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Daily Mail
11 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Dad who 'tried to strangle daughter in Muslim 'honor killing'' is jailed for 32 months after shock verdict
A father accused of trying to strangle his teenage daughter in a Muslim 'honor killing' has been jailed for almost three years. Ihsan Ali, 44, stood trial for second-degree attempted murder alongside his wife Zahraa Subhi Mohsin Ali, 40, over the October 18, 2024, attack. A Thurston County Superior Court jury found them not guilty on July 31, but convicted Ihsan of lesser charges against his daughter Fatima Ali. Ihsan was jailed for 14 months for second-degree assault, 12 months for unlawful imprisonment, and 182 days for fourth-degree assault. He was also ordered to complete a parenting class, do 18 months of community service, and have no contact with his daughter for 10 years. Judge Christine Schaller blasted Ihsan for his 'horrific actions' including the 'vicious assault on Fatima' outside Timberline High School in Lacey, Washington. The judge said she gave him maximum sentences because of the brutality of the crime and that Fatima was under Ihsan's care as his daughter. She said of his assault on Fatima's boyfriend: 'He victimized a defenseless young man for no reason and it is Isiah's good fortune that he was not more badly injured.' Judge Schaller also sentenced Zahraa for breaching a restraining order, which she already served in pretrial detention. Ihsan spent the past almost 10 months behind bars since his arrest days after the attack and will be credited with time served. Zahraa was released on July 31. Zahraa cried as Fatima, now 18, read an emotional victim impact statement to the court before the sentencing, calling Ihsan a 'monster' who tried to kill her with his own hands. Fatima told police she ran away from home to after her parents tried to put her on a plane to Iraq. 'Her father had recently been threatening her with honor killing for refusing an arranged marriage with an older man in another county,' the initial police press release alleged. But this claim, central to the prosecution's original case last year, was completely absent from the three-week trial last month, by court order. Jurors were shown horrifying video of Ihsan grabbing Fatima by the throat before putting her in a chokehold on the ground outside the school. The footage is shocking, as were numerous witness accounts from traumatized teens, her boyfriend Isiah, and two men who stopped to help. 'Her face was looking pale and her eyes were starting to roll back,' Isiah, who was just 16 at the time, told the court through tears as he gave evidence. Other students described how Fatima 'couldn't breathe' her 'lips were turning purple' and she grabbed at her father's arm in 'obvious distress'. Josh Wagner, a motorist who stopped his car in the middle of the road and ran to help, said her face was 'changing color... she was gonna lose consciousness if it continued'. Fatima herself took the witness stand and testified that she lost consciousness four times and was terrified that she was going to die. The jury also heard that after Isiah, her classmates, and Wagner freed her by punching and kicking Ihsan dozens of times, Zahraa tried to finish the job. 'When she (Fatima) got away from her father, she tried to run, and her mom had grabbed her and she was grabbing her by the throat,' one classmate testified, as did other witnesses. That Ihsan choked his daughter to unconsciousness and punched Isiah in the face as he protected her was indisputable, due to the video evidence and overwhelming witness testimony. Had she died, there would likely be a slam-dunk case for manslaughter, at minimum. But that alone was a long way from proving intent to kill, the vital component that separates murder, or in this case attempted murder, from mere assault. The jury had to be satisfied, beyond reasonable doubt, that Ihsan and Zahraa intended to kill their daughter when they choked her. They weren't, and entered not guilty verdicts after three days of deliberation. Prosecutors were hampered by the collapse of the 'honor killing' claim that served as a powerful motive for the jury to convict. Deputy Prosecutor Heather Stone made it clear in a memorandum in the leadup to the trial that the state would no longer rely on it, and she wasn't sure how it became such a big feature of the case. 'There is no express evidence that such was the motivation of either defendant in this case and the state does not intend to argue such,' she wrote. 'Further, the state has no intention of even using the term at trial.' Judge Schaller also ruled before the trial that prosecutors couldn't bring up the arranged marriage or allow Fatima to talk in detail about a family trip to Iraq when she was 16. The veracity of the arranged marriage claim is less clear, but it was wholly denied by the defense during the trial. 'The entirety of the claims appears to be the result of Islamophobia,' Ihsan's lawyer Erik Kaeding wrote in his own memorandum. 