Updated March 16, 2010 @11PM - Armed robbers broke into CannaCare early Monday morning and exchanged gun shots with executive director Steve Sarich.
Mr. Sarich was hit by a gunshot blast to the arm amd face. He returned fire, critically wounding one of the invaders -- identified by police as a 19-year-old Renton man. According to the Associated Press article, this was the series of events:
Sarich said he was awakened at his Kirkland home by the barking of his dogs, then grabbed a .22-caliber handgun and headed down a hallway outside his bedroom.
A man with a shotgun confronted him in the living room and fired, he said. The main blast struck a wall a few inches from his head, Sarich said. One pellet struck his face while another hit his leg.
Sarich shot at the robber but missed. When his gun jammed, he darted back to his bedroom and grabbed another handgun. He spotted another robber standing outside the glass door to his bedroom and fired three times, hitting the robber multiple times.
Sarich's live-in girlfriend called 911, as did the wounded robber, a 19-year-old from Renton. King County sheriff's deputies found him in the backyard and took him to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he underwent surgery for life-threatening wounds.
Sheriff's deputies arrested a second suspect, also 19, as he tried to flag down a ride nearby a few hours later. That suspect gave investigators the names of two others involved in the robbery attempt who had fled in a vehicle. They remained at large, sheriff's Sgt. John Urquhart said.
It seems that robbery has slowly replace police raids as the number one patient fear in Washington State. Violent thieves consider medical marijuana patients to be sitting targets, rarely able to readily defend themselves. When patients do call police during or after a robbery, most often the police show up, take a report, and raid the patient. So, most medical marijuana patients have learned that calling the police for protection is a sure fire way to have one's home raided. Quite the Catch 22.
Just got off the phone with SteveS, he is in good spirits for what he just went through. I am almost in shock, but I will try to tell it the best I can. Allegedly, there were two or more suspects in SteveS house armed with a shotgun. One suspect shot at SteveS, SteveS shot back hitting one suspect and his gun jammed. Chelsea, who acted w/o fear, handed SteveS another 22 cal handgun and SteveS shot back, hitting another suspect three times in the chest. SteveS was hit by the shotgun pellets in his face and arm. What concerns SteveS now is the fact that the LEO are currently at his house tossing it like a herd of raging bulls. SteveS has been in contact with his attorney and will be released from the hospital shortly. He will have to have another doctor remove the shotgun pellets at a later date. Right now, I am just thankful that SteveS, Chelsea and whoever else was spending the night at SteveS, were not seriously injured or worse yet, killed by these armed intruders. Also, the police would not come onto the property, SteveS had to walk up the driveway to them and then they handcuffed him (those weren't removed until he was being placed into the ambulance). I will post more as I get any new information. KMJ.
