Priest attacked at downtown Spokane Catholic church

Yahoo

07-02-2025

Feb. 6—A 40-year-old man with multiple prior and pending assault cases attacked a priest during a service Tuesday night at a downtown Spokane Catholic church, according to the Spokane Police Department and church video.
Joshua J. Sommers was arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor fourth-degree assault and on felony warrants for an alleged assault and robbery of an Inland Northwest Behavioral Health employee in 2023.
Police officers responded about 6:20 p.m. Tuesday to The Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes, 1115 W. Riverside Ave., said Spokane Police Officer Daniel Strassenberg, spokesman for the department.
Video from the church shows Sommers sitting in a pew before rushing the sanctuary and appearing to throw a punch at a man, identified by KHQ as Father David Gaines. Gaines was on his knees in prayer, recognized Sommers rushing the stage and got on his feet before the attack.
A struggle between the men ensued as other church leaders on stage, as well as parishioners and church security, came to Gaines' rescue.
A security officer and another man can be seen escorting Sommers from the sanctuary, according to the footage.
Officers arrived in minutes and arrested Sommers , Strassenberg said.
It's unclear why Sommers attacked Gaines, who was uninjured, Strassenberg said.
The church could not be reached for comment Thursday.
Another security issue arose at the church in 2023 when a homeless man, Lenny Luck, was suspected of hiding inside a bathroom for multiple hours and then molesting a boy there, according to previous Spokesman-Review reporting. Luck, who is 66 and has no affiliation with the church, is awaiting trial in jail on suspicion of one count of first-degree child molestation.
"Security is constantly top of mind here," Father Darrin Connall, of the cathedral, told KHQ after Tuesday's incident. "We spend tens of thousands of dollars a year on fencing, alarms, locks, security cameras and armed security officers."
Besides Tuesday's alleged assault, Sommers is facing two other fourth-degree assault cases from 2023 incidents.
His first appearances for all three misdemeanor cases were continued Wednesday and Thursday to Friday, according to the Spokane Municipal Court online portal. Sommers made his first appearance Thursday in Spokane County Superior Court for the third-degree assault and robbery charges.
Deputy Prosecutor Stuart Fox said Sommers, who has been in the Spokane County Jail since Tuesday night, refused to make his initial court appearance Wednesday and Thursday for the felony charges.
Superior Court Commissioner Anthony Rugel issued a "drag order," forcing Sommers to make a virtual court appearance from the jail, on Thursday. Detention deputies subsequently transported Sommers, and he made his appearance Thursday in handcuffs with three deputies standing behind him to ensure safety and compliance.
Fox said Sommers, who sported long black hair with a long black beard, has been "combative" with deputies and has a "longstanding history of noncompliance and violent behavior."
The felony assault and robbery charges stem from an incident in July 2023 when Sommers is accused of punching an Inland Northwest Behavioral Health employee multiple times in the face and head, according to court documents. Sommers, a patient at the Spokane behavioral health facility, then took the employee's keys to exit the facility, court records show.
He was arrested and then later released on his own recognizance despite a $75,000 bond request from prosecutors at the time, Fox said. Rugel granted Fox's $75,000 bond request Thursday.
Simon Menso, Sommers' attorney, said Sommers has one adult felony conviction in 2002 for first-degree assault. He's been living in Spokane off and on his whole life, Menso said.
Sommers is set for an arraignment on his felony charges for Feb. 19.