SPD investigating ‘apparent murder-suicide' at Madison Park retirement center

A husband and wife are dead in an “apparent murder-suicide” Wednesday afternoon at a retirement center in Madison Park, police said.

Officials responded to Parkshore Senior Living Community, located in the 1600 block of 43rd Avenue East, shortly before 1 p.m. to investigate reports of two people found dead in an apartment.

The bodies of a man and a woman in their 80s were found in an apartment by a staff member who was checking on the unit, Detective Mark Jamison with Seattle police said.

“It’s a shock. You just sort of gasp. You don’t think about that happening in your community. We all are close to one another, we are concerned about one another, so it was really very, very sad” said Joan Booms, a Parkshore resident.

Several neighbors said the couple mostly kept to themselves. Blooms said the husband would bring his wife breakfast every day.

One woman who was visiting her mother at the residence said what happened didn’t surprise her.

“There aren’t a lot of opportunities for people to remove themselves from this world when you realize that it may not be getting any better or you’re in pain. There just aren’t a lot of choices that can be made,” said Cindy Bouldin, at Parkshore Wednesday night. “I can understand there might be some choices you make to make to end things sooner,” she said.

The incident is under investigation and the medical examiner will determine the cause of death. Det. Jamison said they don’t believe there are any outstanding suspects.

Parkshore provided KIRO 7 with this statement:

"There has been a fatal incident at Parkshore involving two people.  We are working with the Seattle PD to investigate the incident.  The incident involves a husband and wife.  The deceased were longtime residents of Parkshore.  Our thoughts and prayers are with their family, their friends, fellow residents and team members at Parkshore.   Parkshore is a very safe community and we are all in shock and disbelief.  We ask for the respect and privacy of the family, our residents and team members throughout this difficult time."

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