24-year-old man shot himself in head after shooting Eastern State Hospital security guard, officials say

The man suspected of shooting and killing an Eastern State Hospital security guard last weekend at the Medical Lake psychiatric facility died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after exchanging gunfire with a Spokane County Sheriff’s Office deputy.

Sethaniel Bunch, 24, shot himself in the head, according to the Spokane County Medical Examiner’s Office.

The office said security guard Colleen Hendrickson-Bass, 57, died from multiple gunshot wounds. It ruled her death a homicide.

Hendrickson-Bass was a member of the Lilac City Roller Derby league in Spokane. Teammates and family members described her as a kind woman and a reliable teammate.

Tasha Bass, Hendrickson-Bass’ daughter, thanked the community for its great support since the shooting.

She described her mother Wednesday as a strong woman.

“No matter what life threw at her, she fought through it and had a smile on her face,” said Bass, a 37-year-old who lives in the Olympia area.

Bass, a former Washington State Department of Natural Resources wildland firefighter, reflected on a memory with her mother about two years ago on the Palouse where Bass and other firefighters were battling a wildfire.

Bass said her mother asked her if she could bring her anything. Bass replied that a Slurpee would be nice.

She said her mother drove from Cheney, where Hendrickson-Bass lived, to Pullman, where Bass and her fellow firefighters were camping, that day. Her mother got out of the car and gave her a hug and a Slurpee.

Hendrickson-Bass’ motherly instincts kicked in because she also brought her daughter Gatorade and a case of protein bars.

“It was an awesome night,” Bass said.

The sheriff’s office on Wednesday also identified the deputy who discharged his weapon as 31-year-old Evann Flanagan, who joined the sheriff’s office three years ago as a lateral deputy with six years of experience.

Bunch, who made statements about aliens and an army coming, may have been involved in a brush fire and shots fired inside a Medical Lake home leading up to the fatal shooting, the sheriff’s office said in a Saturday news release.

Firefighters responded shortly after midnight to a brush fire next to the Lakes Harvest Foods parking lot in Medical Lake. A caller reported talking to a man who made statements mentioning aliens. Firefighters asked deputies to respond because of a man who was yelling and acting aggressively, but the man left before deputies arrived, the sheriff’s office said.

Around 1:40 a.m., a caller reported a man with a rifle was at a home near West Idaho Street and South Lake Drive, about 1 mile from Harvest Foods. The suspect entered the home and fired several shots as the occupants inside hid, the sheriff’s office said. No one was injured.

The suspect’s location was unknown, but deputies then reported hearing shots to the west across the lake.

At 1:54 a.m., an Eastern State Hospital employee reported a staff member was shot and possibly dead in the parking lot, about 1½ miles from the home on Idaho Street and Lake Drive. The suspect took the victim’s radio and began transmitting statements about an army coming, according to the release.

Deputies arrived and encountered Bunch in the parking lot. The initial deputy on scene tried to talk to the suspect, demanding that he drop his weapon, according to a Spokane Independent Investigative Response Team news release Wednesday.

“Due to the immediate threat posed by the suspect, a use of deadly force occurred,” the SIIR release said.

Deputies closed in on Bunch, finding him dead from his injuries, investigators said. He was armed with a rifle and handgun.

Bunch appeared to be wearing tactical-type gear, the sheriff’s office said.

Deputies then responded to Hendrickson-Bass in the parking lot. She also died at the scene, according to the SIIR release.

The Spokane Police Department is investigating the deputy-involved shooting.

The case will be forwarded to the Spokane County Prosecutor’s Office for review after police are done investigating.