Spokane7
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September 28, 2009 in City
Suspect at large after shooting
Witnesses say two slain over car deal
The shooting deaths of two men in Spokane on Saturday may have been sparked by little more than a dispute over two run-down cars, witnesses say.
Jack Lamere and a friend, whose name has not been released by police, were shot, allegedly by a man angered because Lamere refused to trade his early 1970s Chevy Blazer for an early 1970s Cadillac, neighbors said.
“It’s a waste of life, you know,” said Hiram Michel, who witnessed the shooting. “A little bit of rage, and it’s too late, you can’t take it back.”
Detectives have identified the suspected shooter as Merle W. Harvey, 27. He was still at large Sunday evening, and police asked anyone with information about Harvey’s whereabouts to call 911.
When located, Harvey will be booked into jail on two counts of first-degree murder, said police spokeswoman Officer Jennifer DeRuwe. Police believe Harvey may be with a white woman described as in her mid-30s to 40s, about 5 foot 8, and with a thin build and short red or brown hair. The two may be using an older-model flatbed truck.
In 2000, Harvey was sentenced to about seven years in prison after he pleaded guilty to first-degree assault in connection with a shooting near Minnehaha Park, according to previous Spokesman-Review coverage.
Lamere was released from prison last year after serving a dozen years for his role in an Eastern Washington drug ring. Just before leaving prison, Lamere was part of a work-release program.
“He was an excellent worker,” said Rich Ziesmer, who owns property that Lamere helped clean up in the program. “Everything I saw, he was on the up and up.”
Late Sunday, police announced they were searching for another suspect in the case. Mark H. Toner, 33, is wanted for rendering criminal assistance and witness intimidation. He was arrested overnight, according to police.
Police were called about 9:30 p.m. Saturday to a parking lot behind an apartment at 1310 W. Boone Ave., where the men were shot.
Neighbors said Lamere, who was living with his girlfriend at the address, was working on a pickup behind the building with a friend when they were approached by another man. The man, who arrived in a truck with a woman driving, was seeking to trade his Cadillac for Lamere’s Chevy Blazer.
“The shooter said, ‘I’m not leaving here without the Blazer,’ ” Michel said. Lamere responded, “You’re not taking nothing.”
Lori Averill, who also lives in the building and was outside when the shooting occurred, said the discussion wasn’t heated, but the man pulled a gun and shot Lamere six times before aiming at Lamere’s friend. A couple shots missed before one shot hit him, Averill said.
Michel said the gunman emptied one gun, retrieved another and continued shooting in several directions. Lamere’s girlfriend was also there, Michel said.
“She was sitting outside and ran to (Lamere) and was with him when he died,” Michel said.
The dispute between the men centered on the Cadillac. Lamere had briefly had possession of it but traded it to Harvey for the Blazer, said Ziesmer, who kept in touch with Lamere after the work-release program was completed.
Harvey recently decided he wanted to trade back the cars, said Ziesmer, who owns Pacific Towing and Recovery. One complication was that Ziesmer, who earlier sold the Cadillac to Lamere for a few hundred dollars, still has the car’s title.
Ziesmer said he received a voice mail from Harvey on Saturday afternoon.
“He called me a weasel and Jack a couple names,” Ziesmer said, adding that he could hear a woman egging him on in the background.
Just before the shooting, Ziesmer said Lamere called to tell him he might accept Harvey’s proposal to trade back the vehicles.
Neighbors, however, said it appeared the deal soured because Lamere wouldn’t give up the Blazer until the Cadillac was brought to him.
Ziesmer said he also knew the second victim, who was Lamere’s friend but not involved in the car deal.
“He was at the wrong place at the wrong time,” Ziesmer said.
Lamere recently concluded a federal prison sentence for his part in an extensive Spokane methamphetamine ring during the 1990s.
He pleaded guilty in 1997 to conspiracy, three counts of distributing meth and two counts of possession. He admitted that he became an “enforcer” for the drug ring to pay off the rising debts from his addiction and acknowledged that he played a part in the abduction and torture of a man who owed drug dealers $370. The man was stripped, beaten with boards and spray painted; he also had his testicles burned with a candle, according to court testimony.
The ring included people with connections to outlaw motorcycle gangs, and prosecutors described it at the time as one of the largest, most violent drug operations ever busted in Spokane.
Lamere was sentenced to 155 months in prison, one of seven people convicted. He testified against other members of the ring and said at the time that he had received death threats and feared for his life. He was released from prison custody in September 2008.
A month later, Lamere was arrested after he attempted to elude Spokane police and crashed into a tree, according to court records. He agreed to serve 90 days of home confinement as a result of the incident. After completing required drug treatment late last year, Lamere requested that he be referred for mental health counseling, records say.
MAC faces angry crowd 
hines_don on September 28 at 6:52 a.m.
I just read that Toner has already been arrested .I know where Merle isn`t hiding,he is not at the meth house at 4118 N. Monroe.
zuis420 on September 29 at 10:44 a.m.
i met Jack T.Lamere just after he had gotten off his house arrest from Boon, and i will say that he is the most worthless (s.o.b.) i had ever seen in my life. He had the mentality of a prison inmate and the manors of a savage . every other word out his mouth was (home-boy this home-boy that….. im a killer home-boy fresh out the prison system home-boy)….. i was begining to think god this guy needs more vocabulary in his life send him back to prison.
what the hell were we thinking rehabilitating him for in the first place and letting him in our community our society on our streets this man is a danger and a public threat. I just wished i could have shaken hands with the John Wayne that took out the neighbor hood trash thank you Mr. John Wayne who ever you really are. thats just another parasite off our streets
RamblinRose on October 02 at 7:06 a.m.
If Zuis420 had been locked up in prison for 12 years you can bet his vocabulary would be no different. I’m a friend of Jacks and am very offended over zuis420 comment. You want to shake the hand of a man that shot two men in cold blood over a big nothing! Lets not forget the fact that Merle did not quit shooting after hitting Jack but continued to unload the gun waiving it around aimlessly killing Jake, whom he didn’t even know and barely missing some of the tenants. How he missed Jacks girlfriend who ran to Jacks side while bullets were flying everywhere is a miracle. Take in mind no one was shooting at him! His life was not in danger, yet he grabbed and unloaded another gun too! There was no yelling or screaming between Jack and Merle. His life was not being threatened. Merle a felon, showed up with 2 loaded riffles for a reason. Thats premediated murder! So go ahead Mr Zuis420 shake his hand and pat the back of a cold blooded killer. Forget the fact he holds no value in other people’s lives or that he is now a desperate man with nothing to lose that’s now running among us. All justified in your mind because you didn’t care for the way Jack spoke and didn’t like his mannerism! Shame on you!
conspiracynot on October 11 at 2:41 p.m.
jack lamere didnt do 12 years in prison! you all forget the 54 good days a year and he talked like that before he ever went in at the ripe age of 14 when he started his criminal behavior! And if he wasn”t probably stealing the truck (blazer} from this guy he most likely would not of got shot.or just a unfair tax from the drug dealer jack whom worked his way out of 25 to life by telling on everyone in the first place!