During his service with the sheriff’s office, Brown also worked as a corrections deputy and patrol deputy, the sheriff’s office said Saturday afternoon. He served with the Washington State Department of Corrections and as a reserve officer with the Missoula County Sheriff’s Office in Montana. He was a military police officer in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1993 to 1995, according to investigative records.
Brown was one of three Clark County deputies who fatally shot Kevin Peterson Jr., a 21-year-old Black man, during a planned drug sale in Hazel Dell on the evening of Oct. 29.
Shot during surveillance
Friday’s shooting — which prompted a large law enforcement response and manhunt — occurred shortly before 7 p.m. at The Pointe Apartments, in the 3500 block of Northeast 109th Avenue and just east of Interstate 205 in Vancouver.
Brown was in his vehicle conducting surveillance at the complex, when other law enforcement units in the area were unable to reach him on the radio. Around the same time, someone heard what sounded like gunshots and saw a man bleeding inside a vehicle. The person called 911, according to an investigation update issued Saturday evening.
Two men and a woman were seen fleeing the area and were pursued by officers. The fleeing vehicle crashed near Padden Parkway and I-205, and the three suspects ran, investigators said.
The county’s 911 dispatch center and local law enforcement issued bulletins Friday night asking residents to stay away from the area of I-205 and Northeast 87th Street because of the search. Area residents were encouraged to stay inside their homes, keep doors locked and report any suspicious activity to 911.
Multiple law enforcement agencies responded for the manhunt and later located Raya-Leon and Misty Raya, the update states.
Officers radioed that the two were taken into custody in a yard in the 8700 block of Northeast 76th Avenue at about 9:15 p.m. Friday. Clark Regional Emergency Services Agency reported at 2:50 a.m. Saturday that the ongoing law enforcement activity in the area had cleared.
Police also detained a woman in the apartment complex Friday night, and another person was seen in the back of a Vancouver Police Department car. Investigators have not released information about those detentions.
Witness accounts
David Joyner Jr., 44, lives in the apartment complex. He said he and his wife were having dinner when he heard three pops. He got up and looked out the window but didn’t see anyone. Joyner said it didn’t take him more than 30 seconds to get to the window. He said police started to arrive about a minute and a half later.
More information
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Suspect in death of Clark County sheriff’s detective arrested in OregonOfficers killed in the line of duty
Nine local law enforcement officers have died in the line of duty since 1922, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund and Columbian archives.
July 23, 2021: Detective Jeremy Brown, Clark County Sheriff’s Office. Brown was shot in his vehicle while conducting surveillance at an east Vancouver apartment complex. The shooting investigation is ongoing.
July 30, 2004: Sgt. Brad Crawford, Clark County Sheriff’s Office. Crawford was killed when his unmarked patrol car was intentionally rammed by a pickup whose driver was fleeing a domestic disturbance at his home.
March 2, 1987: Trooper James S. Gain, Washington State Patrol. Gain died just after he had stopped a motorist for speeding on Interstate 5 near Salmon Creek. He was standing on the shoulder when a truck hit him.
Nov. 18, 1976: Deputy Martin Sowders, Clark County Sheriff’s Office. Sowders was accidentally shot and killed by another deputy during a shootout with a suspect wanted for robbing a pharmacy.
Dec. 21, 1951: Trooper Don R. Campbell Jr., Washington State Patrol. Campbell was struck by a vehicle while directing traffic.
Sept. 29, 1932: Special Agent Ballard W. Turner, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Turner was shot while raiding a still in Vancouver.
Oct. 15, 1932: Special Agent Ernest B. Vlasich, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms. Vlasich was shot by a suspect in Vancouver while attempting an arrest.
May 22, 1927: Clark County Sheriff Lester Wood. The newly elected sheriff and some of his deputies were searching for a still near Yacolt when Wood was confronted by a gunman. He rounded a bend and was shot and killed.
Aug. 7, 1922: Deputy Wilfred E. Rorison, Clark County Sheriff’s Office. Rorison was killed during a raid on a moonshine still when he and two prohibition agents were met by gunfire.