'There is no evidence of either honor killing or arranged marriage supported by the evidence uncovered in the investigation of the case.' Ihsan's treatment of Fatima at home was also banned from being be characterized as 'abuse'. The reason for Judge Schaller's rulings that kneecapped the prosecution's case was that their inclusion would unjustly prejudice the couple in the eyes of the jury. The result was a bizarre situation where everyone outside the court referred to the case as 'the honor killing trial' while inside the term was never uttered. Prosecutor Olivia Zhou didn't even mention the barbaric Muslim practice in her opening statement, or allude to any motive for murder. Fatima's testimony also didn't include the backstory she recounted to police in two hours-long interviews in the days after she was attacked. Had the Daily Mail not obtained 100 pages of police reports detailing her interviews, and those with others, the public would never known the full alleged story. The evidence provided by Fatima in those interviews created a compelling argument for the thesis presented in Lacey Police Department arrest affidavits. They detailed her fears of being sent back to Iraq to be married off, after she saw how women were treated there during the trip when she was 16. Once her father found out she was dating Isiah, an American boy, he pulled her out of school and planned the arranged marriage, the story goes. When she protested, he allegedly threatened to kill her multiple times as he felt it would bring shame to his family. None of that was in the trial. The best prosecutors could do was rely on Fatima's ticket to Iraq being one-way, and her saying she 'didn't feel safe' in her birth country. Defense lawyers downplayed the significance of the flight by noting that one of the reasons for the trip was to get passports for her younger brothers, saying the tickets were one-way as Zahraa didn't know how long that would take. Absent a compelling argument for motive, prosecutors were stuck trying to paint Ihsan and Zahraa as so determined to strangle their daughter that the backstory didn't matter. 'The state is not asserting that Ihsan Ali showed up on that day with the intention to try and kill his daughter,' Stone said in her closing argument. 'There was no premeditation that the state is asserting, but by the time Ishan goes into these events, the state's position is that that has changed. His intent has substantively changed.' Numerous prosecution witness accounts focused on the horrifying effects of cutting off Fatima's airway during the chokehold. Much was also made of how Ihsan withstood 30 to 40 punches to the head by Isiah alone, plus dozens more from classmates who also kicked and stomped on him. Isiah claimed Ihsan had to be knocked out cold before he let go, and Wagner spoke of prying the father's arms apart enough to free her. In the most gut-wrenching moment of the trial, Fatima took to the stand to testify against her own parents. 'Did you have any fear?' Stone asked. 'Yes.' 'Fear of what?' 'Of dying,' Fatima choked out, her voice breaking into a sob. She was barely able to respond 'no' when asked if she could say anything during the attack. '[I'm] heartbroken for what my dad did,' she said, sobbing as she described losing consciousness four times during the attack. If Ihsan wasn't trying to kill her, why did he choke her for so long and refuse to let go despite the battering he took, the argument goes. 'She's unconscious, and he continues to strangle her around the neck for another 15-18 seconds and would have continued to do so even longer but for the intervention of those adults,' Stone told jurors. Physicians who examined Fatima in hospital spoke of the severity of her injuries, which left her ordered not to swallow anything for a whole day. She also had a condition where air in the lungs is forcefully expelled, but due to her airway being blocked it caused the same effect as popping a balloon. The defense countered with their own expert, saying the lung issue - and other injuries - could have been caused by the efforts to free her, and that they were relatively minor anyway. 'There's no nefarious intent. There's no intent to hurt anybody badly, there's no intent to kill anybody. There's an intent to take your daughter home, a 17-year-old daughter who's run away,' Kaeding argued in his closing statement. The case against Zahraa was even more problematic. Footage from the bus camera that was damning for Ihsan didn't clearly show anything Zahraa did as there were so many people standing around. Prosecutors instead leaned heavily on witness testimony alleging Zahraa had her arms around Fatima's neck, while the girl mouthed that she couldn't breathe. Zahraa's lawyer Tim Leary disputed this in his opening statement, portraying her as a concerned mother who was comforting her daughter by holding her. 'You will see my client, her mom, come and attempt to help her daughter,' he said of the video. 