Last week I filed additional charges in the matter of the murder of Gordon Fiest of Colville who was killed on July 17.   I filed Murder in the First Degree and in the alternative Murder in the Second Degree, against Jesse J. Fellman-Shimmin,  age 27 and Collette Marie Pierce, age 25.   I had previously filed charges against Eric Booth.

Documents filed with the court allege that they were with Eric Booth when the three of them went to Gordon Feist’s home on Smart Way.  They made a plan to burglarize the home and take the contents of gun safes that Mr. Feist had in his garage.  Previously, Eric Booth had worked at the home for a short time.  Part of their planning was via text messages that were recovered.

The statement filed with the court indicated that Mr. Fiest was killed with a .22 cal derringer which had been among the guns taken in another burglary in the county about 3 weeks earlier.  In that burglary, about 23 weapons were taken from a home. Those weapons were also in a safe, but in that case the safe was taken.  The opened safe was found not far from where Eric Booth was taken into custody and five weapons found buried not far away.

There are now three persons charged in the murder.   All of these persons have not been proved guilty and are presumed to be innocent.  They will be carefully afforded their rights.  They are now at the initial stages in the process.  The court will make sure they have representation and they will be formally notified of the charges and bonds set on the charges.

Neighbors and citizens; we should all take note that there are persons among us who have absolutely no regard for human life.   There are people who will take a life if it stands between them and something they want.  Most homicides come out of situations where human emotions are involved.  Most times the people know each other and are angry about something and while it is tragic, it is more understandable than when the killing is just to get a few dollars and who is killed is more a matter of the random  chance of whether a person is home when the thieves come to take what they want.