Sunday, February 11, 2001
Emotions running high as Cramm goes to trial
By SCOTT NORTH
Herald Writer
It's been nearly nine months since that night in May when a bullet-riddled car careened into the parking lot of a south Everett supermarket and word began spreading that two young men had been fatally shot.
By cell phone and pager, the family and friends of Jason Thompson and Jesse Stoner, both 18, were summoned to the scene.
At the same time, police were speeding to the home of the alleged gunman, Dennis Cramm, then 17. Within days he was arrested and charged with taking two lives after a fistfight outside his south Everett home somehow ended in gunfire.
Cramm is scheduled Monday to go on trial, charged with two counts of first-degree murder. Now 18, he faces decades in prison if convicted.
Security for the trial will be tight and seating in the courtroom limited.
At a hearing Thursday, Judge Linda Krese said she'll be designating separate seating for the families of the slain teens, the defendant's family and the media.
The judge said she's mindful of some of the passion the case has generated. In June, the defendant's father, Dale Cramm, 45, was cursed and spat upon outside the courthouse when he showed up for a bail hearing regarding his son. The scene played out in front of reporters from newspapers and television stations.
Krese left little doubt that anyone who comes to the courthouse intent on creating a ruckus will wind up ejected, or worse.
"We are not going to allow any outbursts," she said.
Sonny Thompson, the father of one of the slain teens, said his family appreciates the support they've received from the community and young people who knew his son. He understands why many people may want to attend the trial.
"The biggest thing is stay cool," he said. "Please, please stay cool if you want to see justice served."
The killings touched many people in Snohomish County, especially those who knew the young people involved.
Jason Thompson was a popular athlete at Mariner High School, and was one week away from graduation at ACES, the Mukilteo School District's alternative high school. Jesse Stoner, who'd been voted class clown that year at Mariner, was a rapper who talked of one day becoming a firefighter and planned to finish his education on his own schedule.
Cramm was a junior at Mariner who generally got good grades and was a pitcher on the high school baseball team. But there also was another side. He liked marijuana, and sold pot to friends to afford drugs himself, according to court records.
In January 2000, in the presence of police, Cramm had gone on a rampage, threatening to kill his own mother. He wound up with a felony conviction and court-ordered counseling for drug abuse.
The May 30 gunplay broke out after dozens of young people converged on the Cramm home to witness a prearranged fight between the defendant and another teen, then 16.
Deputy prosecutors Ed Stemler and John Adcock allege that the fight turned into a melee involving people who supported the different combatants.
One of the people supporting the teen who was fighting Cramm grabbed a handgun away from one of Cramm's roommates and fired it into the air. That's when the defendant armed himself with one of his father's military-style rifles and began blasting away, fatally shooting Stoner and Thompson, who were among the unarmed bystanders who were trying to get away when the bullets began flying, prosecutors allege.
The weapon allegedly used by Cramm was an SKS semiautomatic rifle, outfitted with a bayonet and a 30-round magazine. Forensic tests show that at least seven bullets struck the car that was carrying Stoner and Thompson away from the fight scene.
Prosecutors allege Cramm manifested "extreme indifference to human life" when he began firing the weapon.
Defense attorney Royce Ferguson said he is planning to argue that Dennis Cramm was acting in defense of himself and others when he began shooting. He said the killings were the tragic result of people making poor choices.
If convicted as charged, the younger Cramm is facing a presumptive sentence of between 32 1/2 years and 40 years, Stemler said.
If a jury agrees Cramm acted in self-defense, however, he not only must be acquitted, but his defense costs may be covered at public expense.
The shooting investigation already has led to convictions for others who were present that night. Two young men have pleaded guilty to being felons in possession of firearms after admitting they handled or fired handguns that night. Another man has agreed to plead guilty to felony riot in exchange for testimony about the incident.
Dale Cramm was jailed for eight months after pleading guilty to possessing marijuana with intent to sell and possessing hallucinogenic mushrooms.
Prosecutors had repeatedly alleged that Dale Cramm played an active role in setting the stage for the violence that erupted outside his home and at one point charged him with tampering with evidence and witnesses. But those charges were dropped after a key informant failed a lie-detector test.
Both Dale Cramm and the informant are listed among the witnesses prosecutors say they intend to have testify.
Trial is expected to last roughly two weeks, occurring during scheduled mid-winter break for Mukilteo schools.
School officials last week sent letters to The Herald and other area media requesting that reporters refrain from descending on area high schools, seeking comments about the trial from students.
"The approach of this trial has already caused some turmoil on our campuses, especially among the students who were friends of the victims," Andy Muntz, Mukilteo School District spokesman wrote. 'We are very concerned that those feelings will be heightened during the event of the trial to the point that it might have a negative impact on the learning environment in those schools."
Muntz said that students, particularly at ACES where Thompson attended, have been demonstrating their concern about the case, some even sporting temporary tattoos with the victims' names.
"It has just been a subject. It has been stirring there," he said.
