Declining home values, TPD lawsuit, man found dead among TNT’s top stories

Pierce County saw a wave of significant news Thursday, from declining residential property values to a former deputy police chief’s lawsuit against Tacoma. Two separate homicide cases also advanced, with charges filed in a Tacoma disappearance and a 2024 Lakewood drive-by shooting.

Here are key takeaways:

• Residential property values in Pierce County dropped 1% this year while commercial values rose 3%, the Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer’s office announced. The county-wide average home price as of Jan. 1, 2026 fell to $524,488 from $529,696 a year earlier, with the last residential decline coming in 2023 at 2.8%, deputy assessor-treasurer Katie Rose said.
• Former Tacoma police deputy chief Paul Junger filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Tacoma on Thursday, alleging he was unlawfully fired after reporting misuse of public funds and conduct violations within TPD. An external investigation cited by the city found Junger exhibited a “pattern of disrespect” toward women and created a hostile work environment, leading to his termination by then-interim Chief Patti Jackson in March 2025.
• Caelick Bradley, a 28-year-old Army veteran and security guard who went missing June 12, was found dead on June 30, according to the Pierce County Medical Examiner. Bradley’s girlfriend Aydee Casado-Dominguez and her fiancé Humberto Hernandez were charged with second-degree murder, identity theft and unlawful disposal of remains after allegedly burying his body at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, court documents say.
• Alan Viramontes-Rivera, 21, was charged with second-degree murder in a 2024 Lakewood drive-by that killed one man and injured three others, becoming the sixth person charged in the case. About 60 shots were fired in the Aug. 25, 2024 shooting near Glen Mar Mobile Estates, killing 33-year-old Jose Lemus Castillo, with prosecutors alleging Viramontes-Rivera rode in a white Camry that scouted the victims and later returned, with some occupants firing on their van, according to court documents.

The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by senior editor Adam Lynn. The source reporting referenced above was written and edited entirely by journalists.