Thanksgiving weekend turned into turmoil for the families of at least two Eastern Washington University students. Pend Oreille County Sheriff’s investigators continue to sort out the details of the Saturday night dragging death of 20-year-old EWU student Jerid S. Sturman-Camyn.
Evan Buelt, president of the Associated Students of EWU, said Sturman-Camyn was a fellow member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity in Cheney. “I can’t express enough that Jerid was an amazing individual,” Buelt said. “He is definitely missed.” A vigil will be held tonight from 7 to 9 at the Sigma Phi Epsilon facility, at 419 5th St. in Cheney. In a separate incident early Thursday, 20-year-old Ryan J. Emery was killed after a Washington State Trooper said Emery fled as the trooper was trying to arrest him for driving under the influence. WSP Trooper Mark Baker said a trooper had stopped Emery at about 1:30 a.m. Thursday at North Wall Street and North Carolina Way. The trooper determined Emery was driving under the influence and attempted to arrest him. Baker said Emery assaulted the trooper and fled the scene. Near Whitworth University, Emery drove over a curb, flattened a tire but continued to drive away. He failed to negotiate a turn and went down a 200-foot embankment. He was thrown from the vehicle and was dead by the time the trooper arrived.
“On behalf of the Eastern Washington University community, President Rodolfo Arévalo would like to offer his heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the two EWU students who died in separate off-campus incidents during the Thanksgiving recess,” university spokesman Dave Meany said in a release. Buelt said he didn’t know Emery, of Colbert, but he offered condolences to his family. “Again, the students are just trying to understand what is going on. We honor both lives of these students,” he said. “The students and entire university are in support of these students and primarily their families.”
According to Pend Oreille sheriff’s officials, Sturman-Camyn was dragged as many as four miles behind a pickup down a rural county road. The vehicle was driven by a 17-year-old who said he thought he was being chased by an ax-wielding assailant. Wendell C. Sinn Jr., 45, the father of the teen driver, has been arrested on the charge of second-degree murder in connection with the dragging death.
According to his personal Web page, Sturman-Camyn, whose nickname is “Bubba,” was heavily involved in martial arts and combat sport fighting. He belongs to the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu club of Spokane. (http://us.profile.myspace.cn/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=238771943)
A man who answered the phone at the club Sunday night said Sturman-Camyn had been training there for about eight months. Sturman-Camyn attended high school in western Washington. He was studying civil engineering at EWU and previously attended Washington State University. On his MySpace page, Sturman-Camyn wrote that he is “known to get a little wild at times and I like to live by the motto ‘go big or go home!’?”
Buelt said he never saw Sturman-Camyn use his fighting skills in an aggressive way. “Anything regarding mixed martial arts was in the ring only,” Buelt said. “Part of his core value was self defense. He was very passionate about mixed martial arts and his education as well.” Meany said EWU has counseling services available for any students or faculty who want them.
“Obviously, it’s tragic and sad,” Meany said of the two deaths.
I'm curious how this could happen, from what I've seen of this guy, he's no weakling.
Kungfoolss
11/28/2007 12:52am,
Suspect Posts Bail in Dragging Death
By John Craig
THE (SPOKANE) SPOKESMAN-REVIEW
Monday, November 26, 2007
What's this?A Newman Lake man claimed through his attorney Monday that he was defending himself and others during a wilderness confrontation that ended with the dragging death of an Eastern Washington University student. But Pend Oreille County District Court Judge Philip Van de Veer found probable cause to hold Wendell C. Sinn Jr., 45, on suspicion of second-degree murder or first-degree manslaughter in connection with the Saturday night death of Jerid Sturman-Camyn, a 20-year-old martial arts enthusiast who reportedly had threatened several campers with an ax. Deputy Prosecutor Tony Koures said he plans to file formal charges before Sinn is arraigned later this week or, more likely, next week. Sinn was released Monday from the Pend Oreille County Jail after surrendering his firearms and posting $10,000 bail. His attorney, John Nollette of Spokane, said Sinn intends to fight any criminal charges.
