Granddaughter of slain Seattle dog walker urges lawmakers to keep three-strikes law

OLYMPIA, Wash. - Another step in her fight for justice: the granddaughter of a beloved Seattle dog walker killed in a violent carjacking spoke out against a bill that could change Washington's three-strike law and how it applies to youth offenders.

The backstory:

The suspect in the case, Jahmed Haynes, has yet to stand trial, but that isn't stopping her from pushing for accountability.

"It's been about 16 months since she was killed and we're no further along in the court process than we were the day she died," Melanie Roberts said.

For Roberts, every day since August 20, 2024, has been spent in pursuit of justice.

Seattle police said her 80-year-old grandma, Ruth Dalton, was violently carjacked and run over in the Madison Valley neighborhood by a then-48-year-old, armed, Haynes.

She died and her dog was found stabbed to death.

What they're saying:

While Roberts waits for Hayne's trial, she has taken her fight to Olympia. She slammed Senate Bill 5945 on Tuesday.

"Absolutely a slap in the face from people who are supposed to keep us safe," Roberts told FOX 13 Seattle.

The bill aims to change Washington's three-strike law so that crimes someone commits before turning 18 would no longer count as a strike following an adult court conviction.

It would also provide a roadmap for re-sentencing.

"Would it make it okay if the drunk driver, rapist, robber, or murderer was under 18? Would the victim be any less violated, traumatized, or dead?" Roberts testified during a Senate committee hearing.

Haynes is an eight-time convicted felon. King County prosecutors said that includes a vehicular homicide case from 1993, when he was a minor charged as an adult.

They said he already has two strikes, and he avoided a third strike through a plea deal in a Snohomish County case years before Dalton's death.

Dig deeper:

Supporters of the bill said major court rulings and updated research about young brains signal it is time to change the law.

"This bill will stop judges from being forced to sentence people to mandatory sentences of life in prison, without the possibility of parole, due to an offense committed while the person was under the age of 18," said Katherine Hurley with the King County Department of Public Defense.

Anthony Powers with the American Equity and Justice Group testified that changes in the courts prove a point.

"Our State Supreme Court ruled that juvenile strikes weren't a strike when they're kept in juvenile jurisdiction, so somebody who committed the exact same crime, who was the exact same age, they could've been born on the same day, but the only difference was they were kept in juvenile jurisdiction versus being tried as an adult," Powers said.

Lawmakers said about two-dozen people could see their sentences revisited.

Roberts said this change would be a mistake. She pointed to if Haynes were convicted this time.

"My grandmother would be strike number three. My grandmother would be the reason that he spends life in prison," she said.

Roberts said this was her first time speaking in front of lawmakers. She said she is determined to continue to do so to stand up for victims.

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