A prominent attorney is found murdered in his home On a dark and cold January evening in 1970, prominent Bremerton attorney Fred Cohen, a 56-year-old Caucasian male, was brutally murdered at his waterfront home on Port Washington Narrows. The date was January 19th, and Cohen had just returned to his residence on 17th Street when an unknown assailant ambushed him.
His wife, Katherine, was inside their home preparing dinner when she heard a sound she described as a "horrible firecracker".
This was followed by a chilling, loud laugh and the sound of someone running on hollow-sounding cement. Rushing outside, she discovered her husband lying on the concrete walkway, the victim of a fatal shotgun blast that had knocked him off his side porch. His hat and glasses were scattered nearby, and blood splattered the walkway. An autopsy would later reveal that he had been struck by 58 pellets, with most of the impact to his chest and head.
Bremerton police were quick to arrive and secure the scene, but the investigation into the murder of the former Kitsap County prosecutor would prove to be a difficult and ultimately frustrating endeavor. Investigators were met with a wide array of potential suspects, a testament to Cohen's reputation as a ruthless and bombastic attorney who had made numerous enemies throughout his career. One detective noted that you couldn't have picked a better victim in Kitsap County in terms of the sheer number of people who might have wished him harm.
Despite the "smorgasbord" of suspects, the case grew cold. Leads were followed, and individuals were questioned and released, but no arrests were ever made. The police department at the time was reportedly ill-equipped to handle such a high-profile and complex murder investigation. Over the years, the case has remained an active but dormant file, a chilling, unsolved homicide that left a lasting mark on the community of Bremerton. The identity of Fred Cohen's killer remains a mystery to this day.