"This man was operating in defense of himself and others," Nollette said without elaborating.
Meanwhile, authorities revealed Monday that the victim was dragged nearly 13 miles after Sinn allegedly attached a rope to a pickup trailer hitch and looped the other end around Sturman-Camyn's neck. Sheriff Jerry Weeks said the pickup driver – Sinn's 17-year-old son, Justin Daniel Sinn – apparently was unaware that Sturman-Camyn was roped behind the truck when the elder Sinn directed the boy to drive away. The sheriff's office said some of the eight people at a hunting camp near Ione, Wash. where the violence began said Sturman-Camyn, who was a mixed martial arts fighter, lost his temper, armed himself with an ax, and threatened others at the camp.
The office said Sunday that some people at the camp had been drinking heavily, but Weeks declined Monday to identify them. However Weeks said field tests showed Sinn had very little to drink and his son hadn't been drinking at all. Two other teens, ages 16 and 18, also hadn't been drinking, according to Weeks. Weeks said it was unclear what sparked the violence. He noted Sturman-Camyn reportedly had been wrestling playfully with his father, who was along on the camping trip with his son and others.
A preliminary autopsy report indicated the victim died of strangulation and wounds from being dragged over graveled and coarsely paved roads. His neck was not broken, nor did he suffer any spinal cord injury, according to the prosecutor's office, which also handles coroner duties. Toxicology tests to determine whether Sturman-Camyn had been drinking or using drugs hadn't been completed Monday.
Sheriff's Sgt. Questin Youk said Justin Sinn "was in shock" when he learned he had dragged Sturman-Camyn to death. Youk met the boy on LeClerc Road, about a mile north of the Kalispel Indian Reservation, after the boy called 911 on a cell phone to report he had been chased by a man with an ax. Youk said Justin Sinn pulled over to make the call about 11:35 p.m., and then drove about 1 ½ miles farther before stopping again. A dispatcher, who had remained on the line, told Sinn to stop at the south end of River Bend Loop Road and wait for Youk. Dispatchers got another call about 11:40 p.m., in which another teenager reported someone was being dragged behind a truck in the same area. "I think at that time they were starting to put two and two together," Youk said. It wasn't clear Monday who placed the second call, but Youk said it was another teenage boy who was a friend of both Justin Sinn and Jerid Sturman-Camyn. Youk said that teen saw Sturman-Camyn being dragged and raced after the pickup on a four-wheel all-terrain vehicle in a vain effort to stop the truck.
"He got close enough to see tail lights in the distance," but was hampered by dust and darkness, and couldn't catch up. The teen stopped at a house near the intersection of West Branch LeClerc Creek Road and LeClerc Creek Road to call 911. Youk said the youth was unsure Sturman-Camyn was still being dragged until he saw blood on the road. LeClerc Road, LeClerc Creek Road and West Branch LeClerc roads were closed overnight and later were sanded. Weeks said it was "reasonable" to believe Justin Sinn didn't know Sturman-Camyn was behind the large Ford F-250 pickup he was driving. There was a canopy on the pickup bed and the road was dusty and dark, the sheriff said.
The incident involved four father and son combinations, all from Spokane Valley or the Newman Lake area. They were hunting deer in a late buck season for muzzleloading weapons. Authorities said Wendell Sinn and his son, Justin Daniel Sinn, were camped on Dry Canyon Road in the Colville National Forest, about a mile north of Hanlon Cutoff Road, along with Kelly F. Cuzzetto and his son, Kurt Thomas Cuzzetto. Jerry "Scott" Camyn and his son, Jerid Sturman-Camyn, were camped about four miles south on West Branch LeClerc Creek Road along with Kerry E. Torske and his son, Dillon. Koures said an exchange of cell phone text messages between two teens, one in each camp, prompted everyone in the Camyn-Torske camp to go to the Sinn-Cuzzetto camp for a visit that ended in tragedy.
Wendell Sinn would face a standard range of 10 ¼ to 18 1/3 years in prison if convicted of second-degree murder or 6 ½ to 8 ½ years if convicted of first-degree manslaughter, according to Koures. He said the murder charge is based on a Washington law that says it's murder if someone dies in the course of some other felony – in this case, second-degree assault.
