Woman and toddler killed, man injured in Bremerton shooting

BREMERTON — Kitsap County Sheriff’s deputies are investigating a double homicide in Bremerton. The suspect remains at large.

Officials say a 29-year-old woman and 2-year-old boy were fatally shot early Saturday. A third victim, a man whose age is unknown, was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle with life-threatening injuries.

The Kitsap Sun reported that the boy’s mother was trying to shield him when he was shot, but the mother was not hurt. The woman who was killed was a roommate.

The sheriff’s office released a statement late Saturday identifying the woman who was killed as Heather Kelso of Bremerton. She was an employee of Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and had lived in the mobile home park for three years, the sheriff said. The boy was identified as Kaden Lum, also of Bremerton. He and his mother had lived with Kelso for three weeks. The Sheriff’s office did not release the boy’s mother’s name.

Officials say they received reports of gunshots heard at the Kariotis Mobile Home Park just after 2 a.m. Saturday. When they arrived, they found the woman dead and the 2-year-old critically injured. The toddler was taken to Harrison Medical Center in Bremerton, but he later died.

The mother and boy had moved into the home three weeks ago, Sheriff’s Lt. Detective Earl Smith told the newspaper. The boy’s father lives outside Kitsap County, Smith said. The third victim was a neighbor who was visiting and was shot as he ran back to his residence, Smith said.

The man was shot in the lower abdomen and underwent surgery, Smith said. Detectives were waiting to interview the man, Smith said.

Investigators used a police dog to search the mobile home park, but the dog did not pick up the suspect’s scent. “We feel confident the suspect is no longer in the mobile home park,” Smith said.

Two other homes were hit with bullets, but no one was hurt, he said.

The Bremerton Police Department and Washington State Patrol have joined the Sheriff’s Office in the investigation.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Alan Edward Dean, convicted of the 1993 murder of Melissa Lee, professes his innocence in the courtroom during his sentencing Wednesday, April 24, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Bothell man gets 26 years in cold case murder of Melissa Lee, 15

“I’m innocent, not guilty. … They planted that DNA. I’ve been framed,” said Alan Edward Dean, as he was sentenced for the 1993 murder.

Bothell
Man gets 75 years for terrorizing exes in Bothell, Mukilteo

In 2021, Joseph Sims broke into his ex-girlfriend’s home in Bothell and assaulted her. He went on a crime spree from there.

A Tesla electric vehicle is seen at a Tesla electric vehicle charging station at Willow Festival shopping plaza parking lot in Northbrook, Ill., Saturday, Dec. 3, 2022. A Tesla driver who had set his car on Autopilot was “distracted” by his phone before reportedly hitting and killing a motorcyclist Friday on Highway 522, according to a new police report. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Tesla driver on Autopilot caused fatal Highway 522 crash, police say

The driver was reportedly on his phone with his Tesla on Autopilot on Friday when he crashed into Jeffrey Nissen, killing him.

The Seattle courthouse of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. (Zachariah Bryan / The Herald) 20190204
Mukilteo bookkeeper sentenced to federal prison for fraud scheme

Jodi Hamrick helped carry out a scheme to steal funds from her employer to pay for vacations, Nordstrom bills and more.

A passenger pays their fare before getting in line for the ferry on Thursday, Sept. 28, 2023 in Mukilteo, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
$55? That’s what a couple will pay on the Edmonds-Kingston ferry

The peak surcharge rates start May 1. Wait times also increase as the busy summer travel season kicks into gear.

In this Jan. 4, 2019 photo, workers and other officials gather outside the Sky Valley Education Center school in Monroe, Wash., before going inside to collect samples for testing. The samples were tested for PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, as well as dioxins and furans. A lawsuit filed on behalf of several families and teachers claims that officials failed to adequately respond to PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, in the school. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)
Judge halves $784M for women exposed to Monsanto chemicals at Monroe school

Monsanto lawyers argued “arbitrary and excessive” damages in the Sky Valley Education Center case “cannot withstand constitutional scrutiny.”

Mukilteo Police Chief Andy Illyn and the graphic he created. He is currently attending the 10-week FBI National Academy in Quantico, Virginia. (Photo provided by Andy Illyn)
Help wanted: Unicorns for ‘pure magic’ career with Mukilteo police

“There’s a whole population who would be amazing police officers” but never considered it, the police chief said.

President of Pilchuck Audubon Brian Zinke, left, Interim Executive Director of Audubon Washington Dr.Trina Bayard,  center, and Rep. Rick Larsen look up at a bird while walking in the Narcbeck Wetland Sanctuary on Wednesday, April 24, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Larsen’s new migratory birds law means $6.5M per year in avian aid

North American birds have declined by the billions. This week, local birders saw new funding as a “a turning point for birds.”

FILE - In this May 26, 2020, file photo, a grizzly bear roams an exhibit at the Woodland Park Zoo, closed for nearly three months because of the coronavirus outbreak in Seattle. Grizzly bears once roamed the rugged landscape of the North Cascades in Washington state but few have been sighted in recent decades. The federal government is scrapping plans to reintroduce grizzly bears to the North Cascades ecosystem. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)
Grizzlies to return to North Cascades, feds confirm in controversial plan

Under a final plan announced Thursday, officials will release three to seven bears per year. They anticipate 200 in a century.s

Everett
Police: 1 injured in south Everett shooting

Police responded to reports of shots fired in the 9800 block of 18th Avenue W. It was unclear if officers booked a suspect into custody.

Patrick Lester Clay (Photo provided by the Department of Corrections)
Police searching for Monroe prison escapee

Officials suspect Patrick Lester Clay, 59, broke into an employee’s office, stole their car keys and drove off.

People hang up hearts with messages about saving the Clark Park gazebo during a “heart bomb” event hosted by Historic Everett on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Clark Park gazebo removal complicated by Everett historical group

Over a City Hall push, the city’s historical commission wants to find ways to keep the gazebo in place, alongside a proposed dog park.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.