Man, 19, slain trying to aid friend
Three facing murder charges
A 19-year-old Spokane man was killed Tuesday night after he stepped into a fight someone else started.
Andrew Michael Lyng was stabbed in the chest outside the home he was staying at on West Augusta Avenue during an altercation involving four other men.
Three of those men, Robert Waters and brothers Joseph and Christopher Harper, are facing second-degree murder charges for Lyng’s death, said Spokane police Lt. Dave McGovern.
The incident began about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday when the fourth man, who has not been identified, confronted 24-year-old Joseph Harper at his apartment at 1008 W. Spofford Ave., said Spokane police Sgt. Joe Peterson. Police said Harper’s girlfriend had told the man that Harper had struck her.
Christopher Harper and Waters, both 27, who were in an upstairs apartment, heard the commotion and joined the altercation, Peterson said. The unidentified man fled to his home – the same house where Lyng was staying – about a block away on Augusta, and the three others soon followed, police say.
The Harper brothers and Waters told the man to come out to finish the fight. When the altercation continued, Lyng tried to help his friend and was stabbed, Peterson said.
The Harpers and Waters turned themselves in at the Spokane Police Department about 4:30 a.m. Wednesday, Peterson said.
Police say the story is practically a repeat of the homicide of 22-year-old Shannon Cochran, who died Jan. 16 in the 1600 block of East Garland Avenue as he tried to prevent an attack.
Detectives searched the home on Spofford Wednesday where they found some bloody clothes and a small amount of pot, McGovern said.
The knife used in the stabbing was found under the Maple Street Bridge, McGovern said. The suspects allegedly told police they tried to throw it in the Spokane River as they drove across the bridge, but later realized they weren’t over water when they threw it. The knife was found on the ground below.
The Harpers each have a criminal history. Joseph Harper has had convictions for robbery, assault and drug possession. Christopher Harper’s history includes gun possession, domestic violence and harassment, according to court records.