Jurors reached a verdict in Andrew Baim’s murder trial for the death of Ravensdale father Nick Valison.
RAVENSDALE, Wash. — Jurors reached a verdict Friday in the murder trial of a man accused of killing a Ravensdale father with a truck in 2023.
Andrew Ralph Baim, 40, is charged in the death of Nick Valison, 53, on Sept. 21, 2023 after Valison tried to stop him from illegally dumping trash in a wooded area near homes.
The jury is expected to read the verdict Friday at 1:30 p.m. KING 5 will carry the sentencing live on KING 5+.
The jury deliberated for less than a day in the case after attorneys conducted closing statements Thursday morning.
Court documents show Valison confronted several people who were possibly illegally dumping trash near 329th Place Southeast and 327th Way Southeast when he was assaulted.
King County Sheriff’s Office deputies found Valison unresponsive, and he was pronounced dead.
Deputies testified in court that a U-Haul being used to dump debris and a pickup truck were linked to Baim through forensic evidence and nearby surveillance footage. Investigators said Baim fled in a black pickup truck after the collision, later setting it on fire in an attempt to destroy evidence.
Baim was arrested two months later and charged with second-degree murder, second-degree arson, and two counts of possession of a stolen vehicle. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
After he was killed, Valison’s friends and family remembered him as a beloved husband, son, brother and father who was “a girl-dad to the core.” Valison’s wife, Tanie Valison, said he would beam with joy at the mention of his daughters.
Ravensdale is a tight-knit, rural community, and Valison’s death rocked residents who said Valison was “just always there.”
KING 5’s Maddie White, Adel Toay and Sebastian Robertson contributed.
