Detective Say Father and Daughter Witnessed Badger Mountain Shooting
Detectives say a father and daughter saw the man accused of murdering a woman on Badger Mountain Road Saturday perform the act, and then shoot at them.
Court documents filed Monday by Douglas County Sheriff's Detectives say the man and daughter watched from a pickup truck while 27-year-old Dalton Scott Potter shot and killed 37-year-old Alyssa Longwell.
Detectives say the father told them a suspect fired a gun at the woman from "point blank range" and described the shooting as an "execution".
They also say the daughter received minor glass injuries from a bullet penetrating the windshield of the truck they were in.
Potter's first court appearance was moved from Monday to today.
A Notice of Arrest document filed by detectives says the 50-year-old father told them he was taking his 15-year-old daughter out to learn to drive in winter conditions in their 2009 Chevrolet Silverado.
The father described seeing a lime green car he later identified as a Kia Soul driving erratically. The court document says the father saw the car stop on Badger Mountain Road at about at about Wild Turkey Road. He said their pickup driven by his daughter stopped about 150-200 feet way from the car.
The court document says the father saw an object he described as a purse fall out of the car. After that, the father said a female exited the car in a “violent” manner, making it appear she was either pushed out of the car or was pushing to exit the car.
The father then saw the man exit the car and walk around to where the woman was located and point what looed like a hand gun at her, according to the court document. The father said he saw the man shoot the woman at least three times, hearing the shots.
The court document says the father told detectives he and his daughter ducked into their truck and tried to get behind the dash while the man turned toward their truck and fired at least two shots.
The father said the man got back into the car and drove toward Waterville, according to the court document.
Detectives say the pickup had one penetration in the windshield that appeared to lineup with a penetration in the rear window of the truck. The penetration was in the area of the driver’s seat. A second defect on the truck’s hood appeared to be consistent with a bullet ricocheting off the hood of the truck.
Detectives say the evidence on the truck appears to be consistent with the man shooting at the truck and the people inside.
According to the court document, detectives interviewed the daughter separately from the father, with her description of events generally aligning with what the father said. The daughter said, based on the bullet hole in the window, it narrowly missed hitting her.
The document says the father called 9-1-1 and deputies were sent to the scene at about 5:15pm Saturday. It also says a resident in the 400 block of Ruud Canyon Road in East Wenatchee called 9-1-1 minutes before 6pm, saying a man knocked on her door, asking for a ride into town. The man then walked away from the house.
At about 6:15pm, a woman called 9-1-1 and told Rivercom that the suspect description sounded like her nephew, Dalton Potter and, according to the court document, said Dalton had a girlfriend on Badger Mountain Road.
The court document says deputies followed foot tracks in the snow leading from the residence on Ruud Canyon Road to another residence close by at 174 Mule Deer Road in East Wenatchee.
Deputies say they located a green Kia Soul near the Ruud Canyon Road residence that was registered to Alyssa Longwell and another person out of West Richland.
They say a man at the Mule Deer Road address told them Potter was inside the home, having asked to use the phone after saying he was stuck on the mountain.
Deputies say they used a PA system to coax Potter out of the home where he was placed in hand cuffs. The say they found a gun inside the home, a Smith and Wesson 9mm pistol that was was registered to the victim, Alyssa Longwell.
Detectives say they spoke with Longwell’s family in the Tri-Cities area, who told them they were not aware she was in Douglas County and had spoken to her earlier that day with no mention of travel plans. They say the family told them Longwell had a green KIA Soul, and had an ex-boyfriend from the Chelan area named Dalton Potter.
The court document submitted by detectives said Potter committed the crime of murder in the first degree Domestic Violence for the murder of Alyssa Longwell, and attempted murder in the second degree (2 counts) when he shot at the father and daughter who witnessed the shooting.
Potter was not formally charged with a crime Monday. His Tuesday appearance in Douglas County Superior Court is scheduled for 1pm.