Man who shot and killed Tacoma police officer dies in prison
A man who shot and killed a Tacoma police officer in 1997 has died.
According to the Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s public portal, 74-year-old Sap Kray died on June 5. Kray was serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole at the Monroe Correctional Complex, a state prison in Monroe.
The cause of Kray’s death is listed as pending.
Kray shot and killed William Lowry on Aug. 28, 1997, according to The News Tribune archives. Lowry was part of a SWAT team that went into a home on Tacoma’s Eastside to arrest Kray on suspicion of assaulting his estranged wife.
Lowry shot Kray once during the incident, The News Tribune previously reported, which left Kray paralyzed from the waist down. Kray later said he had fired in self-defense and police had never explained to him why they were.
Prosecutors did not seek the death penalty, according to News Tribune records, and Kray was instead sentenced to life in prison without parole for first-degree aggravated murder.
Lowry left behind a wife and 1-year-old daughter at the time of his death, The News Tribune previously reported.
