UPDATE: Three men charged in slaying of Tacoma employee
Posted By Stacey Mulick on July 26, 2010 at 8:39 am
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Lisa Marie Melancon/Courtesy of KIRO TV
Pierce County prosecutors have charged three men in with first-degree murder and driveby shooting in connection with last week's fatal shooting of a city code enforcement officer outside her home.
One of those men, 19-year-old Manuel A. Castillo, was arraigned today on the charges in the death of Lisa Marie Melancon, 40, late Thursday. Court Commissioner Patrick Oishi ordered Castillo, who was arrested late Saturday, held in lieu of $1 million bail. Castillo was represented by defense attorney Michael Schwartz, who did not argue bail.
Prosecutors also have charged Olujimi A. Blakeney, 25, and Herman Jackson, 28, with first-degree murder and driveby shooting. Warrants have been issued for their arrests. Anyone with information on the men's whereabouts is asked to call 911 or Tacoma-Pierce County Crime Stoppers at 253-591-5959.
Blakeney, who's last known address is in Tacoma, is 5 feet 11 and 160 pounds. He has brown eyes and black hair. Jackson, who's last known addresses are in Tacoma and just outside the city, is 5 feet 10 and 140 pounds. He has brown eyes and black hair.
Charging documents identify Blakeney as the gunman.
Olujimi A. Blakeney/Courtesy of DOC
According to court documents, Castillo, Blakeney and Jackson went to the 7200 block of South Bell Street on Thursday night. Castillo wanted to fight another man who'd been involved in sending angry text messages with Castillo's girlfriend.
Castillo and the man fought on the sidewalk, court documents state. At some point, the man's mother walked outside with a baseball bat and tried to break up the fight. Blakeney confronted her and brandished a handgun, charging documents state.
Blakeney fired the gun into the air, then he, Castillo and Jackson got back into their vehicle.
"Witnesses reported that as the car drove away the front seat passenger pointed the gun out the window and fired ... two or more shots, at least one of which was back toward people who were standing on the sidewalk in front of the Melancon house," charging documents state.
Herman Jackson/Courtesy of DOC
Melancon was struck in the head by a bullet and died on her front porch.
Blakeney was convicted in 2007 of unlawful crack cocaine possession with the intent to distribute in Pierce County. The charge carried a firearm enhancement. He was sentenced to 1 year, eight months in prison.
Jackson, who goes by "Six," has two previous convictions for unlawful delivery of a controlled substance in Pierce County. In both cases, he was arrested by Lakewood police officers after he allegedly sold crack cocaine to a confidential informant, charging documents state.
Jackson was sentenced to two years, six months in prison.
Staff writer Adam Lynn was in the courtroom and will provide more details soon.
PREVIOUS POSTS: Castillo has one criminal conviction in Pierce County, according to court records.
He pleaded guilty in March 2009 to misdemeanor counts of reckless driving and obstructing a police officer. Prosecutors alleged he ran a stop sign then tried to flee police who pursued him.
He was sentenced to 30 days electronic home monitoring and to seek treatment for alcohol and drug abuse, according to court records.
He completed that treatment June 23 of this year.
His treatment counselor wrote in a letter to authorities that the man "worked through some difficult emotional crises during treatment and is to be congratulated for staying in treatment and processing the uncomfortable feelings with help from others."
Two years ago, a woman sought a protection order against Castillo on behalf of her daughter. The woman wrote in a petition seeking the order that the man threw her 15-year-old daughter to the ground and "choked and gagged her," court records show.
A court commissioner issued a temporary order Aug. 8, 2008, but dismissed it two weeks later at the petitioner's request, records show.
UPDATE 2: Flags at City of Tacoma facilities have been flying at half-staff since Friday in honor of Melancon.
Hopefully Castillo and Jackson will be found and arrested quickly. We need them off the street.
This may sound cold, but maybe they will resist arrest and solve the problem for everyone.
Just as I thought !
No surprises here folks, move along !
Scum....They should put the parents away as well for doing such a poor job of raising these worthless dirt bags!!! The apples don't fall far from the tree.
There goes their aspiring HIP HOP careers..
SIGH...i better wait to comment further.
Why did it take to so long to provide photos and names of the missing suspects?
I keep saying, we've lost the war on drugs, let's decriminalize. Imagine how much tax money our city, state, and federal governments could take in if they would only control manufacturing and distribution of crack and other innocent, "socially acceptable vices".
Imagine how much money our city, state and federal governments would lose if we decriminalized. How many jobs would be lost. How many cops would be lost. There is more money being made than lost in the war on drugs.
Violence in our cities, towns, communities and neighborhoods has now grown to epic proportions.
What a shame that we have let it get to such a level.
Too many innocent loved ones getting killed, beaten, mugged, raped and demoralized.
Family upon family being torn apart with the lost of a loved one.
When will it end?
When will we finally get enough of this to take a stand and do something about it?
It has been another sad week in our town.
They are scumbag punks!!
It shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that the people who were involved were past criminals, and also happened to be colored. I really hate to racial profile and be stereotypical, but its the truth. Maybe all these little punks should be kept in prison a little bit longer, and actually learn a lesson, not get a slap on the wrist for breaking the law.
A Satiacum huh? Same DNA as the fugitive, child molester ex-Puyallup tribal chief Robert? Hey ANONYMOUSPRSN: Go smoke a peace pipe. You should be able to find a pipeload in your brothers stash in his now vacant bedroom. We don't want to hear it!
aware, Shut Up!! black people are no longer referred to as colored.
Mr Manuel Castillo...an illegal alien by any chance? Opps, can't ask that! Sorry.....
Sad as it is, if this woman was black, and the shooting was on mckinley, the story would have made page 4 one day.
All these punks will shoot anybody, anyone, brag about it like the macholess scum they are but then run for their lives so as to not get caught. If they are so macho why run, stand up like a real man and say "I did it!" Weel they aren't real men but nothing that ccrawled out of the sewer. I say put them back in the sewer where they belong, out of society.
Another feather in the cap of Pierce County Law Enforcement.
Now for those who have to go off topic:
There will be no loss of police if they decriminalize MJ. Think about it. Everyone, and I mean everyone, complains that there are not enough police to go around. The only ones who think that are the ones who have to constantly run from them. Do you honestly think that if they legalize pot, there will be a reduction in the police force? That has to be some of the most flawed logic ever. If they decriminalize pot, then the police can focus on getting more of these idiots off the streets before they do something dumb. Did the sweep of hilltop miss these mental giants? They must have been in the strip club 'making it rain'.
Why did it take to so long to provide photos and names of the missing suspects?
Uh, why do you think?
@ wonderwhy,
You shut up. How do pronounce NAACP?
Why don't you make an intelligent comment on the article?
Too busy being a racist?
wonderwhy, shut up!!! National Association for the Advancement of COLORED People. Don't like it change the name.
My heroes
@ DeptOfRevenue ~Thanks for not even trying to elude us about how much of a racist iddiot you are, I appreciate that you put it out there in a public forum.
This isn`t about race ; these two don`t represent other black people.These represent cowardly wimps.They can`t fight like a man,they have to pull guns on women and shoot at occupied homes.They deserve a similar fate,but our criminal justice system protects this kind of people.
It's not about what color you are it's about the choices you make.