On October 21, 2016, 23-year-old Renee Davis, a Native American mother of three who was five months pregnant, was found dead in her home on the Muckleshoot Indian Reservation in Auburn, Washington. Earlier that evening she sent a text to her boyfriend suggesting she might harm herself; he called law enforcement and two King County Sheriff’s deputies, Nicholas Prichett and Tim Lewis, conducted a welfare check.

The deputies, after receiving no answer at the door, saw two small children inside and entered the house. They found Davis in her bedroom holding a handgun. Deputies say she ignored repeated commands to drop the weapon and at one point pointed it toward them; both fired and Davis was struck and killed. The handgun was later found to be unloaded, though an ammunition magazine was nearby. The two younger children were unharmed; the five-year-old was not at the home.

The deputies were placed on paid administrative leave and an investigation followed; a county inquest was later ordered. No criminal charges were filed against the deputies. The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit that was settled by King County for $1.5 million in 2021. Does anyone have additional information about Renee’s life or the events that evening?