Stevens County deputy shoots man accused of attacking assistant prosecutor with machete

A deputy with the Stevens County Sheriff’s Office shot and killed a man who attacked him with the same machete the man allegedly used to attack a district attorney the previous Friday.

According to a Facebook post from the sheriff’s office, the man attacked the prosecutor, identified by Stevens County District Attorney Erika George as N. Smith “Smitty” Hagopian, Friday afternoon as Hagopian walked to his car near the courthouse.

George said the suspect spotted Hagopian, drove up to him in a van, got out and attacked him. She said she believes the suspect tried to slit Hagopian’s throat, but the prosecutor dodged, resulting in the long gash on his face that required about 30 stitches.

“It is extremely concerning that the prosecutor has been targeted for doing his job,” George said.

Hagopian, Stevens County’s chief deputy prosecutor, provided law enforcement with information identifying the suspect and his vehicle, the sheriff’s office said.

A short time later, a deputy spotted the suspect’s vehicle in a gravel parking lot north of Colville. As the deputy exited his patrol car, the suspect exited his vehicle with the machete and attacked the deputy.

“The deputy was forced to shoot the suspect,” the sheriff’s office said.

First responders provided medical assistance, but the suspect died.

George and Hagopian knew the suspect and were working on his case on Monday, George said.

She said the suspect, whose identity she declined to disclose because of the investigation into the deputy’s shooting, was acquitted last year in a single-judge trial on charges of holding a machete while threatening to kill. However, the suspect was convicted of harassment and released from prison. George was the prosecutor in that case.

In that incident, George said, the defendant told police officers they had to kill him. But officers de-escalated the situation and took him into custody.

George said the defendant was arrested this winter on a warrant for violating probation. He was sentenced to community service and released from prison in February.

She said he never completed his community service and was taken to prison on Monday.

George appeared virtually for Monday’s court hearing while Hagopian was present in the courtroom. The defendant received credit for time served since his February arrest and was released the same day.

George said the defendant hung around the courthouse after his release and looked into the windows.

Hagopian was treated at Providence Mount Carmel Hospital in Colville and is expected to make a full recovery, according to the sheriff’s office.

George said he was released from hospital on Friday and was in “good spirits.”

She said Hagopian has been practicing law for more than 30 years and came to the Stevens County District Attorney’s Office from Douglas County about a year ago. Hagopian is running this year for a judgeship on the Superior Court, which serves Ferry, Pend Oreille and Stevens counties.

George said the prosecutor’s office was extremely “shaken” by the incident but had received support from the sheriff’s office and the community.

She said that in a small county they were not used to such violence, but “we all know the dangers associated with what we do.”

The investigation is being conducted by the Northeast Washington Independent Investigation Team. The lead investigative agency is the Washington State Patrol.