Trial reveals new details about another suspect in deadly Jan. 2020 shooting in downtown Seattle

Trial continued Tuesday in the case against Marquise Tolbert, one of the suspected shooters from the deadly Jan. 2020 shooting in downtown Seattle.

One of the shooting suspects and seven innocent people were hit by the bullets. One woman died from her gunshot wound.

Marquise Tolbert is charged with murder and six counts of assault for the shooting on 3rd and Pine that started from gang rivalry.

Joshua Vaga was one of the first Seattle police officers to give aid to Jamel Jackson, one of the suspected shooters. Prosecution said he is a rival gang member of Tolbert and another suspected shooter. Jackson was shot in the leg. Vaga placed a tourniquet on Jackson to slow the blood flow coming from the gunshot wound. 

Vaga was wearing a body camera recoding video of the encounter. He is heard in the video saying, "This is going to hurt a little bit, but I got to stop the bleeding."

Jackson ran from the shooting scene near 3rd and Pine, then collapsed because of the gunshot wound. He is seen in the body camera video using his cellphone as first responders rendered aid. The body camera also captured images of Jackson’s leg propped up on a backpack. Vaga testified he searched the bag before alerting detectives.

"Appeared to be in his possession when I got there. Activated my body worn camera and a found gun magazine, appeared to be to a handgun and a bunch of loose ammunition rolling around in a pocket of the backpack," said Vaga.

Detectives arrested Jackson at a hospital for unlawful possession of a firearm. Prior to the arrest, officers said Jackson wasn’t very descriptive and hardly answered questions about what happened near 3rd and Pine.

"He wasn’t attempting to, from the get-go, give us any information about what had happened, who was involved, who he believed had shot him, where they’ve gone, anything of that nature," said Vaga.

Prosecution argued Tolbert and another suspect were blindly shooting through the crowd intending to hit Jackson. Tolbert’s defense said he wasn’t the first or second person to fire his gun, claiming he was reacting in self-defense.

Tuesday’s trial included testimony from Cindy Morningstar. She survived the deadly January 2020 shooting after being shot three times while sitting in her wheelchair.

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"All of a sudden, I heard boom," said Morningstar.

She said she was on 3rd and Pine with a friend when bullets went flying on the busy Seattle sidewalk.

"I got hit. I felt it in my arm," said Morningstar. "I felt something burning on the side of me a little bit."

In her court testimony, she remembered being shot three times, and said doctors weren’t able to find one of the bullets. Morningstar has since had 15 surgeries, suffered a hernia and now wears a colostomy bag. She said she still hasn’t fully healed from her gunshot wounds. When prosecutors asked if there was anything inside her arm, Morningstar said, "Yeah, two plates. I have to have that for the rest of my life."

Testimony will continue at King County Superior Court.

Downtown SeattleDowntown Seattle ShootingCrime and Public Safety