On the morning of August 8, 2022, Robert Thomson, 69, was shot and killed at a turnout on the North Cascades Highway near Diablo Lake. He and his 40-year-old brother, John Roper Thomson, were driving back from a family cabin in Republic, Washington. Park rangers found a large amount of blood on a guardrail and Robert’s body below an embankment; John was located nearby in his vehicle and an AR-15 style rifle was recovered from the car. John later confessed, saying he acted in fear for his life and citing a history of alleged abuse and his own withdrawal from heroin and alcohol.

A jury convicted John Roper Thomson of second-degree murder and unlawful possession of a firearm; the verdict reflected the jury’s rejection of first-degree murder and a finding that the killing was not premeditated. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Does anyone have information about the brothers’ travels that day or about the turnout where this happened?