Allison Sundell
Local News
JBLM soldier sentenced for sexually assaulting college student in barracks
A military judge sentenced Pvt. Deron Gordon to over six years in prison for sexually assaulting a college student.
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. — A Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier who sexually assaulted a college student in the barracks in 2024 was sentenced to more than six years in prison Friday.
A military judge sentenced Pvt. Deron Gordon, 20, to six years and three months in prison after he pleaded guilty to one specification each of sexual assault, abusive sexual contact and as a principal to indecent recording.
Gordon was previously charged with additional crimes, but those were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.
Gordon is one of four soldiers who were charged in in connection to the sexual assault of a college student, who is now a commissioned Army officer, in October 2024.
When Gordon pleaded guilty, he said that he and another soldier followed the college student into a bedroom after she had been drinking with them. He said she was unstable walking into the room and when they went inside she was on the bed and not responsive.
Gordon said he and the other soldier each proceeded to have sex with her and they filmed each other sexually assaulting her on Snapchat.
As part of his sentencing, Gordon will be reduced in rank to E-1 and dishonorably discharged from the Army.
Gordon will serve the remainder of his sentencing at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Once he is released, Gordon must register as a sex offender.
The three other soldiers who were charged in the incident are at different points in the legal process, and their cases are being treated separately.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. Additional resources are available on the Washington State Department of Health's website.
KING 5’s Conner Board contributed to this report.
Local News
Teen sentenced in 2023 deadly Metro bus shooting near White Center
In the plea agreement, the teen said he recognized the man from pulling a gun on him on the bus several days prior and was nervous and scared.
WHITE CENTER, Wash. — A teenager was sentenced Friday to over 23 years in prison for shooting and killing a man aboard a King County Metro bus near White Center in 2023.
King County Judge Brian McDonald sentenced Miguel Rivera Dominguez, 19, to 23 years and 4 months in prison, with credit for time served. Prison time will be followed by three years of community custody.
The sentencing comes after Rivera Dominguez pleaded guilty July 3 of first-degree premeditated murder.
On Oct. 3, 2023, Rivera Dominguez fired five shots from “point blank range” at the head and neck of Marcel Da'jon Wagner, 21, who appeared to be asleep aboard the bus near Southwest Roxbury Street and 15th Avenue Southwest, according to charging documents.
In the plea agreement, Rivera Dominguez said he recognized Wagner from having “pulled a gun” on him on the bus a few days prior.
“i was nervous and scared when I saw him on 10/3/23 but he was not threatening me and I was not acting in self-defense,” Rivera Dominguez wrote.
There were 15 other passengers on the bus at the time, but none of them were injured in the shooting.
Rivera Dominguez, who was 17 at the time of the shooting, fled after the incident and remained at large for a month before he turned himself in.
The shooting prompted concerns about safety aboard King County Metro buses. After the shooting, Metro said it would add security to the H Line, expanding transit security officers who patrol buses and transit centers.
Local News
Big Game of the Week returns with a livestream of the featured football game
SEATTLE — The KING 5 Big Game of the Week is back this year with a twist.
Each week, KING 5 will still feature a local high school football match-up in our newscasts with the addition of a livestream of the entire game on our streaming app KING 5+. KING 5 Sports Reporter Chris Egan will provide color commentary during the game before presenting his report of the game on KING 5 News at 10 p.m.
The game will be livestreamed starting at 7 p.m. each Friday night. Afterward, a replay of the game will be available to watch on demand. Download KING 5+ for your TV and watch for free.
Big Game coverage kicks off Sept. 5 with the match-up between O’Dea and Graham-Kapowsin high schools at Art Crate Stadium in Spanaway.
Want to know where KING 5 Sports will go next? Egan will announce the next week’s Big Game at the end of the livestream of the week’s featured football game.
Due to logistics of livestreaming, fans won’t be able to vote for the Big Game match-up. However, KING 5 will still provide coverage of the biggest high school football games across Puget Sound during Friday night’s newscasts.
