SEATTLE- Court records show Richard Sitzlack, 53, was arrested in November 2023 for the murder of his roommate.
According to court documents, Sitzlack's roommate kicked him out, and when he tried to leave, the roommate struck him several times with a machete, at which point Sitzlack “took a knife out of his pocket and slashed it.” [the victim] with this knife.”
Although investigators noted some inconsistencies in Sitzlack's version of events, prosecutors and investigators said there was not enough evidence at the time to conclusively refute his claims of self-defense.
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“You have to have the evidence to even bring it to court. Both the police and prosecutors recognized that we did not have this evidence,” said Casey McNerthney, spokesman for the King County Prosecutor’s Office. “We addressed those initial inconsistencies and executed four search warrants, and the result was additional information that supported his claim of self-defense.”
McNerthney said search warrants for cell phone and medical records in the November 2023 case do not support a murder charge at this time, but Sitzlack could still be charged if more evidence comes to light.
McNerthney also noted that during Sitzlack's first appearance, prosecutors cited probable cause for murder, which the court ultimately found. He also said that was a lower standard of proof than required by law to file charges.
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“Because investigators did not forward it to prosecutors to make a quick charging decision, Sitzlack was released after 72 hours, per court rules,” McNerthney wrote.
When asked why the case wasn't referred or why Sitzlack wasn't later arrested, McNerthney responded preemptively, “That's a question for the homicide detective, but probably because of the claim of self-defense.”
Sitzlack claimed that when he tried to leave the unit, his roommate at the time came at him from behind with a so-called machete. According to the police report, Sitzlack “alleged that (the roommate) grabbed him by the neck and pushed him to his knees near the exterior door of the apartment near the stairwell.”
“Sitzlack — who called police from the nearby park and waited for them to arrive before sharing his account — said he took a knife from his pocket and slashed the roommate with it,” McNerthney wrote. “The roommate swore when he was hit and backed away. Sitzlack told police he ran out of the apartment and called 911 from nearby Cowan Park (about a half-mile away).”
McNerthney said police noted the discrepancies in Sitzlack's recollection of the incident in the initial police report. The report also noted that the victim “felt cold to the touch,” which they said contradicted Sitzlack's claim that he immediately called 911.
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According to McNerthney, it was the many inconsistencies discovered that ultimately led prosecutors to ask for probable cause at his first hearing.
“When the initial report was written, it may not have been clear that the roommate's wounds could have been inflicted consistent with a self-defense claim by Sitzlack, and that is not mentioned in the initial report,” McNerthney wrote.
Later investigations revealed that Sitzlack may have been attacked where he said the attack occurred in the apartment. According to officials, the above inconsistencies did not offset the self-defense claim under Washington state law. There was nothing so outrageous and contradictory that Sitzlack's self-defense claim could be refuted, McNerthney said.
“If there was evidence that would disprove his self-defense claim or establish a murder case beyond a reasonable doubt, prosecutors would have filed the case,” McNerthney concluded.
