A judge once again allowed a continuance of the murder trial for accused baby shooter Marty Kime as his defense attorney requested more time to interview witnesses.
The trial had been scheduled to begin Monday, May 14, at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent. The new date is July 9. Kime pleaded not guilty in 2016 to the April 2015 drive-by shooting of 1-year-old Malijah Grant near Lake Fenwick Road and Reith Road in Kent. Kime remains in custody at the King County jail in Seattle.
“Defense needs additional time to complete witness interviews and provide discovery to the state,” according to court documents filed May 4.
Discovery is the exchange of information between the prosecutor and defense about the witnesses and evidence they will present at trial.
King County Superior Court Judge Bill Bowman granted the request from defense attorney Lisa Mulligan for continuing the trial date. It marked the third time the trial date has been continued this year. Previous trial dates were Jan. 22 and April 23. Senior Deputy Prosecutor Adrienne McCoy joined in the request to postponed the trial date.
Kime, 26, whose hometown listings include Auburn and Seattle, pleaded not guilty in 2016 to the second-degree murder of Malijah for allegedly firing a shot that hit the baby in the head on April 16, 2015 as she rode in a car seat in the backseat of her parents vehicle. He also pleaded not guilty to first-degree assault charges for firing shots at the baby’s parents, who were not injured. Kent Police detectives say as many as eight shots were fired at the car.
If convicted as charged for the murder and assaults, Kime could face a sentence range of 41-54 years in prison, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Lisa Lynch, the baby’s mother, drove the vehicle. Martrice Grant, the father, rode in the front passenger seat, according to charging papers. County prosecutors say Kime targeted the baby’s father as part of a gang retaliation shooting, but a shot hit the baby girl instead. She died two days later at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Malijah lived in Kent with her parents.
Kime reportedly targeted the vehicle because he believed the victim’s father to be associated with a rival street gang known as Deuce 8, charging papers said. Kime, also known as YM (Young Marty), is a self-proclaimed member of the Low Profile gang. He has the gang name tattooed across his chest. He blamed the Deuce 8 gang for the Seattle murder in March 2015 of John Williams, his friend and fellow gang member, according to charging papers.
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