Greenwood community walks in memory of David Peterson

SEATTLE — Dozens of people walked Sunday night through the area of Greenwood where David Peterson was murdered three weeks ago.

Police said 54-year-old Peterson was shot by 17-year-old Byron White, who tried to rob him of his cell phone.

Peterson’s wife, Kimberly, was among the group starting the vigil and walk from Green Bean Coffee.

“I’m so thankful that [Bryon White] is behind bars, that he’s not able to do this to anybody else,” Kimberly Peterson said.

She told KIRO 7 she doesn’t necessarily get emotional upon seeing where her husband was killed, but she does tear up when people tell her how they loved him.

She said the hardest part of the last three weeks was “Not seeing him again, waiting for him to come back in the front door.”

She also acknowledges the support she has received from the community is overwhelming. She believes the attention to this story is what helped police arrest a suspect.

Some of the walkers witnessed the moments right after the murder.

Steven Ross said he was having dinner nearby and would have run across the suspect had he crossed the parking lot to Fred Meyer just a minute later.

“You just think, it’s like sliding doors. You make one decision, and that could affect your life,” Ross said.

The event was organized by Sanctuary Church, who runs Green Bean Coffee Shop. Summer Mohrlang, a pastor at the church, said the coffee shop was burned by an arsonist five years ago.

Mohrlang said the community rallied after that event, and she hoped it would rally again in support of the Peterson family.

“We are not afraid. This does not define how we live in this neighborhood,” Mohrlang said.

KIRO