"It sounded like fire crackers and then everyone hit the deck," said James Bailey who was inside the pub when the shooting occurred.
Police said the victims were a 37-year-old male struck twice in the torso, and a 27-year-old female struck in the right breast. A 28-year-old male was also hit in the right leg near his knee, but it is not clear if he was a target or accidentally caught in the crossfire. The victim shot in the knee was released Saturday morning and the other two (at press time on April 8) remain in critical but stable condition at Harborview Medical Center.
The shooting took place around 11:18 p.m. when police responded to 911 calls. More than 30 police, fire and medical vehicles were on the scene within minutes including gang and traffic units, an estimated, eyewitness response number confirmed by Seattle Police Department spokesman Mark Jamieson. Beacon Avenue South was closed down to one lane as police secured the area and interviewed witnesses.
"We had two victims at the scene, and prior to SPD's arrival, a third victim had been taken from the bar to the hospital by a friend," Jamieson said, who noted that the third victim was the 37-year-old victim.
At the scene, officers located the female and male victims sitting in chairs being cared for by bystanders. The officers swept the bar for the suspect, determined there was no active threat and called in waiting emergency medical personnel with the Seattle Fire Department to treat the victims.
According to the police department's incident report detailing the shooting, the 28-year-old male victim told police he was standing at the west-end of the bar, facing it and waiting for a drink. He heard three gunshots to his right and felt pain in his right leg. The victim said it took him a minute for him to realize he had been shot, and he added that he had no description of his assailant.
The female victim told police she had no idea who shot her and that she was just standing among a crowd of people.
The shooter
Police are still looking for the suspect, who is described as a male in his 20s and possibly Hispanic, according to a message left by police spokesperson Renee Witt on the Seattle Police Department's after hours media relation's hotline.
However, Jamieson noted that, "as far as motive, we don't know, and we don't have a description of the suspect."
Jamieson called the investigation "fluid," on Monday, April 7.
"That can change, if someone comes forward," Jamieson added.
Witt said the victims "stated that they did not know the shooter and didn't know of a possible motive."
But, according to eyewitnesses in the bar, the victims did know the shooter.
"Someone yelled (the suspect's name), saying 'No, no. Don't do it!'" pub owner Laurie Lusko said. "The woman was waiting for the bathroom when she was shot. She was shot once. Then he turned and shot the guy, and the person shot in the leg was walking up to the pool table. It all happened really quickly."
"The police showed me the casings," Lusko said. "They were really small."
The incident report indicates officers located two spent 9mm shell casings near the bar.
Outside the bar, investigating officers also found a red Chevrolet HHR idling with its lights on in the alley north of the scene. The driver side window was down, and there were bloodstains found on the driver's seat. The Chevy was sealed and impounded for evidence processing. A connection between the shooter and the vehicle is, at this time, unclear.
Rumors and regulars
Speculation about a possible lover's quarrel and that the woman shot is the ex-girlfriend of the suspect are circulating around the neighborhood. In a posting to the Beacon Hill e-mail list serve group (post@beaconhill.seattle.wa.us), the motive was described as a crime of passion.
"According to the pub staff, a man came in to the pub looking for his apparently ex-girl friend and her new partner," wrote Michael Richmond, owner of the Beacon Hill Mail Center, on the morning of April 5 to the e-mail list. "He found them there and shot them both. In the melee another person was shot."
Lusko is quick to point out how rumors can quickly be blown out of proportion, and that the true facts of the crime may never be known. Lusko said her main concern as a businesses owner is for the safety of her patrons and employees. She said she hopes the victims and everyone involved are ok.
"I spent $5,000 earlier this week for security cameras," she said. "And I told everyone working Friday night to take the week off with pay so they can take care of themselves. These sorts of things can be hard to deal with."
The Beacon Pub is your typical neighborhood watering hole where people come to spend time with friends, watch sporting events and eat and drink. Lusko has worked here for the past 12 years, the first three as an employee and last nine as the owner, and she said nothing like this has ever happened before.
"Sure we have some moments from time to time," Lusko said. "But we're just a small neighborhood bar. Everyone here is my family."
Patrons at the bar echoed her sentiments and described the pub as a place where the majority of people know each other and refer to themselves as "the regulars" who truly treat each other like family. It's not uncommon to hear someone offering to help baby sit or offer a ride home when needed. Since the shooting, Lusko said that people have been stopping by and calling to make sure everyone that works and spends time there is safe.
"They (the victims and suspect) weren't one of the regulars," said Robbie a woman that lives in the neighborhood and has been coming to the Beacon Pub for six years. "People here would tell if we knew who he was. We want him caught. There are so many good people here. My family comes here. We have dinners here, and the people treat you so nice."
The Beacon Pub has and is known for its fun, friendly atmosphere, neighborhood-dive-bar feel and great karaoke.
"It's like Cheers," said another woman sitting next to Robbie. "Everybody knows your name, and the people here would tell the police if they knew who he was."
Jamieson urged anyone with information regarding the shootings to call 911 or the Seattle Police Department's Homicide Unit, which also investigates serious assaults, at 684-5550.
People can also text their crime tips to Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound: TIP 486, enter message, and then send to 274637.
Peter Kearns and Erik Hansen may be reached via editor@sdistrictjournal.com. or by calling 461-1311.[[In-content Ad]]