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Homeowner appears in court on suspicion of murder

Fatal shooting followed report of a prowler

By Paris Achen
Published: January 29, 2013, 4:00pm

Dead man’s kin: ‘We just think it’s unfair’

A 27-year-old Vancouver man appeared Wednesday in Clark County Superior Court on an accusation that he shot and killed an alleged prowler.

Sean H. Doucette faces a charge of second-degree murder at his Feb. 12 arraignment.

Judge Barbara Johnson set bail at $250,000, about half of what the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office requested.

Defense attorney Steven Thayer said Doucette should be released from jail because he acted lawfully.

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Vancouver police on Wednesday identified the dead man as Iosif Dumitrash, 19, of Portland. The cause of death is gunshot wounds and the manner of death is homicide, according to a Vancouver police news release.

Doucette arrived home Tuesday from his job as a security guard, heard a car alarm and saw a prowler trying to break into a car across the street, Thayer said. Doucette confronted the man, and the man attacked him, Thayer said. The shooting was in self-defense, Thayer said.

The incident occurred at about 4 a.m. outside Doucette’s home, 14802 N.E. 33rd St.

Doucette’s wife, Rachelle, called 911 to report that her husband had shot a man, according to court records. She told investigators that her husband and the man had a physical altercation, records state. Then, Doucette allegedly shot Dumitrash with a pistol.

Another witness, unnamed in court records, told investigators that Doucette and Dumitrash had fallen to the ground during the altercations. Then, the two separated, and Dumitrash began to walk away, according to records. While he walked away, Doucette shot him, the records state.

Senior Deputy Prosecutor Camara Banfield said during Wednesday’s hearing that Doucette shot Dumitrash four times. Both the prosecutor and Vancouver police declined to disclose the location of the gunshot wounds on Dumitrash’s body.

Banfield said the shooting shows a disregard for life. She requested $500,000 bail.

Doucette is a former Marine and served as a combat engineer in a logistics battalion in Afghanistan, Thayer said. He served in the Marine Corps for four years and was honorably discharged. He receives disability payments from the U.S. Veterans Benefits Administration for an injury sustained during service. He has been married for seven years and has lived in Clark County for 15 years. He graduated from Evergreen High School in 2004, according to The Columbian’s archives.

His wife, Rachelle, did not return a phone call from The Columbian seeking comment.

Paris Achen: 360-735-4551; http://twitter.com/Col_Courts; http://facebook.com/ColTrends; paris.achen@columbian.com.

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