Two Women Share Grief over Greenwood Slaying

The two Seattle women are heartbroken: one because her husband of more than 20 years has been slain; the other because her son is accused of the murder.

On the same day David L. Peterson’s suspected killer–a 17-year-old Ballard High School student–was ordered held in detention for investigation of homicide, the most important women in their lives were expressing compassion and sorrow for each other’s family.

“I feel heartbroken for his family,” said Kimberly Dawn Pettigrew Peterson. “I’ve known now for a week and now his mother and his family is just finding out about this. I’m sure they are heartbroken themselves.”

David Peterson

Pettigrew Peterson, the widow of David Peterson, 54, said that as a mother and a person of faith she has forgiven her husband’s killer and feels nothing but grief for his family.

The teen’s mother, Yvette Watkins, acknowledged she knows little about the allegations, but said her son had been a good and respectful student from a two-parent household who had been taught the difference between right and wrong.

She said he had taken a turn for the worst over the couple of months, but she had not seen this coming. Contrary to media reports, she said he was not homeless.

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Her son, a decorated member of the Ballard High football team, is accused of shooting Peterson in the chest while stealing his cellphone during a Feb. 23 confrontation on a Greenwood street. He was arrested Saturday at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport as he was about to board a flight for Atlanta, Seattle police say in an affidavit of probable cause that outlines the case against the suspected shooter.

The suspect, Byron White.

The boy told police after his arrest that he did the shooting, according to the affidavit.

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Under state law 17-year-old suspects facing serious, violent offenses can be charged automatically in adult court.

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According to the affidavit, Peterson had gone for a routine walk on Feb. 23, a Sunday evening,

When Peterson was near the intersection of North 85th Street and First Avenue Northwest around 8:30 p.m., police say the 17-year-old tried to rob him of his cellphone. Peterson refused to give up the phone and called 911 as the teen walked away, the document says.

When the teen heard Peterson calling, he allegedly returned and shot Peterson in the chest once, then took the phone, according to the affidavit.

Peterson was dead on the ground, and several witnesses identified the teen as the killer.

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Seattle Public Schools spokeswoman Teresa Whipple confirmed the teen suspect was enrolled at Ballard High. She said counselors have been made available for students who wish to discuss the shooting or the arrest.

The teen played on the school’s varsity football team, listed as a 6-foot-2, 190-pound linebacker and tight end. He was an All-KingCo Conference linebacker as a senior.

At his memorial service last weekend, Peterson, a former soldier, was remembered as a man of faith; someone with strong opinions, but who delivered them kindly, according to the officiating minister Dale Amundson.

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