'She is holding her daughter, she's not holding on to her neck.' Leary, both in his opening statement an in cross-examination of Fatima, noted the teenager told police she didn't think her mother was trying to hurt her. 'She was just trying to protect me from the chaos,' Leary quoted. Fatima admitted this, but told the court it was more that she 'didn't want to believe' that her own mother would try to hurt her. But Stone in her closing statement insisted Zahraa appeared to also be strangling her. 'You can't strangle your child to restrain them,' she said. 'She watches Fatima being strangled by Ihsan. 'She then puts her own arms around Fatima's neck. She's not comforting her. She's strangling her to keep her from fleeing. 'And when you look at that video, you see she does not provide any aid at any time to her child, zero aid. That is not an effort to comfort her child.' Leary claimed that when Zahraa chased Fatima and Isiah inside the school, it was out of concern, not an attempt to finish a murder. 'What does my client do? She leaves her husband behind, she runs into the school. Where is my daughter? Where's my daughter?' he said in his opening. He concluded: 'That is the accusations against my client for what she did attempting to hold her daughter - in the state's eyes is the allegation of attempted murder.' Fatima is in extended foster care and, now an adult, cannot be compelled to return to her parents.
Yahoo
20-07-2025
- Yahoo
Who owns the ‘Jungle' homeless encampment in Olympia?
Days after The Olympian published a story about an elected official and others touring the homeless encampment known as the Jungle — a meeting that was spurred by concerns about recent violence at the camp — readers had more questions about the site between Martin Way and Pacific Avenue near Interstate 5. Chief among those questions: Who owns the land? The answer: Although the city of Olympia owns some of it, most is privately held by a business called JJP Group LLC, which also owns the Chevron station near the camp on its Pacific Avenue side. A representative of JJP Group LLC declined to comment. The Olympian, working with a Thurston County Assessor's Office representative, identified six parcels owned by JJP Group between Martin Way and Pacific Avenue that total 16.40 acres. The city owns two parcels that total 6.75 acres. Why does the city own those parcels and what arrangement do they have to access the site for camp residents? The city-owned property was purchased in June 2021, said Assistant City Manager Stacey Ray. 'The city purchased the property for multiple uses including, but not limited to, the future extension of Ensign Road and to allow the city more flexibility in managing several informal homeless encampments and providing other housing and homeless services to individuals living there,' she said. Accessing the private property, including a large chunk of land near Martin Way, is the result of a two-year option agreement to purchase land in the area that was agreed to between the city and JJP, Ray said. That option is still in place, she said, and it specifies that access will be allowed for trash cleanup, homeless outreach activities and for the installation and construction of fencing between the camp and neighboring businesses, she said. Neighbors weigh in The Olympian decided to ask a neighboring business owner about the experience of operating next door to the camp. THC of Olympia, a marijuana retailer, couldn't be closer. The business is situated steps away from the front entrance to the camp at 3200 Martin Way E. THC owner Ciaran Wilburn, who has been there for about nine years, said the camp has evolved from one he described as a group of 'old-timers looking to escape society' to what he called a 'large drug and mental health crisis.' Wilburn said he does not have many issues with the people who occupy the camp, but he scoffed at a city officials who say the city is doing a good job of balancing accountability with compassion at the Jungle. 'This is compassion?' said Wilburn as he stood outside his business and gestured at the camp. He rattled off a list things that would help: better defined camp spaces, more sanitation services, running water and security cameras that might prevent crime. 'Put the camera systems up you have in the grocery store parking lot, so at least there's the illusion of security,' he said. Wilburn wasn't done. 'This is the most accepting area I've ever visited, and this is how we're dealing with this? It's a joke,' he said. 'Nine years of watching this, the city's a joke.' What do camp residents say? The Olympian spent time at the front entrance to the camp to interview those coming and going. Those interviewed were uncomfortable with using their full names, but they did agree to first names and ages. Former long-term camp resident, Danielle, 35, pulled up in her car to pick up some people on the fringe of the camp. She recalled it was kind of cool to build her own shelter there, but although the camp was safe for the most part, it had an 'uncomfortable energy.' She said she was finally able to get housing with the assistance of the Family Support Center. She said there needs to be more shelters for women, so they don't have to wait as long in a camp like the Jungle for housing. 