Lakewood man jailed after mother of his 3 children killed at Federal Way church

Carol Parsons agreed to attend counseling sessions with her ex-husband “so he could move on with his life,” her boyfriend said Thursday.

“Instead, he took hers,” said Kevin Foster of Graham.

Authorities allege Charles L. Parsons, 41, shot his ex-wife to death Wednesday during a counseling session at a Federal Way church.

Parsons, who was booked into jail on suspicion of murder, made his first appearance in King County Superior Court on Thursday and was ordered jailed in lieu of $5 million bail.

Police allege Parsons shot his 38-year-old ex-wife at Calvary Lutheran Church, 2415 S. 320th St., in Federal Way.

Court documents gave this account:

During the session with the counselor, Charles Parsons stood and began to leave the room. He then shot his wife at least three times in the torso.

He went outside and called 911 about 5:50 p.m., telling the dispatcher he had shot his wife and that he had placed the gun on the hood of his truck. The counselor also called 911, police said.

Officers arrested him without incident.

Carol Parsons was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where she died of her wounds.

State court records indicate the couple divorced in Eastern Washington’s Lincoln County last year.

Foster said he had been dating the victim, who lived in the Algona area with her mother, for about four months. He said the Carol Parsons’ counselor encouraged her ex-husband’s participation in the sessions.

Foster stood in tears Thursday morning, staring at the green paint police used to mark the location of the Carol Parsons’ car in the church parking lot.

“Saying my goodbyes,” he explained.

He said he heard the news of the shooting while listening to a country radio station driving to work about 6:15 a.m.

Foster, 45, said he talked to Carol Parsons on her cell phone Wednesday while she was driving to the church for the counseling session.

“I knew something was wrong when I didn’t get a phone call last night,” Foster said.

He said Wednesday’s counseling session was the third Charles Parsons had attended as well.

“She didn’t want to go to this one,” Foster said. “I told her it was her option to go or not.”

He said Carol Parsons had told him her former husband had been verbally abusive to her.

“She was scared of her ex-husband,” he said.

Carol Parsons was receiving counseling from a counselor at the Lutheran Counseling Network, a regional counseling service that has an office at Calvary Lutheran. The network is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Calvary’s denomination.

Police interviewed the counselor and Calvary’s pastor, the Rev. Lori Cornell, on Thursday. They declined to talk with The News Tribune, a church secretary said.

Cornell issued a statement, saying: “Lutheran Counseling Network and Calvary Lutheran Church express their deep concern for all those involved and affected by the tragic event in the counseling office Wednesday evening.

“Our hearts and prayers go out to the members of the family and the community that have been traumatized by this tragedy.”

Calvary Lutheran canceled its Lenten events Wednesday night – a soup supper at 6:15 p.m. and a worship service at 7 p.m. – because of the shooting, the church secretary said.

Carol Parsons was set to graduate from Clover Park Technical College this spring in a health care program, Foster said.

The couple was married 13 years and had three children, two boys, 5 and 9, and a girl, 11, he said. They divorced for about a year but Charles Parsons wanted to get back together with her, Foster said.

“He wasn’t accepting her moving on,” Foster said.

He said Carol Parsons attended a Catholic parish occasionally, not Calvary Lutheran.

“She was a very smart, intelligent, beautiful woman who had a bright future and loved her kids very much,” Foster said.

Staff writer Joyce Chen contributed to this report.

Steve Maynard: 253-597-8647

steve.maynard@thenewstribune.com