Local News
Wildfire smoke causes hazy skies across Puget Sound
The Seattle skyline looked hazy due to wildfire smoke that caused moderate air quality.
SEATTLE — Wildfire smoke created hazy skies in the Seattle area on Thursday and gave the sun and moon a red, fiery glow.
Most of the wildfire smoke is expected to stay aloft, which won’t significantly deteriorate air quality at the surface. However, with high pressure in place, it could bring some of the smoke down to the surface, according to KING 5 Meteorologist Ashley Ruiz.
Air quality is expected to measure in the moderate range for most of the Puget Sound area Thursday, with parts of the Olympic Peninsula and coast expected to have good air quality, according to AirNow. It is expected to remain moderate for the next couple of days before rain chances return to the Puget Sound forecast Saturday through Tuesday.
Moderate air quality could be a risk for some people who are unusually sensitive to air pollution.
Forecast models show the wildfire smoke is moving into the lowlands and foothills from Canada. As of the end of August, there were 31 fires burning uncontrolled across Canada, according to Natural Resources Canada. So far this year, the fires have burned over 19 million acres.
Several wildfires continue to burn across Washington state as well. The Bear Gulch Fire near Lake Cushman on the Olympic Peninsula has burned over 9,000 acres. In the Cascades, the Pomas Fire west of Lake Chelan has burned over 3,500 acres, and the Sugarloaf Fire near Entiat has burned over 6,000 acres as of Thursday morning.
The smoke also caused the nearly-full moon and the sun to appear bright red. The region is days away from September’s full moon, which is dubbed the Corn Moon. The full moon rises Sept. 7.
Wildfire haze is expected to remain in place until the next system or onshore flow arrives to push it out.
Over the weekend, high pressure is expected to drift east, and a low-pressure system that’s expected to develop off the coast could bring clouds and the potential for rain. The timing of this system is uncertain, Ruiz said, but showers are expected early next week.
Local News
Person shoots home intruder in south King County
The sheriff's office said there isn't an ongoing danger to the public.
LAKELAND SOUTH, Wash. — A person shot someone who broke into their home in south King County on Tuesday morning.
The King County Sheriff's Office responded to a home near 55th Place South and South 362nd Place in the Lakeland South neighborhood just after 7 a.m. for a report of a shooting. The 911 caller was the suspected shooter, according to deputies.
King County deputies did not make any arrests.
Medical aid arrived. Deputies could not confirm if anyone was injured in the shooting.
There is not an ongoing danger to the public, according to the sheriff's office.
The Major Crimes Unit is investigating the shooting.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Local News
2 people pulled from Lake Sammamish, hospitalized
This is the third water-related incident that law enforcement responded to Saturday.
ISSAQUAH, Wash. — Two people were taken to the hospital Saturday night after being pulled from the water at Lake Sammamish State Park.
The two people were on watercraft before going in the water, according to King County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Mike Ellis.
Onlookers at the beach pulled one person out of the water, and one of those people started CPR, Ellis said. King County patrol officers pulled the second person and also started CPR.
Medics took the two people to Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue.
This is the third water-related incident law enforcement responded to this weekend.
In Renton, a 43-year-old man drowned Saturday afternoon after getting in the water while fleeing police at Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park.
At Lake Tapps, a 55-year-old man died Saturday afternoon after being administered CPR. The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office is still investigating what led up to his death.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Local News
Man drowns after fleeing police at Renton park
The incident is being investigated as an in-custody death.
RENTON, Wash. — An independent team is investigating after a person died in police custody at Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park in Renton on Saturday.
Officers with the Renton Police Department responded to the park around noon for a suspicious vehicle call.
Two people, a 43-year-old man and a female, left the car and got into the water to flee police.
The female was pulled from the water, and she was detained. The man slipped under the water and drowned, according to police.
The Valley Independent Investigative Team will investigate the incident, as it’s considered an in-custody death.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Local News
Trump’s border czar warns of immigration enforcement ‘ramp-up’ in Seattle
Tom Homan said ICE operations would ramp up in sanctuary cities, like Seattle and Portland.