'It's not right, it's not fair,' she said. Does the camp govern itself? She said it is self-governing to a degree and that people hold each other accountable. When young people enter the camp because they are curious about it, they are told to leave, she said. 'It's not OK. The young should not be here.' Mark, 36, originally from California, said he has lived in the camp a long time. 'I like it here,' he said, adding that he has freedom in the camp and nobody bothers him. He described the camp as safe. C.J., 49, who was sitting in the backseat of Danielle's car, said she lived in the Jungle for five years before she secured housing. She said the camp has a hierarchy, but it's not too different from regular society in that there's an expectation that you'll pick up after yourself and not touch other people's stuff. There was a time when the camp had an 'aura of peace and calm' to it, but not in the last 18 months, she said. In that time, The Olympian has reported about a rape at the camp and the violent assault of a woman by a group of people. Wolf, 59, said he has lived at the camp for the last six to seven months. 'The goal is to get out of here,' he said. He, too, said the camp is 95% safe, although there are a few characters in the Jungle that account for that 5%. 'A lot of people help each other,' he said, adding that it feels like a 'big, loose, chaotic family.' Equal time When The Olympian wrote about the tour of the camp, one of those on hand was Olympia City Council candidate Wendy Carlson, who is challenging incumbent Clark Gilman. Gilman did not participate in that tour, so in the interest of equal time, The Olympian reached out to him after Tuesday night's council meeting to get his thoughts about the camp. Here's what he had to say: 'I agree that the living conditions are not appropriate for anybody at the Jungle, but I also recognize the reality that we don't have the resources to just end it,' he said. 'And so instead, we're in a position of managing it as best we can, and that's been through a combination of policing, of social work and mutual aid outreach, of having our crisis responders be in relationships with people there.' Gilman also said that without policy changes the problem continues. 'There's not a finite number of people who are very poor or who are not able to access health care services that they need,' he said. 'And as long as we keep minting more people who are very poor, and as long as we keep reducing what's available for health care, we're going to continue to have more individuals who are in this situation that we're trying to help as best we can and to manage the situation.' Concerns about 'Jungle' homeless encampment spur tour with Lacey, Olympia officials Four people charged in connection with June 18 attack in Olympia's 'Jungle' Olympia man charged with attempted murder in Lacey rape case faces new rape charge Solve the daily Crossword
Fox News
15-07-2025
- Fox News
Video of suspected 'honor killing' plot resurfaces as parents stand trial for attempted murder
The trial for a Washington father and his wife accused of trying to kill their 17-year-old daughter in October 2024 is slated to begin Monday. Ihsan Ali, 44, and his 40-year-old wife, the victim's mother, Zahraa Ali, are charged with second-degree attempted murder, second-degree attempted kidnapping, first-degree attempted kidnapping, and second-degree domestic violence assault in Thurston County. Additionally, Ihsan Ali is charged with fourth-degree assault and Zahraa Ali is charged with violation of a domestic violence protective order and second-degree burglary. The parents' alleged Oct. 18, 2024, attack on their own teenage daughter may have been a possible "honor killing" attempt, according to witness accounts detailed in court documents obtained by Fox News Digital. The victim told police that her father was "trying to force her to go to another country, which had prompted her to run away earlier in the day." She went to her former public school, Timberline High School in Lacey County, believing she could get help from adults there, and her father, mother and sister allegedly followed her to the school, an affidavit filed on Oct. 24, 2024, states. The 17-year-old girl said a school counselor helped her find a room at "Safe Haven," and her plan was to take a city bus from the school to get there. While waiting for the city bus, the victim's father allegedly approached her and "said she needed to go home," the affidavit states. "He would not take no for an answer and began pulling at her shirt. She said that once she was placed into a choke hold, she was unable to breathe or speak, and then passed out," the affidavit says, adding later that the victim believes she lost consciousness several times while her father allegedly choked her. Video footage of the attack recently obtained by The Daily Mail shows part of the fight unfolding at the public bus stop. Fox News Digital has reached out to the