Man who served 20 years for murder now charged in deadly Tacoma Tideflats shooting
A 42-year-old man accused of shooting and killing a man near his place of work Thursday morning on the Tacoma Tideflats followed the victim there after the two strangers exchanged words at a nearby gas station, according to court documents.
Parris Donzell Miller was charged Monday in Pierce County Superior Court with first-degree murder, two counts of second-degree murder and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. He is accused of killing a 42-year-old man — who has not been publicly identified — in the parking lot of a business in the 1500 block of St. Paul Avenue.
Miller was arraigned Monday afternoon, and pleas of not guilty were entered on his behalf. Court Commissioner Philip Thornton set bail at $3 million.
In arguing for that amount, prosecutors cited Miller’s criminal history, which includes a 2000 conviction for first-degree murder in Pierce County. Prosecutors said Miller spent 20 years in prison and was released in August 2020.
According to charging documents, the incident began when the victim and a coworker were at a gas station in a company truck. The coworker reported to police that the victim told him a man in an SUV was “mean mugging” him and staring him down. The victim walked to the vehicle and confronted the man. The coworker couldn’t hear what was said.
“The defendant denied looking at the victim, explaining that he didn’t even see him,” prosecutors wrote in charging documents. “The victim then said, ‘Come on,’ which the defendant thought was a misunderstanding, so he followed the victim to his work.”
An employee at the warehouse where the shooting occurred was interviewed by police. He said the victim called and asked him to come outside because someone was following him, according to the declaration for determination of probable cause. The employee said he thought that was odd, stating that the victim was an “alpha male.”
The employee reported seeing the work truck and an SUV pull into the parking lot. Everyone got out, and the victim reportedly confronted the driver of the SUV. According to the probable cause document, the altercation was “calm.” The two men sized each other up and walked side to side before Miller got back in his SUV and the victim started walking away.
“The victim then turned around, re-approached the SUV and appeared to talk to the suspect again,” records state. “The employee heard the victim state, ‘You didn’t wanna do anything at the gas station, so what now?’”
About 10 seconds later, the employee heard what he thought was a firecracker, he told police. The SUV driver fled the parking lot.
Tacoma Police Department officers were dispatched at about 10:25 a.m., and they found the victim with a gunshot wound to his upper chest. A knife was found near the victim’s right hand, according to the probable cause document. The man was transported to St. Joseph Medical Center, where he was later declared dead.
Detectives obtained surveillance video of the suspect vehicle near the shooting, and bulletins were issued to patrol officers. On Friday, officers found Miller’s vehicle near Portland Avenue and East 25th Street. Officers tried to pull him over, but the defendant fled and a pursuit ensued, records state. The defendant led police on a chase at least seven miles across the city to the West End, where Miller allegedly fled on foot from North 26th Street and Pearl Avenue.
Miller was taken into custody. He was later interviewed by detectives, reportedly telling them he didn’t know the victim at all, and that he was leaving when the box truck pulled up next to him. He previously told police he was at the gas station looking for a woman he knew.
The defendant denied purposefully killing the man, telling detectives he only meant to fire in his direction and “scare” him, according to the probable cause document. Miller said there wasn’t a physical threat from the victim, and he said he didn’t see the man with any weapons.
