 shots. It was 2:34am on my clock and I didn’t hear a single police siren until 2:46am. 12 full minutes later, so of course nobody was caught. You’d think by now that they would just assign a police officer to 23rd/Union full time.

cd neighbor
cd neighbor
9 years ago
Reply to  Alex

I was also woken by the shots, but lots of noises wake me up, so that it was shots didn’t really register until I read the story. All I can say is that it sounded like automatic gunfire – lots of really rapid shots.

hazel
hazel
9 years ago
Reply to  cd neighbor

yeah, same here. opened my window to let air in at 2:30, heard rapid gunfire, then waited like ten minutes before i even heard sirens. slow as all hell.

joanna
9 years ago

Of course, things were not great earlier that evening: http://spdblotter.seattle.gov/2014/04/19/shots-fired-man-with-gun-warrants-arrested-in-central-district/
I know this is not the first that SPD has heard about 23rd and E. Union.

ghs07
ghs07
9 years ago
Reply to  joanna

i don’t doubt that more police officers were assigned to 23rd & union 10 or 20 years ago. it used to be one of the most crime-ridden corners in seattle. it’s actually gotten considerably safer over the past several years, so police presence has decreased: “Twenty-third and Union has since fallen from the list of police hot spots, a designation based on 911 calls. Reported incidents of crime within a block of the intersection dropped from 181 in 2008 to just 31 last year [2012], with the biggest declines coming in narcotics and assaults.

As a result, the police have dialed back their focus there to one of maintenance, said Sgt. Christopher Kelley, of the department’s East Precinct.” (http://seattletimes.com/html/localnews/2020384254_uniontwentythirdxml.html)

hearing gunshots in the CD was far more common not too long ago, and this corner is overall much less sketchy than it used to be. but remaining vigilant is obviously still important, and the 12-minute delay in response for this incident is baffling. i’m surprised there wasn’t an officer within earshot. police presence has decreased in the area, but last i checked it hasn’t disappeared…

joanna
9 years ago
Reply to  ghs07

There is truth to what you are saying, but recently the police have been made aware of problems in the area, along with drive by shootings around 24th to 27 and E. Spring.

max
max
9 years ago
Reply to  ghs07

Baffling? I’m reading a lot of people saying they heard these shots. Some even describing the types of guns. I’m Hearing a lot of people pointing out the time of the shots and the time of the sirens. Nobody says they dialed 911. That is baffling. Don’t complain about response time if you are not part of the response.

jmo
jmo
9 years ago
Reply to  max

THANK YOU!!!!! Amen. Call the police if you hear something. Don’t wait around for 12 mins.

C
C
9 years ago

For a fuller story I will post tomorrow.

BerniPalm50
BerniPalm50
9 years ago

This may or may not be related: For weeks we have heard 2 people – a black man & woman arguing outside our apt. bldg. @ 18th & Pike sometime after 1am – always the exact same scenario with them. They park the car in the same spot each time. They act the same as the week before. In fact, they were outside arguing when the young man jumped to his death over a month ago and that is what woke me up just before the boy jumped. I saw there were others in the car last night but I just shoved my ear plugs in further and went to sleep. I wonder if it’s related at all. From what I’ve seen of them I would not put it past one of them to shoot the other. Just an observation ….

BerniPalm50
BerniPalm50
9 years ago

I’m surprised it took officers so long to get there. There are so many sirens around here, constantly it seems, that it really doesn’t phase me anymore – I chalk it up to the ‘territory’ which is actually a much better area than it used to be, with the gangs/drugs having moved elsewhere. (further south, I’m told – thankfully!) However, I won’t go out back of my building where I park my car at night … Tenants have warned me not to go out there alone @ night, even though I got the manager to get the outside flood lights fixed & working again. Everyone in this area needs to be reminded to ‘watch their backs’ & be on guard for potentially bad situations especially at night. Be careful, folks!

Alias
Alias
9 years ago

I was awake late friday night when i heard about ten shots and then abour four return shots…there was alot of yelling arguing and you are all right, no sirens for a length of time … its sad that we live in times like these where younger and younger people jus have no respect for human life…R.I.P. young man

Greg
Greg
9 years ago

So let me get this right. Some people here expect the police officers who may be a few miles away on another call or in a higher emphasis area or in car with the windows up to hear the gunshots and respond immediately. I wonder when the first 911 call came in. Did any of you who heard the shots call?

joanna
9 years ago
Reply to  Greg

I hope people are calling and did call. That is important.

98122
98122
9 years ago
Reply to  Greg

23rd and Union is a pretty “High Emphasis” area.

jensseattle
jensseattle
9 years ago
Reply to  98122

I live on 21st, right around the corner from where this happened. I called immediately when I heard the shots. I was on hold for a few minutes and when someone finally answered they asked if I was calling about the shots on 22nd and Union. They apparently had a lot of calls coming in- which is good. But it did take a long time for any police to show up- over 10 minutes.

Katie
Katie
9 years ago

If you hear people arguing PLEASE call in a noise complaint to 911 before it gets violent. Do not just shove your earplugs in…how are police supposed to be in earshot of a crime if they don’t know about it?

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[…] shooting victim: The victim in the shooting early Saturday at 22nd and Union has been identified by friends as Kevin Brown, a convicted drug dealer and a man prosecutors say […]

nikki
nikki
9 years ago

When they took parents rights away .

andre Brown
andre Brown
9 years ago

This WAS MY family member that died IT had nothing to Do with ANy argument over 4 or 5 blocks away it was a murder plain and simple nothing more nothing less

Me
Me
9 years ago

This makes no sense , all this is sad really it will never end .

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[…] last Saturday morning, a 24-year-old man was shot and killed at 22nd and Union. He was identified as Kevin Brown, a member of the Central District gang Deuce […]

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[…] mark shell casings at the scene of Kevin Brown’s April 19th murder (Image: […]