Alis' attorney, Erik Kaeding, for comment. Multiple witness accounts detailed in the affidavit say the victim's father approached and attacked the victim while the victim's 16-year-old boyfriend got between the two and tried to intervene. The victim's father allegedly punched the 16-year-old boy, who in turn began "punching Ishan [Ali] in the head to get him to let go of [the victim]." Witnesses also described seeing the victim's eyes roll back while her father allegedly choked her, according to court documents. The victim's boyfriend's mother later told police that she had been present once for a CPS interview with the 17-year-old victim in which she apparently stated that "her father had recently been threatening her with honor killing for refusing an arranged marriage with an older man in another country." The victim's boyfriend told police he believed the 17-year-old victim was "going to die while her father was choking her out on the ground," the affidavit reads. The victim also said she "thought she was going to die" and recalled her mother and sister "trying to grab hold of her" during the incident. READ THE AFFIDAVIT: While the fight was underway, a bystander witness saw Ishan Ali put the girl in a chokehold "and would not let go." He intervened "and was eventually able to get the female to break away and detained Ishan for law enforcement as he was the primary aggressor," court documents read. The boyfriend's father, Victor Barnes, previously told FOX 13 Seattle that he is glad his son "was there to save [the victim's] life" but added that he needs "more explanation about why the adults were so careless." He told the outlet an adult should have escorted the victim to the bus stop rather than his 16-year-old son. "High school for me is a time I'd never forget. It was probably some of the four funniest years of my life, and it's unfortunate he would have to experience something like this in high school," said Barnes. He further told the outlet that he had to file a restraining order against the victim's parents because they kept showing up to his family's home looking for the victim prior to the assault, FOX 13 reported.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Thurston County Auditor's Office wins five national awards for public service projects
Jun. 20—The Thurston County Auditor's Office won five Achievement Awards from the National Association of Counties (NACo) for standout programs that improved election security, expanded access to services and strengthened community trust, according to a county news release. The NACo Achievement Awards recognize innovative and effective county programs that make a difference for residents. "We work every year to improve how we serve our community," Mary Hall, Thurston County auditor, said in the release. "We innovate because it helps us do better. These awards reflect the spirit of our office, always looking for better ways to work." The auditor's office earned awards for the Elections Security Enhancement Program; the Saturday Passport Fairs; Voting Access at Your Library; Public Transit Partnership for Voter Access; and Your Neighbors, Your Elections. Thurston County Elections launched a major security upgrade for its new Voting and Ballot Processing Center, using federal grant funds. The Elections Security Enhancement Program installed ballistic-resistant materials like bulletproof glass, doors and sheetwork to create a secure safe room for election staff. The office also added on-site law enforcement during elections and worked closely with local and federal agencies to assess threats and improve emergency plans. To meet high demand for passport services, the auditor's office held two Saturday Passport Fairs in 2024. These events helped over 70 people apply for passports and took more than 50 passport photos. They were designed for people who couldn't make it during the week and helped reduce weekday wait times. The first fair included staff support from Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland's office and the Seattle Passport Agency. Thurston County Elections partnered with Timberland Regional Library to offer voter assistance at four library branches during the 2024 general election for the Voting Access at Your Library program. Trained library staff helped voters register and print replacement ballots, and election officials handled ballot collection. For the Public Transit Partnership for Voter Access program, Intercity Transit extended bus service to the Voting Center past 8 p.m. on Election Day, improved Americans with Disabilities Act access and updated route maps to highlight voting locations. Elections staff also used Intercity Transit's community vans to move between facilities, saving money and reducing parking issues. To help build trust in elections, Thurston County created a video campaign called "Your Neighbors, Your Elections" featuring real election workers sharing why they care about their jobs. Filmed inside the Ballot Processing and Voting Centers, the short videos show staff pride and commitment to integrity.
