Wash. Supervision Evaluated After Man Deemed 'Dangerous' is Accused of Murder
Seattle-area prosecutors are looking into why a man, already labeled by the courts and mental health authorities as “dangerous,” was free at the time he is accused of following a woman then stabbing her to death.
James Anthony Williams was release from prison two years ago and had been repeatedly brought to court for carrying a knife, threatening people and failing to check in for mental health care, the Seattle Post Intelligencer reports.
Williams, 48, is accused of following Shannon Harps along a Seattle neighborhood sidewalk on New Year’s Eve and fatally stabbing her with a butcher knife.
Prosecutor Dan Satterberg is quoted saying he will look into Williams’ supervision. “It is simply the responsible thing to do—to examine our system when the most intensive supervision scheme we have developed could not prevent this terrible crime,” Satterberg said.
Satterberg told the paper that he and Corrections Secretary Eldon Vail plan to study the Williams’ case and Washington’s designation of Dangerous Mentally Ill Offenders. “We have yet to develop a fail-safe system to supervise offenders once they are out of custody,” he said.
