Prosecutors declined to file charges against a teenager who punched a man and ultimately caused his death following an altercation outside an Oak Harbor restaurant July 26.
Evidence shows that it was a clear case of self-defense, Island County Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Eric Ohme concluded.
“This case is a tragedy,” he said. “Though I highly doubt that the thought crossed either of these mens’ minds, people need to be aware that being punched in the head even once can result in death. It doesn’t always take a deadly weapon for a confrontation to turn deadly.”
On Wednesday, Ohme filed his decision. It outlines the evidence gathered by Oak Harbor police and cites law.
Aaron Vandiver, a 37-year-old Bellingham man, and his friend, Samuel Woodell, were in Oak Harbor to play frisbee golf and stopped at the Jack in the Box restaurant, according to Ohme. They were sitting together at a table when a girl dressed in sweats walked by and Vandiver made a crude sexual remark about her.
He added that he was “a dirty old man,” Woodell later told police.
Raven Webster, a 19-year-old Oak Harbor man, was sitting nearby and overheard the comment. He asked Vandiver, “You know she’s 14, right?”
The comment angered Vandiver, who wouldn’t let it go, according to Ohme.
After a verbal exchange, Vandiver asked Webster if he wanted to take it outside and Webster agreed.
Vandiver was aggressive toward Webster in the parking lot, allegedly challenging the younger man to punch him in the face. Webster delivered two quick punches to Vandiver’s chin and Vandiver fell to the ground unconscious, striking his head on the pavement, Ohme said.
Webster left the scene after other people came outside to help.
Vandiver was transported to WhidbeyHealth Medical Center in Coupeville and later airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. He was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma and never regained consciousness.
He died Aug. 31.
Ohme said video from the restaurant corroborates Webster’s and other witnesses’ claim that Vandiver was the aggressor.
Webster told police that he told Vandiver, who was taller and about 40 pounds heavier, that he didn’t want to fight. He said Vandiver got so close he was afraid he was going to be assaulted so he struck the older man, the report states.
The video clearly shows that Webster was backing up the entire time, according to Ohme.
In the legal analysis, Ohme writes that he would not be able to prove the absence of self defense at trial. Charging standards require a prosecutor to consider the most likely defense and the likelihood of a conviction.
Ohme noted that the state has strong self-defense statutes.
“There is not denying the death of Mr. