Arrest Made In Suspicious Death Investigation From January In Washougal - 03/22/24
On January 8th, 2024, at 4:27 am, the Camas-Washougal Fire Department (CWFD) and Washougal Police Department (WPD) responded to a residence on 34th Street in Washougal, WA, for an adult female in medical distress. Kevin West (49) reported that his wife, Marcelle (Marcy) West (48), was having a seizure. Within minutes, he advised the dispatcher that she had stopped breathing and that he was initiating CPR. Medics arrived and attempted life-saving measures, but resuscitation efforts were not successful. Marcy West’s time of death was pronounced at 5:11 am. WPD and the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office began a death investigation.
In the following days, several people contacted local authorities with concerns about Kevin and Marcy’s potential relationship issues and worries that her death may not have been natural. The autopsy revealed indications of trauma to Marcy’s neck. A criminal investigation was initiated.
On January 11th, 2024, WPD Detectives met with Clark County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) Detectives and briefed them about the initial incident and their investigation. WPD requested that CCSO take over the criminal investigation to avoid any possible conflicts of interest, as Kevin West is employed by the Camas-Washougal Fire Department. Based on those concerns, CCSO took over the investigation from WPD.
Over the next several weeks, CCSO MCU Detectives began conducting interviews with collateral witnesses and interviewed Kevin West multiple times. They reviewed body-worn camera (BWC) footage from the WPD officers who responded to the scene and reviewed photos from the original death investigation. Detectives learned that Marcy and Kevin were alone at the residence at the time of Marcy’s death.
On January 31st, 2024, MCU Detectives served search warrants to conduct searches of the West residence, cell phones, and online service providers.
Detectives continued their investigation of information obtained through the search warrants while awaiting a determination on a cause of death by the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office. Through their investigation, Detectives learned that Kevin and Marcy were experiencing marital and financial problems. Based on a comparison of interviews with Kevin and the evidence found at the house and contained in Kevin and Marcy’s cellphones, it appears that Kevin had given detectives contradictory statements.
On March 20th, 2024, the medical examiner declared the Cause of Death as Asphyxia with blunt trauma to the neck and the Manner of Death as Homicide. On March 22nd, 2024, CCSO MCU Detectives arrested Kevin West and booked him into the Clark County Jail on a charge of Murder in the 1st Degree. The investigation is active and ongoing.