‘Didn’t want him to come back alive.’ Man charged in Tacoma encampment shooting
A 49-year-old man accused of fatally shooting a man at a Tacoma homeless encampment allegedly said he did it out of fear of the victim killing him or someone else.
Prosecutors charged Ryan Anthony Jacobsen with first-degree murder and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, according to court records. He is accused of fatally shooting 43-year-old Dominic Mayhugh in the 2700 block of South Orchard Street on Oct. 10.
A plea of not guilty was entered on Jacobsen’s behalf Monday. Pierce County Superior Court Commissioner Barbara McInvaille set bail at $1 million.
Prosecutors initially charged Joshua Bishop, 38, for the shooting, but his charges were dismissed Friday morning after Jacobsen came forward allegedly confessing to the homicide.
Fatal shooting charging details
Officers were dispatched to the encampment behind a home-improvement store at 12:07 p.m. after a 911 caller reported the homicide. Officers found Mayhugh dead from two gunshot wounds to the head, according to charging documents.
Surveillance footage showed the three people, including a man, at the encampment. The man was wearing a baseball cap and dark clothing. Footage showed the same man walking away from the encampment at about 11:17 a.m. Documents show that gunshots were heard by a home-improvement store employee around 11:18 a.m.
Detectives identified the man from the footage as Bishop. He admitted to getting into a fist fight with Mayhugh when Jacobsen and a woman were present. Bishop said Mayhugh was armed with two pistols during the fight, and he knocked the victim out, documents show. Bishop told detectives he was fearful that Mayhugh would shoot him after he regained consciousness so he ran off. He also denied hearing a shooting occur.
No firearms were found on the victim or nearby, documents show.
After Bishop’s arrest, detectives interviewed the person who made the 911 call, documents show. She left out information initially, and detectives learned that she gave Jacobsen and another woman a ride after the homicide. She said that Jacobsen admitted he shot and killed Mayhugh in self-defense. She also told detectives Jacobsen lived in an encampment in the North End of Tacoma, documents show.
According to documents, detectives detained Jacobsen and interviewed him. Jacobsen told detectives Mayhugh had threatened his life many times, and he had witnessed the victim commit a murder about a year ago. He allegedly said that he witnessed the fight between Bishop and Mayhugh on Oct. 10 and filmed it on his phone.
Jacobsen allegedly told detectives that he took both of Mayhugh’s pistols from his pockets after he was knocked out and shot him twice. Jacobsen alleged he was fearful that Mayhugh would kill him or someone else at the encampment. He added he shot him once and a second time because he “didn’t want him to come back alive.” A calm came over Jacobsen because “he knew he would no longer need to endure the torment that [Mayhugh] put him through,” according to charging documents.
Documents show that Jacobsen allegedly told detectives he threw both of Mayhugh’s pistols off the Tacoma Narrows Bridge.
Jacobsen has previous convictions, including first-degree attempted robbery, attempted possession of stolen property and theft of motor vehicle attempts, deputy prosecutor Elizabeth Vincent said during the hearing. He also has 13 gross misdemeanors on his record.
