In the early morning hours of August 19, 2020, the life of 51-year-old Walter Hansen, a White male, came to a violent end in his Yakima, Washington home. At approximately 8:00 a.m., police were dispatched to a residence in the 1000 block of South 19th Avenue after a 911 call was made by Hansen's wife, Kimberly Hansen. In the call, she stated that she had just shot her husband.
Upon their arrival, officers discovered Walter Hansen in a bedroom with a gunshot wound to his head.
He was immediately transported by ambulance to Virginia Mason Memorial Hospital, but his injuries proved fatal, and he died shortly after arrival. His wife was taken into custody and booked into the Yakima County Jail on a requested charge of second-degree murder, domestic violence. The initial investigation pointed towards a domestic dispute that had escalated to a tragic conclusion.
Further investigation into the couple's history revealed a troubled relationship marked by domestic abuse. It was discovered that there was a history of domestic violence perpetrated by Walter Hansen against his wife, which included a report of strangulation. In fact, a no-contact order was in place to protect Kimberly from her husband. According to Kimberly Hansen's account to the police, her husband had held her against her will in their home from the Sunday prior to the shooting until that Wednesday morning. She alleged that he had imprisoned her, tied her to the bed, and forced her to take drugs. On the morning of the incident, she claimed to have woken up to find her husband asleep with a handgun next to him. She told investigators that a struggle for the weapon ensued, during which it discharged and struck her husband in the head.
Following a review of the evidence and the circumstances surrounding the shooting, the Yakima County Prosecutor's Office made the decision not to file criminal charges against Kimberly Hansen. The prosecutor's office released a statement indicating that the evidence suggested she had acted in self-defense. They concluded that due to the history of domestic abuse and the events leading up to the shooting, it would be highly unlikely to prove a murder charge beyond a reasonable doubt in court. While the possibility of future charges remains if new evidence comes to light, for now, the case is considered a matter of self-defense, leaving the narrative of Walter Hansen's death as a complex and tragic story of domestic violence.
