Not guilty plea entered in killing of 15-year-old Molly Conley



EVERETT -- A 27-year-old Marysville man pleaded not guilty Friday to charges that he fatally shot 15-year-old Molly Conley in Lake Stevens on June 1 and fired into several houses and at vehicles in the area during a random shooting spree.

A Snohomish County Superior Court judge set a Sept. 13 trial date for Erick N. Walker. He is being held in the Snohomish County Jail on $5 million bail.

Walker is charged with first-degree murder and four counts for drive-by shootings.

At about 11:15 p.m. on June 1, Molly was out walking with friends on South Lake Stevens Road celebrating her 15th birthday. A car drove by, a bang was heard and Molly’s friends say she dropped to her knees.  She had been shot in the neck.

Documents show molly then fell down an embankment. Her friends flagged down help and carried her back up to the street as she struggled for breath.

Police said solid detective work led them to Walker.  They believe Molly’s death was part of a random shooting spree between Lake Stevens and Marysville that June night, when Walker allegedly also rammed a parked car and fired into four homes.

Police said investigators linked the bullets in the homes and vehicles to handguns registered to Walker, as well as paint chips from his 2006 Pontiac left on the damaged vehicle.

Snohomish County prosecutor Mark Roe is not seeking the death penalty in this case, but conviction on a first-degree murder with a firearm charge carries a mandatory 25-year sentence, not counting the four other drive-by charges.

While detectives have not yet located the bullet that hit Molly, they are certain it came from Walker’s gun.

“We wouldn’t have filed the charges if we didn’t feel confident that we could prove it and that’s about as much as I’ll say.  The rest will be up to a jury,” said Roe.