New details in killing of man who tried to help woman

Relatives of the man killed this week in a downtown Spokane apartment are mourning the second death of a family member since September.

Jim Johnston, 40, was killed Tuesday night while visiting an apartment above the Red Lion Barbecue & Pub, 128 1/2 N. Division St. Earlier in the day Johnston had stopped Robert T. Spencer from beating a woman, witnesses told police. Police believe Johnston was assaulted by Spencer and shot by a man with Spencer, Bryan M. James.

Jim’s mother, Bobbi Johnston, said her husband and Jim’s father, John Johnston, died in September. “Now we have to deal with this,” she said.

Jim Johnston was born in San Francisco and raised in the Spokane Valley, Bobbi Johnston said. After graduating from Central Valley High School, he lived in California, but moved back to the Spokane area about five years ago. He leaves behind a 20-year-old son.

“He was a good-hearted person,” Bobbi Johnston said.

Bobbi Johnston said that her son recently had been on hard times and was homeless because he was out of work. He had been a sheet metal worker.

James, 24, and Spencer, 41, were booked into the Spokane County Jail on Wednesday. James has been charged with second-degree murder. Spencer, 41, is charged with second-degree assault.

On Thursday, Court Commissioner Randy Brandt set bond on the murder charge at $1 million. “I do find this to be particularly heinous,” Brandt said.

James also faces two counts of first-degree attempted murder for a June drive-by shooting in which one man was shot in the leg and another shot in the torso. Brandt added two additional $500,000 bonds for each count stemming from the June shootings.

Spencer’s bond was set at $350,000.

New details of the downtown shooting emerged Thursday.

The woman whom Johnston intervened to protect, Jonna Pacello, told police that last week Spencer had asked her if she wanted to party, according to court documents. She agreed and went to a hotel room where Spencer asked her to work for him as a prostitute. She said that she refused, but was forced by Spencer to stay in the room “a couple of days” until she was able to escape, court records say.

Pacello told police that Spencer found her Tuesday at an apartment above the Red Lion and punched her head, records say. Johnston stopped Spencer from assaulting her further, but Spencer then started swinging a knife at Johnston. Johnston was not stabbed, and Spencer eventually left, documents say.

About three hours later, Spencer came back to the apartment with James, an unidentified man and another woman, witnesses told police.

Mark Lambert, who rents the apartment where the incident took place, told police that upon entering, Spencer went to the kitchen and picked up a bicycle seat post and started swinging it at Johnston. Johnston told Spencer that he didn’t want any trouble, but Spencer struck Johnston in the head with the post, causing Johnston to bleed. Johnston then struck Spencer with his hand, Lambert said.

Lambert told police that Johnston was shot soon after he hit Spencer. At least three witnesses identified James as the shooter.