A 15-year-old boy charged in the deadly shooting at Seattle's Bite of Seattle food festival claims he opened fire only after others began shooting at him, according to court documents filed by his attorney. The teen allegedly pulled a handgun from a pouch and fired toward two unidentified suspects during the July 26 incident near the Space Needle, his public defender wrote in a memorandum obtained by KOMO News.
Three people were killed and four others wounded, including a 2-year-old boy, when gunfire erupted at the crowded festival outside the Seattle Center Armory. Police have described the bloodshed as a gang-related shootout that left innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire. The dead included 19-year-old Niko-Semo, a 44-year-old man, and a 56-year-old woman.
More than a month later, the teen remains the only person charged in connection with the shooting. The King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office told Fox News Digital that police have not referred any other cases from the incident. Interim Seattle Police Chief Andre Sayles said detectives have identified two potential persons of interest after reviewing roughly 450 hours of video, though he cautioned that police have not determined whether those individuals fired weapons.
"I can say that we are looking at two potential persons of interest in this incident, not saying that they are the shooters or anything of that nature, but people that we have identified that we need to have a conversation with," Sayles said. No additional arrests have been announced, and detectives are moving closer to interviews that could lead to arrests if evidence supports them.
The teen, whose name has not been released because he is charged as a juvenile, told officers "I was getting shot at" when they arrested him at the scene, according to the defense filing. His attorney, Hong Tran, said several eyewitnesses confirmed that the boy reached for a firearm only after the shooting started. Tran wrote that the teen had gone to the festival to enjoy the food and was standing near Niko-Semo when the first shots rang out.
Prosecutors dispute the self-defense claim, accusing the boy of recklessly firing into an area packed with adults and children. "There is no greater threat to the community than a person indiscriminately firing into a crowd of adults and children who only wanted to attend and enjoy Bite of Seattle," Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Logan Bryant wrote in a filing opposing the teen's release.
The teen faces charges of first-degree assault with a deadly weapon and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm by a person under 18, according to King County Superior Court records. Prosecutors also filed a firearm sentencing enhancement with the assault charge. Court records cited by KOMO News indicate his shots were not responsible for any of the three deaths.
Prosecutors said the boy was carrying a Polymer80 "ghost gun" fitted with an extended magazine capable of holding more than 30 rounds. The privately assembled weapon lacked a standard serial number and allegedly carried a vanity plate reading "1 SHOT 1 KILL." Investigators recovered at least four guns at the scene, including weapons allegedly tied to the teen and Niko-Semo, and have been testing the firearms to determine who else was involved.
The teen's attorney asked a judge to release him to electronic monitoring at his father's home, but the judge rejected the request and ordered him to remain in custody. The shooting also sparked scrutiny over the city's delayed public updates and its decision not to use the emergency alert system. The police chief later resigned after being asked to step down during a meeting with the mayor, according to multiple sources.
The teen is due back in juvenile court for a status hearing in October. Prosecutors will ask a judge in November to move the case to adult court.