100 years ago in Spokane: Fay McDonald was on her way back to prison, but two of her siblings remained unaccounted for

Fay McDonald, one of Spokane’s infamous McDonald siblings, was on the way back to Washington to serve her 3-to-10-year sentence for forgery at Walla Walla.

She had abandoned her attempt to fight extradition from Beaumont, Texas. The Beaumont sheriff turned her over to the custody of Alma Sundin, a Spokane female deputy who was escorting her back to Spokane.

Fay, along with siblings Marie McDonald, Ted McDonald and Will McDonald, had previously been charged with the murder of W.H. McNutt, one of their business partners. He disappeared shortly after an acrimonious confrontation at the McDonalds’ apartment in Spokane. The McDonalds denied any role in his disappearance – until his body was found in a shallow grave near Newport.

Fay, Marie and Ted McDonald based their defense on the allegation that Will had been the sole murderer of McNutt. They said Will killed McNutt, drove the corpse to Newport and buried him it at a ranch. This proved to be an effective defense since Will McDonald was nowhere to be found. Will vanished after the murder and was never brought to trial.

Fay and Marie, however, were re-arrested immediately after the murder acquittal and charged with forgery because they tried to cash a check they took from McNutt’s corpse. Both were convicted, but both also vanished before they were sent to Walla Walla.

A Spokane detective tracked down Fay in Mexico, where she was singing in a cabaret. He tried, but failed, to arrest her. A year later, Fay tried to sneak back into the U.S., but was arrested in Beaumont when someone tipped off police. Fay claimed to have no idea about Marie’s whereabouts. Marie, like Will, was never found.