Updated at 1:25 p.m.
By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
The Onalaska man imprisoned after he fatally shot a suspected burglar outside his house three years ago has lost his appeal.
A panel of three judges upheld the manslaughter conviction of Ronald A. Brady in their opinion filed yesterday.
Brady, 60, was sentenced to just over five years for the death of 56-year-old Thomas McKenzie of Morton.
Through his attorney, Brady appealed on several grounds, including his contention the court erred when it refused to give his proposed jury instruction on the right to resist a felony.
Brady’s attorney argued self defense in the summer 2011 trial in Lewis County Superior Court and Brady avoided a first-degree murder conviction, but the jury found him guilty of second-degree manslaughter. He was acquitted of an assault charge upon McKenzie’s wife, Joanna McKenzie.
Brady admitted shooting at the pair outside his house he was renovating on the 2100 block of state Route 508, describing to deputies opening his garage door and finding flashlights shined in his face. He also testified he was firing at the truck to keep it from leaving.
He told sheriff’s detectives he was staying overnight at the unoccupied house in case burglars from earlier in the day returned. Brady resided in a nearby rental home.
The Washington State Court of Appeals stated the facts of the case did not support such an instruction, as any felony that may have been committed did not pose an immediate threat of death or great bodily harm to Brady.
The only crime being committed at the time he opened fire with a .22 rifle was criminal trespass, the judge’s stated.
Among the judges’ references was a 1955 case and decision saying that a homicide committed while resisting the commission of a felony is not justified “unless the attack on the defendant’s person threatens life or great bodily harm.”
The decision was authored by Judge Christine Quinn-Brintnall, with Judge Thomas R. Borgen and Judge Jill M. Morgan concurring.
•••
For background, read “Breaking news: Onalaska murder trial: Guilty of second-degree manslaughter” from Friday June 24, 2011, here
Read the decision
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
Why wasn’t McKenzie’s wife charged with murder?
I know that in many states, if you are actively engaging in a felony and somebody dies, you’re guilty regardless if you pulled the trigger.
I’m just sayin’.
Hey David Lowe…..Did you change your name again? LOL try not to get booted this time LOSER! Anyway learn the LAW people, not your stupid opinions! RCW 9A.16.050 Homicide-when justifiable : (2) In the actual resistance of an attempt to commit a felony upon the slayer, in his or her presence, or upon or in a dwelling, or other place of abode, in which he or she is. Get it straight people or shut up!
Well Onalaska , I live in that area too and those people made their living ripping people off and everyone knew that. The other half of that duo was still at it afterwards and everyone knew that also. They catch them but the property owner is shit out of luck because these people have nothing so they spend a few days locked up and then go right back to it. This is KARMA !!! And , we all know about that Bitch. So whether or not you should shoot a burglar is and always has been debatable I suppose , irregardless of the law , but there again ya gotta love the irony. The part I found sickening was that several young children were left behind to deal with this awful legacy.
lewiscountysocietysuck’s depth of anger belongs with the anarchists who tried to trash Seattle last night (and kudos to the SPD for getting their response right…for once). “Corrupt law enforcement” had nothing to do with what happened to the McKenzies because the cops were nowhere near, but I guess lccs would have to get off his “fat lazy ass” and research that aspect of this case.
The thing is, I actually agree with lccs’s main premise. I’m totally simpatico with both Brady’s right to protect his property and his unwillingness to wait for an LCSO deputy to respond because they’re notoriously slow (which is more about competence than corruption), but that doesn’t come with a green light to shoot first and ask questions later if your life isn’t being threatened. This isn’t 1883 and we don’t live in Dodge City.
lewiscountysocietysucks says:
Man, what is wrong with half the people and there better then every one else attitudes. They think, there fore they are…….hahaha NOT! for one there thought pattern is deranged and improper. Get off your fat lazy asses, do some “fact research” about the whole story and know the corrupt law enforcement, do some research there also, then by all means comment away. If not then most of you need to just shut the fuck up because you really do not have a clue about, people, the law, situations, and obviously you do not care about all that either. Very Sad. This is what is wrong with the world today is people like all of you.
beenthere says: I think you are a *#!&ing #@$hole! Oh what, dont like what I said! Then don’t be the one to start the name calling. DICK!!
Hey lewiscountysocietysucks,, since obviously you don’t like this county or the people in it, feel free to move some where else! It sounds like you are among the problem people here and shouldn’t be here in the first place! You’re no good to our county, so get off YOUR fat lazy a$$ and move over for someone that is!! We WON’T miss you! lewiscountysocietysucks,,SUCKS!!
First off, this man is where he should be, and he should have gotten more then 5 and half years. Nothing is wrong with the jury, they gave the right verdict per the law. The only time you might get away with shooting someone is when they are inside your house uninvited. You have a right to protect your family and home, not your property and things on it. Man, what is wrong with half the people and there better then every one else attitudes. They think, there fore they are…….hahaha NOT! for one there thought pattern is deranged and improper. Get off your fat lazy asses, do some “fact research” about the whole story and know the corrupt law enforcement, do some research there also, then by all means comment away. If not then most of you need to just shut the fuck up because you really do not have a clue about, people, the law, situations, and obviously you do not care about all that either. Very Sad. This is what is wrong with the world today is people like all of you.
I wouldn’t take someones life for stealing my stuff. It would suck to lose my stuff but its only stuff and I can replace it. I would prefer to know that someone was desperate enough to steal from me at the risk of thier life if possible and then I would just give it to them and advise them to seek some help getting thier life straight. If my life or anyone else’s was threatend though, I would have little problem with killing someone.Thieves should be aware and so should a jury that some people will fear for thier life faster than others will and the only person who can determain a persons level of fear is that person themself. Who’s to say Mr. Brady didn’t fear for his life, know one but him knows what he was feeling at that moment. He was either feaeful for his life or felt that his possesions were more valuable than a persons life.
Do not think you two have the story… I understand that the home owner had talked to them early in the day about truck parts and he know they were coming back that evening.. It sounds like the home owner set them up…I do not know why he would but this guy was not all there he would walk up and down the road and yell at know one.. with a gun high over his head.. this I have seen as I’m very close by.. sorry to say but the home owner is not all there……… He’s were he should be.
He should have got the other one as well because I am sure that person is still making a living ripping people off and always will.
Amazed have you read the law? Do you understand that you can not simply shoot someone because they are committing a felony? You have to be in reasonable fear of your life, not just pissed off that somebody is burgling your garage. The line “He also testified he was firing at the truck to keep it from leaving.” alone would be enough to convict him for manslaughter.
I called 911 when I had a burglary on Griel rd just a half mile as the crow flies from the place where Brady shot that man. I waited for 45 minutes and then I called again. I had told them I thought the suspects were in my shed after breaking into my pickup. The dispatcher told me the Sheriff’s office was real busy with an accident on the freeway that night. 4 hours after my original call, I received a call from a deputy asking me to meet him at the Grange on Middlefork road. I did meet the deputy there and filled out the burglary papers. I had lost about $3,500 worth of stuff. And the Sheriff never did come to my property to investigate. So if you people think that Law Enforcement can protect you, you are flat wrong.
Wow! That is wrong, he shouldn’t have even been charged in the 1st place. What is wrong with the jury panel in Lewis County? It’s obvious LEO’s can’t or won’t stop people from robbing or thieving around here. So, who is going to stop them? They aren’t afraid of the Law because they’re mostly protected by it. This case is a perfect example. Should he have called LE, the response time is nothing less than 20 mins. And for a possible burglary in progress more like an hour to hour and half. Then, they tell you there’s nothing they can do, You should have good insurance. That is NOT the answer.