Michael D. Thomas, 52, was shot to death on 9/20/06 by a man they who was already being sought in a random shooting in Denver two days earlier. Thomas was on a lunch break during a daylong training exercise when he was shot in the left side while waiting for the light to change on Peoria Street at Montview Boulevard. It wasn’t clear whether the suspect realized that Thomas was a police officer. Thomas was on duty at the time but wearing civilian clothes in his own personal vehicle.
Brian Allen Washington has a lengthy adult arrest history going back to January 1999 for speeding in Douglas County. He also had traffic citations for not having insurance and driving without a license in 1999. In November 1999 he was arrested in Aurora for possession of less than an ounce of marijuana. He pleaded guilty and was ordered to pay a fine of about $200.00. In 2001, Denver Police found a bag of what they suspected was crack cocaine and a bag of marijuana in his car, and he was charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance. Later that year Washington pleaded guilty to possession of Valium and was sentenced to a two-year deferred judgment with supervised probation. Washington failed drug tests for marijuana or failed to show up for drug tests at least eight times. In 2003 Washington was sentenced to two years in prison because of violations. Washington was arrested in January of 2006 in Adams County on charges of possession of marijuana and driving with a revoked license. He was wanted on a warrant for failure to appear in court on those charges when he was stopped in August of 2006 in Denver. Officers found a large bag of marijuana between the passenger seat and passenger door and a search of the car also turned up a loaded 9 mm handgun under the passenger seat. Three days later, Washington faced two felony charges and a $25,000 bond, court records show. By the end of the day, the felonies had been dropped by the Denver District Attorney’s Office and Washington had been released after plea – bargaining four old traffic violations which he had previously failed to appear in court. Washington agreed to a plea bargain that gave him 180 days in jail – although 135 of those were suspended and 40 were to be spent on home detention. He served five days. Washington still hadn’t gone on home detention because – continuing a pattern – he failed to appear for his appointment with a probation officer to be fitted with an ankle bracelet. Washington is being held without bond and facing first degree murder in the connection of Officer Thomas’ death. Washington was charged on September 21, 2006 with 1st degree murder. On September 25, 2006 he was charged with seven additional charges of
but acquitted him of a more serious first-degree murder charge
