Man arrested in Belltown shooting was released from custody days prior

The man arrested Monday in connection with a fatal shooting of a 23-year-old woman in Belltown over Labor Day weekend had been released from jail three days before the homicide, according to court documents.

The 44-year-old man, who had his first appearance hearing Tuesday, is accused of shooting and killing Tionna Simpson early Sept. 6 near Blanchard Street and Third Avenue. He remains in King County Jail in lieu of $4 million bail, according to the King County prosecuting attorney’s office.

The Seattle Times typically does not name people accused of a crime until charges have been filed. According to court documents, surveillance footage showed Simpson and a passenger in her parked car when another car stopped next to hers. The passenger stepped out and talked to the people in the other car, then the other driver pointed a gun at Simpson’s car. The gun appeared to malfunction, but the shooter then fired approximately six to eight times directly at Simpson. The passenger fled on foot and the other car sped away.

A Belltown resident heard the shots and found Simpson and began CPR until officers arrived. Simpson was taken to Harborview Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.

A witness provided the name of the suspected shooter’s girlfriend and said they knew the man had recently been released from jail. Seattle police officers found that the car had been in a recent hit-and-run and the registered owner is the alleged shooter. The car matched the description of the car in the shooting.

Police records showed the alleged shooter had been released from jail on Sept. 3. The man had pleaded guilty to third-degree domestic violence assault stemming from a November incident where he struck an intimate partner in the face and was sentenced to a month in jail.