On a street in Lake Stevens, Washington, the life of 15-year-old Mary Clare Molly Conley, a White female, was tragically cut short on the night of June 1, 2013. She was walking with a group of friends, celebrating her birthday, when a bullet from a drive-by shooting struck her in the neck. The sudden act of violence left her friends in a state of panic as they tried to render aid, but the wound proved fatal. Molly, a promising student at Bishop Blanchet High School known for her bright spirit, died just one day after her fifteenth birthday.
The seemingly random shooting launched an intensive investigation led by the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office. Detectives learned of other drive-by shootings that occurred the same night in the surrounding areas, leading them to believe Molly was the unintended victim of a larger shooting spree. Investigators painstakingly pieced together evidence from the various crime scenes. Ballistics tests on bullets recovered from homes and vehicles that were also shot at pointed to a specific type of firearm. By cross-referencing this with a list of recent gun purchasers, detectives identified a person of interest. Further evidence, including paint chips from a hit-and-run incident that same night, matched a vehicle registered to the same individual.
Less than a month after the shooting, detectives arrested 26-year-old Erick Nathaniel Walker of Marysville. Walker, a Boeing employee with no significant criminal history, was charged with first-degree murder for Molly's death and multiple counts of drive-by shooting related to the other incidents. Prosecutors argued that Walker had gone on a three-hour, indiscriminate shooting spree. Though Walker denied his involvement, and the specific bullet that killed Molly was never found, the circumstantial evidence presented by the prosecution was substantial.
Following a trial, a jury found Erick Walker guilty, not of murder, but of the lesser charge of first-degree manslaughter in Molly's death. He was also convicted on multiple other charges, including first-degree assault and drive-by shooting for the other attacks that night. In April 2015, a judge sentenced Walker to more than 90 years in prison, with the court's stated intent that he would spend the remainder of his life incarcerated for the series of crimes that ended the life of Molly Conley.
