2009 got off to a deadly start on Capitol Hill. The first two murders of the year happened on the edges of the Hill last January — and then there were no more Capitol Hill homicides for the rest of 2009.
Here are the two homicides that occurred on Capitol Hill in 2009:
- Jan. 4: Hip-hop artist Joseph Ryan, known as 29-E, died in the Chop Suey shooting. The 24-year-old was caught in the crossfire of a dispute involving other men. 18-year-old Carlos Bernardez was charged with first degree murder but has yet to be tried.
- Jan. 22: 55-year-old Roanoke Park resident Chris Thompson was found dead in the basement of his home under mysterious circumstances. At the time, police said Thompson ‘may have been stabbed.’ Thompson’s death remains an open investigation.
In 2008, there was one murder on the Hill — 25-year-old Maurice “Moe” Allen Jr. was shot outside the Baltic Room on January 26.
We won’t have a full statistical recap of 2009 crime on Capitol Hill for another month when the Seattle Police Department makes its last data drop from the year. Our most recent analysis of 2009’s crime trends is here.
Beyond the Hill, 19 more people will killed with four murders in the Central District near MLK and Yesler and one on First Hill. Here is a map of the 21 homicides that occurred in Seattle in 2009:
View 2009 Seattle Homicides in a larger map