A jury would have to choose between the murder and manslaughter charges.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu / MMA fighter dragged to his death...
Gloating over the fact that this kind of story furthers your forum agenda is a classy move.
Kungfoolss
11/28/2007 12:57am,
Gloating over the fact that this kind of story furthers your forum agenda is a classy move.
Gloating? Man, you're an insecure little tyke aren't you.
Roidie McDouchebag
11/28/2007 4:50am,
Excellent.
jnp
11/28/2007 10:23am,
Gloating? Man, you're an insecure little tyke aren't you.
Meh, you're annoying. I let that get the best of me last night. I'll go back to ignoring you now.
UpaLumpa
11/28/2007 10:27am,
Would this be a good or bad time to advocate gi training?
Teh El Macho
11/28/2007 10:34am,
As long as the belt is not tied around the neck.
Teh El Macho
11/28/2007 10:38am,
Srly though
But Pend Oreille County District Court Judge Philip Van de Veer found probable cause to hold Wendell C. Sinn Jr., 45, on suspicion of second-degree murder or first-degree manslaughter in connection with the Saturday night death of Jerid Sturman-Camyn, a 20-year-old martial arts enthusiast who reportedly had threatened several campers with an ax. Deputy Prosecutor Tony Koures said he plans to file formal charges before Sinn is arraigned later this week or, more likely, next week. Sinn was released Monday from the Pend Oreille County Jail after surrendering his firearms and posting $10,000 bail. His attorney, John Nollette of Spokane, said Sinn intends to fight any criminal charges.
"This man (Sinn Jr.) was operating in defense of himself and others," Nollette said without elaborating.
Meanwhile, authorities revealed Monday that the victim was dragged nearly 13 miles after Sinn allegedly attached a rope to a pickup trailer hitch and looped the other end around Sturman-Camyn's neck. Sheriff Jerry Weeks said the pickup driver – Sinn's 17-year-old son, Justin Daniel Sinn – apparently was unaware that Sturman-Camyn was roped behind the truck when the elder Sinn directed the boy to drive away.
The text in red and yellow don't fucking compute.
If the guy did indeed threatened others with an axe, he got it coming if he had been killed in self defense.
But, he wasn't. He was murdered.
UpaLumpa
11/28/2007 10:59am,
As long as the belt is not tied around the neck.
Just think if he'd learned to properly defend a cross collar choke.
You made me spell it out, asshat.
Teh El Macho
11/28/2007 11:49am,
I'm trying to come up with a good comeback, but I can't think of one for the life of me.
"Well my name is Jerid Sturman-Camyn but most of my friends call me Bubba. I've been known to get a little wild at times and I like to live by the motto 'go big or go home!' And I think If you're gonna do something, do it balls to the wall! I go to Eastern Washington University and I'm going there for civil engineering...I think. I like the outdoors, hunting, fishing, and camping. I just started fighting out of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu of Spokane and it pretty much kicks ass!! I've wrestled since I was 5 and like to play football and I love fighting."
According to Bjjspokane.com, Jerid recently earned the title of UCF (Ultimate Cage Fighting) Light Heavyweight Champion. An October 26 post to the website reads: "Jerid took the Champ down and finished with strikes from mount in round 1 to take the title in impressive fashion." A fight schedule posted at Northwestfighting.com shows Jerid was supposed to defend his title against fellow UCF fighter Leo Bercier on December 1, at the East Central Community Center.
http://www.crimelibrary.com/news/original/1107/2801_Jerid_Sturman_Camyn1.html
Contact David Lohr at
crimewriter74@adelphia.net
Cuchulain
11/28/2007 11:59am,
I'm so confused. Why was he threatening people with an axe, and why did some kids dad tie a noose round his next to a car and tell his kid to drive 17 miles?
It sounds like it should start with; "I had this crazy dream last night"
Ryno
11/28/2007 12:07pm,
He was threatening to kill people with an axe that he had. It is unclear, but might the dad have meant for his son to just pull him away from the group? It seems that the son/driver didn't know that the guy was hooked to his truck, and just took off in a panic.
I honestly have no idea, and dragging the guy to death was not at all cool, and I can't tell if that's what the dad intended or not. Seeing as how it was a hunting party, and someone could have shot him if they'd wanted to kill him, I'm thinking that killing him wasn't the plan. Still, you threaten to kill people with an axe, you damn well better expect something to happen. Personally, I'd take that **** seriously.
Kungfoolss
11/28/2007 12:08pm,
This MMA fellow apparently wasn't too bright. Probably a common trait they all share.
Dragging victim 'out of control,' official says
Father-son playful fight reportedly turned violent
John Craig
Staff writer
November 28, 2007
Authorities say a martial arts enthusiast who was dragged to death Saturday in Pend Oreille County "just snapped and was completely out of control" before he was killed, according to witnesses.
Pend Oreille County sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Alan Botzheim said witnesses reported 20-year-old Jerid S. Sturman-Camyn had been drinking heavily along with his father, Jerry "Scott" Camyn, when the two engaged in a playful fight that got out of hand at a hunting camp near Ione, Wash. Newman Lake resident Wendell C. Sinn Jr. allegedly placed a noose around Jerid Sturman-Camyn's neck and attached the other end of the 22-foot rope to the trailer hitch of a pickup after Sturman-Camyn threatened Sinn's son and others with an ax.
Botzheim said Sinn had told his son, 17-year-old Justin Daniel Sinn, to get in their Ford F-250 pickup and be prepared to leave. Justin Sinn didn't know he was dragging Sturman-Camyn by the neck when his father told him to drive away, Botzheim said. He dragged Sturman-Camyn nearly 13 miles before stopping about a mile north of the Kalispel Indian Reservation on LeClerc Road. The incident involved two groups from Spokane Valley and the Newman Lake area who were hunting deer. The groups, camped about two miles apart, consisted of two father-and-son combinations.
Jerry Camyn and his son, Jerid, were camped with Kelly F. Cuzzetto and his son, 17-year-old Kurt Thomas Cuzzetto, and the Sinns were camped with Kerry E. Torske and his son, Dillon. An exchange of text messages between Kurt Cuzzetto and his friend Justin Sinn reportedly prompted everyone in the Camyn-Cuzzetto camp to go to the Sinn-Torske camp for a visit. Witnesses said Camyn and his son had been drinking before they went to the other camp, where they continued to drink beer and hard liquor, Botzheim said. Sheriff Jerry Weeks said a field test indicated Wendell Sinn had very little to drink and his son and the other teenagers hadn't been drinking.
Botzheim said Camyn and his son wrestled, separated and then resumed what had been a playful confrontation. "And pretty soon it wasn't playful anymore," he said. Witnesses said they calmed Sturman-Camyn, but his father "would get him agitated again." Eventually, Botzheim said, Wendell Sinn fired a black-powder rifle in an effort to separate the combatants. But Sturman-Camyn pulled the muzzle of the single-shot weapon to his chest and challenged Sinn to shoot him, witnesses told investigators.
At least one witness said Sturman-Camyn charged at Justin Sinn and others with the ax, and some of the teenagers hid in the woods, Botzheim said.
"We'll drag you out of here," Sinn allegedly told Sturman-Camyn, in an effort to scare him into leaving. But Sturman-Camyn's response was to say, "I'll take that rope and choke you with it," Botzheim said.
He said Sinn slipped a noose around Sturman-Camyn's neck when members of Sturman-Camyn's group went to their all-terrain vehicles and he turned his back to see what they were doing. Deputy Prosecutor Tony Koures plans to charge Wendell Sinn with second-degree murder and, as an alternative, first-degree manslaughter.
Botzheim said Justin Sinn "was scared to death" and "had no idea" he was dragging Sturman-Camyn when he drove away. Sinn called 911 on his cell phone about 11:35 p.m. to report he had been chased by someone with an ax, and Kurt Cuzzetto called about 11:40 p.m. to report someone was being dragged.
