70-year-old suspect in Gig Harbor shooting also accused of Tacoma shooting last year
A 70-year-old man accused of shooting a shopper at a Gig Harbor grocery store Saturday night has been charged with first-degree assault.
It’s the second time in about a year that the man has shot and injured someone he apparently suspected of committing a crime and confronted, court records allege.
Patrick Lathrop, 70, shot the shopper in the neck at the store in the 4800 block of Point Fosdick Drive, according to Gig Harbor police and charging papers. The man survived the shooting.
“The suspect wrongly believed that the victim was stealing the merchandise and blocked the exit with his grocery cart and body,” a Gig Harbor Police Department news release said.
Police said the two men began to fight, then the 70-year-old pulled out a 9mm handgun and fired the weapon at least twice. One bullet hit the shopper, the other the store’s glass door.
Charging documents gave this account:
Gig Harbor police officers were dispatched to the store after a report of a shooting around 11:20 p.m Saturday. When police arrived, Lathrop identified himself as the shooter and was booked into the Pierce County Jail.
Lathrop allegedly asked the shopper to show his receipt to store employees. Employees later told police the man hadn’t shoplifted or been suspected of doing so.
“Both the victim and his wife told the defendant that they were not stealing and wanted to leave,” the declaration for determination of probable cause said. “The victim’s wife then said that a physical altercation ensued between the victim and defendant and during that altercation, the defendant removed his handgun and shot the victim in the neck.”
The shopper punched Lathrop in the head, a witness told police. The witness said the shopper was “clearly winning the fight,” according to the probable cause document.
Pierce County prosecutors charged Lathrop with first-degree assault Monday, and he pleaded not guilty at arraignment.
The court set bail at $100,000, which Lathrop posted, according to court records.
An attorney assigned to represent him declined to comment at this time.
Lathrop was accused of shooting someone in Tacoma last year, court records allege.
“In April 2021, Lathrop had been working for (a pizza company) and was returning from a delivery. Lathrop claimed he saw a male that had been seen lifting car door handles earlier in the day and went to confront him. After claims of the victim taunting him, Lathrop said his only defense was to shoot his firearm, which he did. The male had reportedly been shot in the chest area and was treated at the hospital,” according to the probable cause document Monday.
Lathrop was not charged for the April 2021 shooting because the victim was not cooperative, according to Adam Faber, spokesman for the Pierce County Prosecutor’s Office.
