Puyallup man pleads guilty to fatally shooting stepson who had history of aggression
A 77-year-old Puyallup man pleaded guilty Wednesday to shooting and killing his adult stepson, who, according to court records, had a history of mental illness and threatening his family.
Terry Chissus was charged in July 2020 in Pierce County Superior Court with second-degree murder for shooting 42-year-old Samuel Pichinini at the victim’s mother’s house in Puyallup. According to court documents, Chissus shot him with a shotgun after Pichinini threatened to “club” his mother.
On Wednesday, prosecutors asked the court to accept Chissus’ plea to first-degree manslaughter and recommended a sentence of five years in prison, below the standard sentencing range for defendants in similar cases.
“The victim’s aggression/threats toward his mother (defendant’s wife), the defendant, as well as other family members was well documented,” deputy prosecutor Lisa Wagner wrote in a court filing. “Multiple family members reported that they feared the victim due to his violent tendencies.”
Chissus is to be sentenced June 27.
The defendant has no prior criminal history. The fatal shooting occurred July 23 at a home on 9th Avenue Southwest. According to the declaration for determination of probable cause, Pichinini began berating his stepfather and mother when he came to the house.
Pichinini’s mother later told police that her son had “severe undiagnosed” mental health issues and that he had received mental health treatment in the past. Pichinini’s mental health continued to deteriorate, and the man’s mother said he had become more violent over the years.
In Wagner’s request for amended charges, she noted that the defendant was in very frail health when the shooting occurred. Pichinini was physically fit. Wagner said he had been undergoing weight training and martial arts training, and he had assaulted the defendant twice in the past.
Had the case gone to trial, Wagner said Chissus likely would have won by arguing self-defense in regard to the first gunshot he fired.
“It is the second shot that is at issue,” Wagner wrote.
According to initial charging documents, Chissus shot Pichinini in the house’s kitchen. The victim fell to the ground and was gasping for air. The defendant shot him a second time because “he did not want the victim to be in pain.”
Pichinini was pronounced dead at the scene.
Interviewed by investigators that day, Chissus said there had been no physical confrontations with Pichinini in the past few days, but that he felt interactions were escalating and that his wife would be the one to get hurt.
“The defendant told detectives that when the victim rushed at his wife and threatened to club her, he decided to protect his wife and himself the only way he knew how, which was to retrieve his shotgun from his bedroom,” the probable cause document reads.
According to the document, law enforcement had a “hazard warning” for Pichinini in their system because he allegedly made threats, had a criminal history, did not like women or police and was likely to be violent.
