Hope fading for wounded Pierce County deputy

There has been no improvement in the condition of Pierce County sheriff's Deputy Kent Mundell Jr. since he was shot Monday, and law-enforcement officials say they now are preparing for the worst.

Mundell has been on life support the entire time he's been at Harborview Medical Center and his condition has not improved, sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Ed Troyer said late Saturday.

"We were hoping for a miracle, but now we are expecting the worst," Troyer said.

At some point, Troyer said, doctors and family members may need to make a decision.

"Time has gone by, and there's been no improvement."

Mundell's stepbrother, Mark Stafford, said Saturday night: "Right now we are overwhelmed with grief."

Mundell, 44, was one of two deputies shot while responding to a domestic-violence call Monday night outside Eatonville, Pierce County.

Deputies arrived at the home of Jason Crable after he said his brother, David Crable, was "drunk and belligerent" and no longer welcome.

Crable had agreed to leave the home with deputies, but instead he pulled out a handgun hidden in a shirt tucked under his arm and opened fire, according to Troyer.

Mundell was shot several times but managed to return fire and hit Crable, who died at the scene.

Mundell's partner Sgt. Nick Hausner, 43, also was shot and wounded. He since has been released from Madigan Army Medical Center and this week was able to visit Mundell at Harborview, where law-enforcement officers have been keeping vigil.

Friends of Mundell plan to hold a vigil Sunday night at LA Fitness center in Puyallup. Christine Saylor, who organized the vigil, said she has worked out with Mundell for about two years at the gym.

"He's just a good-hearted guy. He'll stop and talk to anyone," she said. "He's a proud father; he's always talking about his children."

Saylor said the owners of Forza Coffee — where four Lakewood officers were shot last month — are donating coffee for about 400 people. Saylor said the vigil will begin at 8:15 p.m. with the chaplain of the Tacoma Police Department speaking. Mundell, of Spanaway, is a 10-year veteran of the Pierce County Sheriff's Department. He has a wife and two children, who are 16 and 10 years old.

There have been five local law-enforcement officers shot and killed within the past two months. On Oct. 31, Seattle police Officer Timothy Brenton was shot while sitting in his patrol car with his partner.

A Tukwila man, Christopher Monfort, has been charged in that case.

The Lakewood officers were fatally shot at the coffee shop on Nov. 29.

Material from Seattle Times archives is included in this report. Nick Perry: 206-515-5639