The man accused of killing an 80-year-old dog owner during a carjacking on Tuesday had a long criminal history in Washington before the alleged attack in Seattle’s Madison Valley neighborhood, according to state records.
State records show that Jahmed Haynes, 48, had previously been convicted of involuntary manslaughter, drug possession, car theft, robbery, attempted prison escape and assault – charges often brought against inmates who have attacked correctional officers.
Haynes’ criminal record was expanded on Wednesday when police announced his latest arrest: He is accused of killing 80-year-old Ruth Dalton, stealing her blue Subaru and stabbing her small dog to death before abandoning the dog in a recycling bin on Brighton’s playing field.
Haynes was charged with first-degree murder, second-degree assault and cruelty to animals on Friday afternoon and was also denied bail.
Previous coverage: Arrest made in connection with the ‘cruel’ killing of a popular 80-year-old Seattle dog handler and his dog
Rumors circulated about the man’s identity, but KIRO Newsradio wanted to keep it secret until prosecutors formally filed charges against him. Social media was filled with speculation as to why a man with eight prior convictions was not in prison. Some users and media personalities blamed Democratic leaders for threatening public safety by releasing the man.
But new state criminal records obtained by KIRO Newsradio show that Washington courts have steadily increased the severity of the man’s sentences over the years with each successive conviction. For the attempted prison break and the assault in custody, the sentences increased to two consecutive sentences of five years in prison each.
Timeline of the suspect’s criminal past
The first entry in Haynes’ criminal past in Washington appears to be an arrest for unauthorized taking of a motor vehicle in August 1991. He was 15 years old at the time and was sentenced to 13 weeks in prison.
About a year and a half later, in 1993, the suspect, who lived in Seattle before his arrest, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in the death of Eric Berge in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood. Court records obtained by KIRO Newsradio show that Haynes, then 17, ignored a red light and drove off the sidewalk at the corner of Broadway and East Madison Street.
He struck the driver’s side of Berge’s car, throwing Berge more than 100 feet, prosecutors wrote in court documents. Berge was pronounced dead at the scene and the suspect reportedly ran to a taxi driver who was supposed to take him to a nearby juvenile detention center at 1211 East Alder St. Police brought witnesses to the location, confirmed Haynes’ identity and arrested him. Police wrote the man told an officer he was running from someone before colliding. Haynes was later found by Harborview Medical Center staff to have a blood-alcohol level of 0.12 percent.
According to a state criminal record, Haynes was sentenced to 34 months in prison for involuntary manslaughter.
On March 24, 1995, he was arrested on drug charges and later sentenced to more than four years in prison, the report said.
Four years later, on June 3, 1999, Haynes was arrested by Renton police in connection with an investigation into a robbery and auto theft, according to criminal records. He was convicted of first-degree robbery and unlawful auto theft in the fall of 1999. His sentence appeared to have been enhanced, as the report showed that a judge sentenced him to more than seven years in prison.
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While serving that sentence, Haynes attempted to escape from a Snohomish County jail in 2003 by attacking a corrections officer with a 12-inch sharpened piece of metal, according to criminal records. He was found guilty of first-degree escape and two counts of assault, the report said. The punishments for those crimes were three consecutive five-year sentences, for a total of 15 years, and he was required to serve the remainder of his original seven-year sentence.
(King County prosecutors pointed out that the escape attempt and assault actually occurred in 2003, although the statewide crime report shows the year as 2005.)
According to an analysis of Haynes’ prison sentences by KIRO Newsradio, he would have been released from prison around 2022. However, there is no evidence that his sentence will be reduced.
Why didn’t Haynes stay in prison because of Washington’s “three strikes” law?
Prosecutors addressed this question in an email to the media, writing, “Although a person may have eight prior felony convictions, Washington State’s Three Strikes Law, or Persistent Offender Accountability Act, only applies under certain circumstances. Property crimes and other non-violent crimes, as defined by the legislature, are not considered strike offenses under state law.”
Under Washington state law, anyone convicted of a “most serious crime” three times is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The law states that these crimes will count toward the three misdemeanors only if the defendant is convicted as an adult and the crimes are committed in three separate cases.
Although Haynes, the suspect in Tuesday’s carjacking, has previous convictions for involuntary manslaughter and aggravated robbery – both crimes that fall under the definition of “most serious crimes” under the law – he apparently did not commit the third offense.
More from Sam Campbell: FBI arrests two Snohomish men accused of attacking Capitol Police on January 6
King County prosecutors confirmed to KIRO Newsradio that while other forms of assault can be considered a misdemeanor, a conviction for assault in custody is not what state lawmakers consider a “most serious offense.” Any other felony convictions on Hanyes’ state criminal record are considered nonviolent felonies or property crimes, prosecutors said.
“A person could theoretically have multiple convictions for auto theft or other crimes not considered ‘most serious crimes’ by the state legislature, and that person would have no violations of the state’s strike laws,” said Casey McNerthney, a spokesman for the King County District Attorney’s Office.
If Haynes is convicted of the crimes he was charged with Friday, it would be a third offense under state law. However, other factors, such as mental health, could come up during a potential trial and influence the judge’s ruling, officials told KIRO Newsradio.
Sam Campbell is a reporter, editor and anchor at KIRO Newsradio. Read more of Sam’s stories here. Follow Sam on Xor send him an email here.
