Michelle and Gregory Moore. Gregory Moore was killed by a hit-and-run driver in July 2021 in Maple Valley. COURTESY PHOTO, Moore family

Michelle and Gregory Moore. Gregory Moore was killed by a hit-and-run driver in July 2021 in Maple Valley. COURTESY PHOTO, Moore family

Murder trial date may be near for SeaTac teen in hit-and-run case

Judge to oversee management of case that has gone on for more than a year

A trial date for a SeaTac teen could be set later this month as she faces a second-degree murder charge in the July 2021 hit-and-run death of a Maple Valley jogger.

King County Superior Court Judge Nelson K.H. Lee asked defense attorneys at a Oct. 6 hearing for an updated timeline when attorneys return Oct. 20 for another hearing, according to an email from Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jamie Kvistad.

The girl, 15 at the time of the incident, was charged in September 2021 with killing Gregory Moore, 53, as he jogged in the morning near his Maple Valley home. The Kent Reporter is not naming the girl because she is a juvenile.

“At the hearing, the state asked the court to take over judicial management of the case and Judge Lee indicated he would do so,” Kvistad said. “All further continuances will require a hearing in front of Judge Lee.”

Prosecutors charged the girl with second-degree murder for allegedly hitting Moore with a car and then fleeing the scene. She pleaded not guilty. The case remained unsolved for about eight weeks. King County Sheriff’s Office detectives used headlight fragments found near the scene, video surveillance and other evidence to identify a 2004 Toyota Camry that reportedly hit Moore.

The girl, who turned 17 on Oct. 1, was taken into custody Sept. 9, 2021. She has remained in custody at the county’s Patricia H. Clark Children and Family Justice Center in Seattle.

“The state expressed concerns about the lengthy delay caused by defense and the effects on the Moore family as well as the approximately 400 days that (the girl) has spent in detention, which is not intended to be a long term placement for children,” Kvistad said.

A juvenile in custody that long typically would be housed at Echo Glen Children’s Center, a state facility, in Snoqualmie.

Michelle Moore, the widow of Gregory Moore, and her family pushed hard for prosecutors to try the girl as an adult. If convicted as a juvenile in a bench trial (before a judge not a jury), the teen will be released when she turns 21. If convicted by a jury in adult court, the girl could have faced a sentence of up to 20 years.

“This juvenile was 15 years old at the time of the offenses for which she was charged,” according to a Prosecuting Attorney’s Office statement after charges were filed. “She has no prior arrests or criminal history. The laws of our state presume that a child this age must be prosecuted in juvenile court.”

Youth who are 16 at the time of a crime can legally be charged as an adult if they are charged with a felony.

In addition to the second-degree murder charge, the teen also faces a second-degree assault and felony hit-and-run charge in a separate case. During the investigation into Moore’s death, detectives found evidence that led to further charges against the girl in a July 2021 hit-and-run in Des Moines that reportedly injured a pedestrian who has not yet been identified.


Talk to us

Please share your story tips by emailing editor@kentreporter.com.

To share your opinion for publication, submit a letter through our website https://www.kentreporter.com/submit-letter/. Include your name, address and daytime phone number. (We’ll only publish your name and hometown.) Please keep letters to 300 words or less.

More in News

t
King County executive will nominate replacements for Upthegrove

District 5, which includes parts of Kent, will get new representative on County Council in January

t
SeaTac man, 21, fatally shot in vehicle in Kent on West Hill

Someone ran up and fired multiple shots into vehicle Nov. 21 at Veterans Drive and Military Road

Kentwood High School, 25800 164th Ave. SE, in Covington, remained without power Thursday morning, Nov. 21, according to Puget Sound Energy. COURTESY PHOTO, Kent School District
Kent schools remain closed due to windstorm damage, power outages

Second consecutive day of closures Thursday, Nov. 21 across the Kent School District

t
Kent-based Puget Sound Fire calls windstorm ‘one for the ages’

Agency responds to 308 calls in 12-hour period, including 245 for storm-related issues

Crews clear trees from State Route 18, which the Washington State Patrol closed in both directions Wednesday, Nov. 20, from Issaquah Hobart to I-90 over Tiger Mountain because of fallen trees during a windstorm. COURTESY PHOTO, Washington State Patrol
Windstorm closes Kent schools, roads due to fallen trees

Many without power in areas of Kent and beyond

t
“Prolific” vehicular theft suspect arrested in Renton

Kent man holds 13 prior convictions and 41 arrests.

tt
Green Kent volunteer program wraps up season at city park

Volunteers remove invasive species, plant native trees and shrubs at Mill Creek Canyon Earthworks Park

t
Copper-wire thieves damage Kent Senior Center roof refrigeration unit

Facility temporarily loses commercial kitchen refrigerator but staff, community keep meals going

t
16-year-old girl dies in Covington single-car crash

Teen was driving when car crashed into a tree Nov. 15 along SE 256th Street just east of Kent

t
Kent Police Blotter: Oct. 24-Nov. 7

Incidents include carjacking, juvenile fight, stolen vehicle pursuit

t
State Patrol catches a pair of motorcycles going over 100 mph on I-5

See a video of their arrest. Agency uses air surveillance to pursue from Federal Way to Renton