Man who died after shooting at Edmonds hotel identified

EDMONDS, Wash. — A man who was shot by an Edmonds officer at the Americas Best Value Inn and died last week has been identified.

The Snohomish County Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the man as 42-year-old William H. Houseworth II.

Houseworth’s cause of death was gunshot wounds and his manner of death was homicide, the medical examiner’s office stated in a tweet.

Officers were called to the hotel for a report of domestic violence.

When police arrived, they said a man armed with a knife lunged at them. An officer used a stun gun on him, but he continued to attack, police said.

Another officer fired their service weapon, hitting Houseworth.

He was taken to Harborview Medical Center in critical condition, but later died.

Mary Emily, Houseworth’s girlfriend, told KIRO 7 a mental breakdown led to a two-hour standoff before the police opened fire.

“They shot him instead of getting him help,” she said.

“Everything he said, if a mental health worker were actually speaking with him, they would’ve been able to identify that this man was actually suicidal,” she said.

Although Emily insists her boyfriend was not a threat, she said he likely put up a struggle with police because he was afraid of being arrested.

The Snohomish County Multiple Agency Response Team is investigating the case.

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