EVERETT — A Kenmore man was booked into jail Tuesday for investigation of first-degree murder, almost two weeks after he was accused of fleeing from police and killing an elderly Lynnwood woman in a crash.
On Wednesday, the suspect made his first appearance in court. He appeared in a wheelchair via video conference from the jail.
Everett District Court Judge Pro Tem David Ruzumna found probable cause for first-degree murder, vehicular assault, attempting to elude police, first-degree kidnapping, taking a motor vehicle without permission and fourth-degree assault.
The Washington State Patrol had initially said troopers planned to arrest Robert Rowland for investigation of second-degree murder. This week, jail records listed the charge as aggravated murder — which carries a life sentence — but prosecutors did not push for what’s known as an aggravating factor in court Wednesday.
Ruzumna set bail at $2 million, with no objection from the defense.
In 2023, prosecutors charged Rowland with first-degree assault for allegedly shooting at a stranger in an apartment complex parking lot on Highway 99. In the charging papers from the case, deputy prosecutor Isaac Wells wrote the man’s criminal history “mostly has non-violent offenses, but this incident appears to (show) he is escalating.”
Last month, Snohomish County Superior Court Judge Jon Scott issued a bench warrant when Rowland failed to appear for a scheduled court hearing in the assault case.
On April 10, a day before the crash, authorities tried serving a warrant for Rowland’s arrest on separate domestic violence assault allegations, according to a police report. Rowland jumped out of a window and fled. Police looked for him that night, but couldn’t find him.
Around noon the next day, Rowland punched a woman in the face at the Tulalip Resort Casino and kidnapped her friend, a 35-year-old Monroe woman, the police report states. Authorities searched for the suspect.
At about 6 p.m., the Pacific Northwest Violent Offender Task Force held a briefing in downtown Everett on Rowland. Officials believed he was near Merrill Creek Parkway and 23rd Drive W, according to court documents. With this information, the task force canvassed the south Everett neighborhood.
While driving on Veralene Way, a deputy noticed Rowland in a GMC Sierra, according to police. The pickup had been reported stolen out of Bothell, according to police. The Monroe woman was in the car.
Rowland parked the Sierra at the 7-Eleven at 7500 Hardeson Road. Several members of the task force were already stationed in the parking lot, according to the police report. But because the parking lot was busy, authorities didn’t try to arrest him there, police said.
Rowland eventually left the parking lot and officers followed, but didn’t try to stop him. He reportedly pulled over on Glenwood Avenue, just north of Merrill Creek Parkway. While he was there, police hatched plans to pin Rowland’s Sierra.
But while police coordinated the maneuver, Rowland sped away, according to court papers. Police pursued.
Officers in marked and unmarked cars with lights and sirens tried to stop Rowland, police said. The Monroe woman later told police she begged him to stop.
The suspect briefly lost police, but authorities reportedly found him again driving east on 112th Street SW near Paine Field. Again, he sped away, according to police.
Snohomish County sheriff’s deputies pursued Rowland south on Beverly Park Road. The suspect turned onto southbound Highway 525. When Highway 525 crossed with Highway 99, he got off, made a U-turn and got back on Highway 525 going the other direction, according to police. Deputies continued pursuing.
Rowland crossed a grass median to drive south on northbound Highway 525. Once he started going the wrong way, police reported terminating the pursuit.
The suspect got excited when he saw police stopped pursuing, the Monroe woman later reported. He was looking for police behind him before crashing into a GMC Yukon, according to court documents. He was driving the wrong way for less than a minute before crashing. The woman thought he had time to swerve out of the Yukon’s way, but he didn’t.
Slanger, who was driving the Yukon, was pronounced dead at the scene. She was 83.
Rowland suffered injuries and was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, according to police. The Monroe woman was taken to Providence Regional Medical Center Everett.
Police believe Rowland was under the influence of methamphetamine at the time of the crash. A judge approved a search warrant to get a blood sample.
Slanger was a mother of three children and a grandmother to at least five kids. She was married to her husband, Gary, for 61 years until he died in 2019, according to his obituary.
While her husband was in dental school, she worked as an orthodontic assistant in Seattle, according to her obituary.
“Their partnership was a testament to their friendship and unwavering commitment to each other,” the obituary reads.
Jake Goldstein-Street: 425-339-3439; jake.goldstein-street@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @GoldsteinStreet.
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