SEATTLE — President Donald Trump’s border czar signaled this week that Seattle could see increased immigration enforcement operations due to its sanctuary status.
Tom Homan spoke with reporters at the White House on Thursday, saying there would be a “ramp-up” of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in sanctuary cities, like Seattle, Portland, New York and Los Angeles.
“All these sanctuary cities refuse to work with ICE where we know public safety threats are being released, and to this day and especially those cities, we’re going to address that,” Homan said.
Under the Keep Washington Working Act, local law enforcement in Washington state is prevented from collecting a person’s immigration or citizenship status unless it pertains to a criminal law violation. It also prevents law enforcement from providing nonpublic personal information to federal immigration authorities in noncriminal matters, such as civil immigration proceedings.
The city of Seattle has a similar law where city employees can’t ask about immigration status. Police officers can but only if they have a reasonable suspicion of a felony criminal law violation or know the person was previously deported.
Homan said the administration would move immigration enforcement resources to sanctuary cities, calling them “problem areas.”
“That’s where we need to send the majority of the resources, and that’s where they’re going,” he said.
This isn’t the first time the Trump administration has clashed with the Pacific Northwest over cooperation with ICE.
Earlier this month, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi sent letters to Gov. Bob Ferguson and Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell threatening legal action if the jurisdictions didn’t cooperate with ICE. Ferguson said the state didn’t intend to change its approach.
Local News
14-year-old charged after bringing loaded gun to Graham-Kapowsin High School
Pierce County deputies found a loaded 9mm gun in the teen's bag.
GRAHAM, Wash. — A 14-year-old boy was arrested and charged after bringing a loaded gun to the first day of school at Graham-Kapowsin High School in Graham.
“This could have been a serious incident if it had not been [sic] from the Campus Safety’s amazing situational awareness and swift actions,” a spokesperson for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. “Amazing work by all.”
The Pierce County Sheriff’s Office responded to the school Wednesday just after 1 p.m., after the school notified deputies that the boy had a gun.
School staff told deputies that the boy and three other current and former students had been “avoiding and running away” from campus security and staff “all day.”
The boy, who is a student at a junior high school in the Puyallup School District, was found with a loaded 9mm gun, according to probable cause documents. Deputies said the gun had two rounds inside the magazine and one round was loaded in the chamber.
A cellphone that was found with the boy had a picture of him holding the gun on the lock screen, according to documents. The boy also had a balaclava and a bandana.
The boy told deputies he wasn’t planning on shooting anyone, according to documents.
The boy was booked into Remann Hall Pierce County Juvenile Detention Center. He was charged Thursday with first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and possessing dangerous weapons on school facilities.
KING 5 typically does not name juvenile defendants.
The three other current and former Graham-Kapowsin students were also detained.
The boy’s next court appearance is Sept. 3.
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JBLM soldier sentenced for sexually assaulting college student in barracks
A military judge sentenced Pvt. Deron Gordon to over six years in prison for sexually assaulting a college student.
JOINT BASE LEWIS-MCCHORD, Wash. — A Joint Base Lewis-McChord soldier who sexually assaulted a college student in the barracks in 2024 was sentenced to more than six years in prison Friday.
A military judge sentenced Pvt. Deron Gordon, 20, to six years and three months in prison after he pleaded guilty to one specification each of sexual assault, abusive sexual contact and as a principal to indecent recording.
Gordon was previously charged with additional crimes, but those were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.
Gordon is one of four soldiers who were charged in in connection to the sexual assault of a college student, who is now a commissioned Army officer, in October 2024.
When Gordon pleaded guilty, he said that he and another soldier followed the college student into a bedroom after she had been drinking with them. He said she was unstable walking into the room and when they went inside she was on the bed and not responsive.
Gordon said he and the other soldier each proceeded to have sex with her and they filmed each other sexually assaulting her on Snapchat.
