Mother convicted of buying guns for son who was killed in shootout
BELLINGHAM, Wash. -- A northern Washington state woman has been found guilty of providing guns for her son, who died a shootout with Whatcom County sheriff's deputies two years ago.
The Bellingham Herald reports 64-year-old Jeanne Tinker-Smith, of Deming, was convicted Friday of aiding and abetting a felon in possession of a firearm.
Her 37-year-old son, Cecil Tinker-Smith, was killed in November 2014 after a standoff with a SWAT team.
Court records say Cecil Tinker-Smith fired a shotgun, leaving one deputy with a shrapnel wound to the face, and was killed when authorities returned fire.
Prosecutors had accused Jeanne Tinker-Smith of buying the guns for her son in the months before the standoff.
But her attorneys said she joined a skeet shooting club and had bought the guns for her protection.