A 62-year-old Edmonds man made his first appearance in Everett District Court Tuesday to hear a criminal complaint of second-degree murder domestic violence against him following the death of his 45-year-old female roommate.
The second-degree murder complaint filed by the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office identified the victim as Samantha Ellis, whom police said shared an apartment with the suspect, David Lawrence Hoar, in the 8100 block of 236th Street Southwest in Edmonds. Ellis had reportedly been dead for three days in the Edmonds apartment before Hoar called police.
Hoar is being held in Snohomish County Jail in lieu of $1 million bond since Edmonds police arrested him Dec. 21. Prosecutors have until Jan. 13 to file formal felony charges against the suspect, who will remain in custody while charges are being prepared.
According to probable cause documents filed Dec. 21 with the Snohomish County Prosecutor’s Office, Hoar called 911 on Dec. 19 to report that his roommate was dead. Edmonds police officers responding to the call found Ellis dead in the living area of the studio apartment in the 8100 block of 236th Street Southwest, sitting with her face against the floor.
Authorities initially believed the victim’s death may have been accidental, but a Dec. 21 autopsy by the medical examiner revealed that Ellis suffered at least five blunt-force impact injuries on her head, resulting in internal bleeding. Edmonds police arrested Hoar Dec. 21 for second-degree murder and transported him to the police station for questioning.
According to probable cause documents, Hoar admitted to police that he and Ellis had argued Dec. 15 but said that she had fallen and that he didn’t kill her. Hoar then told a police detective that “women can drive men crazy and um, anyway, it just escalated from me doing chores here and there and everywhere, that ah, I don’t know, I just lost it.”
Edmonds police detectives are still investigating the case, police spokesman Sgt. Shane Hawley said Tuesday.