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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Police say fugitives nabbed at motel wanted to die

A woman shot in the hand by a sniper with the Spokane County sheriff’s SWAT team during a motel standoff Tuesday morning told officers she would not surrender, according to court documents.

Bonnie Ulrick, 37, was released from Harborview Medical Center in Seattle on Wednesday and jailed in King County as a fugitive.

She is accused of pointing a pistol at officers posted outside a Motel 6 room in Spokane Valley around 5:30 a.m. Tuesday, where she had barricaded herself with fellow fugitive Eric Heil.

“The two have threatened to shoot it out with law enforcement – suicide by cop – instead of going back to prison,” wrote investigators requesting a warrant to enter the motel room.

The pair were wanted in Flathead County, Mont., on felony warrants, according to court documents. Using cellphone signals, deputies tracked the couple to the motel at 1919 N. Hutchinson Road, where they found a black Jeep reported stolen from Kalispell.

Ulrick’s arrest history includes charges of assault and weapons violations, investigators said. Heil, 32, was wanted on a burglary warrant.

When police initially contacted Ulrick by phone, she denied going by the name Bonnie, according to court documents. When asked to step out of the room, Ulrick replied she would not, that she was armed with a pistol and would shoot herself, according to court documents. She also said she would not surrender and “knew it was going to end badly,” according to court documents.

A SWAT marksman fired the shot that struck Ulrick and wounded both her hands, according to court documents. At the shooting scene Tuesday, investigators had taped off a van where a sniper was posted in the parking lot of an adjacent building.

Heil and Ulrick used a mattress to barricade themselves in the room. SWAT members used gas and took out an exterior wall in an attempt to enter the motel room, according to court documents.

Heil appeared in Spokane Superior Court on Wednesday, though the allegations against him were not discussed. The court plans to extradite him to Montana to face outstanding charges.

The Spokane Investigative Regional Response Team is investigating the incident. The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office will release the names of deputies involved in the shooting.