17-year-old boy arrested on suspicion of shooting friend near Spokane Falls Community College

A 17-year-old is suspected of firing several shots at a car, hitting his friend, after an altercation outside a Catholic Charities apartment complex near Spokane Falls Community College last month.

James J. Atkins was booked into the Spokane County Juvenile Detention Center on Friday on charges of three counts of first-degree assault and one count of first-degree unlawful possession of a weapon, according to a Spokane police news release.

A woman told police she was out with her friends in their Toyota Camry on the evening of June 21 and parked at 1920 N. Holy Names Court, where they went into one of the apartments, according to court documents. Three of the four friends then walked back to the Camry, and the fourth person, Atkins, joined them shortly afterward.

The woman said she and her two friends asked Atkins to get out of the car, but he refused, documents say. She then got out of the Camry and walked over to Atkins, who was still in the car. She again asked him to get out. When he refused again, she sprayed pepper spray in his face and he got out, she told police.

She said one of her friends yelled “gun” several times and she saw Atkins pull out a gun. She ran back to the driver’s seat. Then, early on the morning of June 22, Atkins allegedly shot her and the two passengers.

She told police she sped off and was on her way to a hospital when the Washington State Patrol stopped her at the corner of Division Street and Courtland Avenue.

Video from the complex showed the woman heading toward the exit while Atkins ran after the car and fired four to five shots, police said, court records show. Police found three 9mm shell casings in the apartment complex’s parking lot.

The man who was shot in the lower back told police he did not know who shot him or why. Police said he was unwilling to talk to officers.

An ambulance took him to Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center, where medical personnel told police that the bullet lodged in the man’s pelvic area but did not hit any organs or break any bones.

When police learned of Atkins’ possible whereabouts, several special forces units, including the SWAT team and a Spokane County Sheriff’s Office helicopter, responded Thursday, according to the news release.

Atkins was in a vehicle in the area of ​​Northwest Boulevard and Alberta Street. He was arrested without incident.

According to the documents, Atkins has been convicted of a serious crime four times – all since last year.

Atkins made his initial appearance in Spokane County Superior Court on Friday and is scheduled to be arraigned on July 30.

According to the documents, Atkins is a suspect in a June 14 shooting at Holy Names Court. It does not appear he has been charged in that incident, which resulted in multiple shots being fired and Spokane Falls Community College being put on lockdown.

According to police, the shooting on June 14 occurred during an argument in the parking lot, shots were fired and both parties ran away. No one was hit by the gunfire.