Father: State failed to supervise daughter’s alleged killer

RENTON, Wash. – The father of a Washington woman who was fatally shot says the state Department of Corrections did nothing when his daughter’s alleged killer failed to show up for court-ordered inpatient drug treatment a week before her slaying.

Zachary Craven is on trial in King County Superior Court on two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the July 2015 deaths of his grandmother, Angelika Hayden, and his ex-girlfriend’s best friend, Meagan Smith. Craven also is accused of second-degree assault for pistol-whipping Hayden’s ex-boyfriend, Robert Luxton, six days before the homicides, the Seattle Times reported.

Craven has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Smith’s father, Anthony Smith, filed a tort claim with the state Department of Enterprise Services on April 30, the same day as opening statements in Craven’s trial.

The claim says damages for the alleged failure to supervise Craven could amount to several millions of dollars.

The state has 60 days to respond to the claim, which is typically a precursor to a lawsuit.

Craven was convicted in 2011 of killing his grandmother’s cat. He was convicted two years later of theft and felony harassment for threatening to kill Hayden, binding her hands with an electrical cord and demanding she give him $40, according to the claim.

Craven was later convicted of felony harassment for threatening to kill Hayden and her dog in 2014, the claim says.

Craven was granted a drug-offender sentencing alternative in June 2015 and was ordered to spend three to six months in inpatient drug treatment. He also was sentenced to 24 months of Department of Correctionscommunity supervision in connection with the 2014 case involving his grandmother, the claim says.

The court also issued a no-contact order to keep Craven away from Hayden and notified him he was not to possess any firearms.

Because an inpatient bed wasn’t available until July 1, Craven was supposed to report to a DOC day center within 24 hours of his release from custody following his sentencing, says the claim.

He didn’t report as ordered and failed to show up at the Maleng Regional Justice Center on July 1 to catch a bus to the inpatient treatment facility, the claim says.

“No report or violation was entered, no one attempted to contact Craven or ascertain his whereabouts, and most importantly, DOC did not issue a warrant for Craven’s arrest. In fact, it appears that the DOC did not even notice Craven’s absence,” Steve Fogg, Anthony Smith’s attorney, wrote in the claim.

Instead of reporting to drug treatment, Craven “began a weeklong, drug-induced violent rampage,” attacking Luxton and violating the no-contact order with his grandmother four days later, the claim says. Both incidents were reported to police, but because a warrant had not been issued by the DOC, no immediate attempts were made to locate Craven, Fogg wrote.

Hayden was found dead from a gunshot wound in her home, according to court records. That same day, Craven is accused of going to the Renton home where his ex-girlfriend lived with her family. The body of Smith, who was housesitting while the family was out of town, was discovered when the family returned home that night, records say.