Police shoot, kill one suspect in Apple Tree Inn homicide; other suspect arrested

Police shot and killed a man early Wednesday who they believe is a suspect in a weekend homicide at a north Spokane motel and arrested a second suspect.

Spokane police converged on the 1800 block of West Carlisle Avenue at about 11 p.m. Tuesday. They discovered that a person thought to be involved in the killing of 41-year Adam Stallings on Sunday night at the Apple Tree Inn over the weekend was staying at a house on the street, the department said in a news release.

Stallings, 41, was stabbed to death Sunday at the motel located at 9508 N. Division St. Law enforcement responded to reports of screaming inside one of the rooms and entered to find Stallings dead. No arrests were made at the time but the department’s assistant chief of investigations, Dave Singley, told The Spokesman-Review police “have been working nonstop.”

When police arrived at West Carlisle Avenue more than two days later to make contact with the suspect, they discovered he was armed, according to the news release. The Spokane Police Hostage Negotiation Team tried to communicate with the man but he was largely uncooperative and was seen leaving and entering a home several times with what looked like a firearm in his hands, the release said.

The suspect eventually tried to run through neighboring yards and breach the police’s perimeter. He encountered officers while he was carrying “what appeared to be a long gun” and police shot him, the department wrote in the release. Officers administered first aid but the man was pronounced dead at the scene. Spokane Police Officer Daniel Strassenberg said the man was shot around 1:45 a.m., nearly three hours after police initially responded to the location. No one else was injured.

Jail records indicate police arrested a second suspect in the motel stabbing just after midnight Wednesday. Johnathan J. Woodcock, 27, is accused of second-degree murder in Stallings’ death, court records show.

A woman staying in the motel with Stallings told police he was selling drugs and people were stopping by the room to purchase them, according to court records. She was in the shower when she heard a “commotion,” opened the door and found Stallings being attacked by two men. One had a shotgun, she told police.

Investigators were able to track Woodcock through surveillance footage of him and his truck, court records say. Woodcock made his first appearance in court Wednesday. He is being held on a $1 million bond.

The location of Wednesday’s police shooting was across the street from Audubon Elementary. The school sent parents and staff an email around 8 a.m. Wednesday alerting them of the police activity in the area.

“There is no danger to students, staff, or families. The corner of Carlisle and Elm is temporarily closed. Families may still drop students off at their scheduled locations. If you have any questions, please contact the school office.” the email said.

The Spokane Independent Investigative Response team, made up of multiple law enforcement agencies in the area, will investigate the shooting. The officers who discharged their firearms during the response were placed on administrative leave while the investigation is conducted, per city policy.

The name of the person shot by police will be released by the Spokane County Medical Examiner’s Office at a later date.