Moscow shooting suspect may face Whitman County charges before transfer to Idaho

COLFAX - The alleged perpetrator in Saturday's shooting rampage that killed three and injured a fourth could face trial on felony eluding charges in Whitman County before he ever returns to Moscow.

John Lee, 29, of Moscow, appeared in court Monday at Whitman County, where he is being held on suicide watch after his arrest on the eluding charge following Saturday's shootings in Moscow.

Whitman County Superior Court Judge David Frazier advised Lee of his rights Monday, as well as the outstanding warrant for his arrest in Latah County on three first-degree murder charges and one attempted first-degree murder charge. Lee will appear in court again at 3:30 p.m. Friday to enter a plea to the eluding charge and for a preliminary hearing regarding his extradition back to Idaho.

Lee allegedly shot and killed Moscow residents David Trail, 76, Belinda Niebuhr, 47, and his adoptive mother, Terri Grzebielski, 61, at three different locations in Moscow before leading police on the chase through Whitman County. A fourth man, Michael Chin, 39, of Seattle, also suffered gunshot wounds to his left arm and left leg in the incident and is being treated at a Spokane hospital.

An arrest warrant issued by Latah County Magistrate John C. Judge at 9 p.m. Saturday requests Lee be held without bond. It includes Latah County charging documents listing the three counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder. The Latah County file in Lee's case remained sealed as of Monday evening.

Frazier said Lee has a right to a preliminary hearing for extradition to Latah County. If the alleged crimes in Idaho are sufficient for extradition, Lee can either waive the formal extradition process and be sent to Idaho or have it carried out. Frazier said the latter involves Idaho's governor requesting a writ of extradition from Washington's governor. Lee will be held in Whitman County for at least 30 days if the formal process takes place.

But his transfer might not happen until after he faces the eluding charges in Whitman County.

Whitman County Prosecutor Denis Tracy said he intends to resolve the Whitman County case - which he anticipates would take about two months - before sending Lee back to Idaho.

"At this point, I intend to keep him here while we resolve our local charges," Tracy said after the hearing. "That could change later, but at this point, that's my intent."

Tracy said Lee led police on a car chase and it is a miracle no one else was hurt. Tracy alleged Lee had a loaded rifle in the seat next to him when his vehicle left the road. He asked Frazier to impose a "substantial bail" - $500,000 - for Lee because of the situation and because there was strong probable cause for the murder allegations.

"I'm just very thankful he chose to comply with the police directive following the wreck and didn't come out with the rifle in his hand," Tracy said.

Pullman Police Officer Michael Crow said in a probable cause affidavit that Lee allegedly led police on a high-speed chase at about 2:31 p.m. along U.S. Highway 195 in his black Honda Fit. Lee was reportedly traveling at speeds ranging from approximately 60 mph to 110 mph. He was apprehended after the vehicle left the roadway a few miles south of Steptoe.

Frazier appointed Pullman attorney Steve Martonick to represent Lee. If convicted of felony eluding, he faces up to five years in prison.

Whitman County Sheriff Brett Myers confirmed Lee, who appeared in a black smock Monday, is under suicide watch and being held in an individual cell. The sheriff said it is standard procedure in cases like Lee's and he will be monitored daily for the next couple days.

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Rudd may be contacted at erudd@lmtribune.com or (208) 791-8465. Follow her on Twitter @elizabeth_rudd.