Ax attack kills mother, daughter in Pierce County

A second woman has died from an ax attack in Pierce County that left her mother dead Friday night, in a suspected case of domestic violence.

The 33-year-old victim died Saturday night at Harborview Medical Center, a nursing supervisor said. Her mother, a 52-year-old King County corrections officer, was earlier found dead at her farm house near Orting.

Police believe they were attacked by the mother's estranged husband, who was booked into Pierce County Jail early Saturday for investigation of murder. The pair were in the midst of a divorce, in which she said she feared for her safety. Yet hours before the killing, the pair held a yard sale.

In January, the woman filed for divorce after a three-year marriage, according to Pierce County Superior Court records. In divorce papers, she called her husband "both violent and very controlling" and she worried he would harm her other animals.

He had slapped their Labrador puppies and thrown chairs before, she said.

The 52-year-old man said in a court reply that he has "extreme anxiety and depression problems" but does not abuse animals. He also said he was living in a motel, had not held a steady job in the last two years and earned $5,000 doing auto repairs.

The morning before the crime, the couple were together having a yard sale, said a neighbor, Lola Worrell. The man mentioned the shock of being served divorce papers but said things were getting easier, Worrell said.

"I remarked to (the victim), it was nice they were getting along," said Worrell. Things still seemed fine when Worrell returned at 6 p.m. with her husband to buy $50 worth of tools.

The slain officer had worked at the King County Regional Justice Center in Kent, said spokesman Maj. William Hayes.

"She was a very good officer, did her job very well, got along with everybody," Hayes said.

"The department is very subdued; everybody's in shock right now."

King County sheriff's officials are working with the family on a memorial, Hayes said.

The officer was among 539 corrections officers in the county.

The attacks happened in the 27200 block of 168th Avenue Court East near Orting, where Pierce County sheriff's deputies responded to a 911 call at 10:30 p.m. Friday from a man who said he had just assaulted his wife and stepdaughter.

A spray-painted message on a building in the front yard, read, "Sorry to my friends could not get help," KING-TV news footage showed. Some messages on the house were later covered in white paint by a relative of the victims, said Worrell, who is now caring for their horse and other animals.

The daughter has worked at the Renton Police Department for seven years, according to Paul Cline, patrol division commander. She was a specialist, doing front-desk work.

The Pierce County Medical Examiner's Office does not expect to release the slain officer's name until Monday.

Mike Lindblom: 206-515-5631 or mlindblom@seattletimes.com

Melissa Allison: 206-464-3312 or mallison@seattletimes.com