As part of his sentencing, Gordon will be reduced in rank to E-1 and dishonorably discharged from the Army.
Gordon will serve the remainder of his sentencing at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Once he is released, Gordon must register as a sex offender.
The three other soldiers who were charged in the incident are at different points in the legal process, and their cases are being treated separately.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673. Additional resources are available on the Washington State Department of Health's website.
KING 5’s Conner Board contributed to this report.
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Local News
Teen sentenced in 2023 deadly Metro bus shooting near White Center
In the plea agreement, the teen said he recognized the man from pulling a gun on him on the bus several days prior and was nervous and scared.
WHITE CENTER, Wash. — A teenager was sentenced Friday to over 23 years in prison for shooting and killing a man aboard a King County Metro bus near White Center in 2023.
King County Judge Brian McDonald sentenced Miguel Rivera Dominguez, 19, to 23 years and 4 months in prison, with credit for time served. Prison time will be followed by three years of community custody.
The sentencing comes after Rivera Dominguez pleaded guilty July 3 of first-degree premeditated murder.
On Oct. 3, 2023, Rivera Dominguez fired five shots from “point blank range” at the head and neck of Marcel Da'jon Wagner, 21, who appeared to be asleep aboard the bus near Southwest Roxbury Street and 15th Avenue Southwest, according to charging documents.
In the plea agreement, Rivera Dominguez said he recognized Wagner from having “pulled a gun” on him on the bus a few days prior.
“i was nervous and scared when I saw him on 10/3/23 but he was not threatening me and I was not acting in self-defense,” Rivera Dominguez wrote.
There were 15 other passengers on the bus at the time, but none of them were injured in the shooting.
Rivera Dominguez, who was 17 at the time of the shooting, fled after the incident and remained at large for a month before he turned himself in.
The shooting prompted concerns about safety aboard King County Metro buses. After the shooting, Metro said it would add security to the H Line, expanding transit security officers who patrol buses and transit centers.
Local News
Let’s Go Washington launches initiative campaign on trans youth sports, parental rights
Let's Go Washington, the backers of the 2024 initiatives, is looking for signatures again.
OLYMPIA, Wash. — Let's Go Washington is back in the initiative game.
The organization, founded by Brian Heywood, sponsored several initiatives in 2024 changing state law.
Heywood announced Monday signatures are being gathered to submit two initiatives to the 2026 state Legislature or potentially voters. The initiatives relate to parental rights and trans youth athletes.
Heywood's organization achieved significant victories last year when voters supported initiatives restricting natural gas use and overturning state laws limiting police pursuits. The state Legislature also passed Let's Go Washington-backed measures banning income taxes and guaranteeing parental rights to access school records. The success came after Heywood invested more than $5 million of his own money into seven initiatives.
"Someone has to stand up and fight back. And what I think I've done is given the voice. I've given voice to 1.2 million people who signed at least one of our initiatives," Heywood said.
However, the organization faced a setback earlier this year when Gov. Bob Ferguson signed legislation overhauling the "parents bill of rights" initiative.
"It stripped all the parts about parental notification or parental access to information," Heywood said.
In response, Let's Go Washington is now gathering signatures for two new campaigns. The first seeks to overturn Ferguson's recent law, restoring their original parental rights initiative. The second would require physicians to assign genders to youth athletes during physicals, prohibiting those considered males from competing against females.
"Allowing biological males to compete in girls sports is a blatant, a flagrant violation of Title IX, I would argue, and also extremely unfair to girls who've worked really hard to get in a position to be top athletes," Heywood said.
Despite failing to pass initiatives targeting the state's climate law, long-term care savings program, and capital gains tax in 2024, Heywood remains optimistic about his organization's impact.
"Four out of seven, I'm pretty, pretty happy with what we did, and we're not done," he said.
If the organization can collect enough signatures by the end of the year, the issues would be submitted to the state Legislature. Lawmakers could either pass the initiatives or let voters decide in November 2026.