Daily Mail
16-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Celebrity dog trainer's assistant is KILLED in freak 'accident' during filming of promo video involving gun
A Washington State aspiring dog trainer was shot and killed by his celebrity boss while filming an advertisement. Curtice Gordon, 23, was killed on June 3 while working at the Kraftwerk K9 German Shephard training facility, reported The Chronicle. His boss, Wayne Curry, 64, has been charged with manslaughter after allegedly shooting Gordon while they were recording a promotional video. Thurston County Sheriff's Deputies responded to a report of a person who had been shot around 10:28 a.m. Investigators determined a group of individuals had been filming training videos involving gunfire. 'During this activity, one of the handlers fired a weapon loaded with live ammunition,' the sheriff's office said. 'Tragically, [Gordon] was struck by a round and died as a result.' According to a court affidavit, first responders found Gordon not breathing and suffering from a gunshot wound to the face. He was pronounced dead at the scene. '[Gordon] was struck in the face near his nose by a stray round from Wayne's weapon and lost his life as a result,' the document said. Investigators stated that the incident occurred during a video and photography shoot for an advertisement for Kraftwerk K9 that Curry had organized. Gordon, who was a manager at Kraftwerk K9 and regularly appeared in ads, was tasked with 'agitating the dog, using a whip for noise and wearing a bite sleeve,' according to the affidavit. Curry allegedly wanted to show that his dogs would not react to gunfire and directed Gordon to about 30 feet to the left of a target he shot at. '[Curry] said in the video, the dog is supposed to bark in a certain direction, and he'd shoot the target in a different direction, and then the dog would go and bite the guy with the sleeve,' prosecutors said. Court documents state that, 'At one point, the dog reacted from a down position to standing and jerked Wayne's body as he was handling the gun. The next thing everyone knew, they heard a groan from Curtice, and he collapsed.' Curry allegedly told investigators, 'When he saw Curtice drop, he said he wasn't sure if he did it to fake it because they were making a movie.' Thurston County prosecutors charged Curry with manslaughter, claiming he acted recklessly by using live rounds in the demonstration. According to the affidavit, Curry denied having any intention of hurting his employee. His heartbroken mother, Mandy Gordon, told local news station KING 5 her son dreamed of becoming a dog trainer. 'He was literally perfect if you're going to make a man. A provider, a protector of women, children, and animals,' she said. 'This was not an accident. People can call it unintentional, but not an accident. When you drink and drive and kill someone, that's not an accident. You made a choice to do something that could harm someone else.' She said Gordon's fiancée, Leira Wilson, had warned her son to be careful during the shoot because Curry had a history of jokingly pointing weapons at people and dogs. '[Wilson] actually told him the night before, "Don't let him point that gun at you," said Mandy Gordon. 'She just kept telling him, "Be careful. Be careful."' Curry was released from jail on $25,000 bail and has an arraignment hearing scheduled for Tuesday.
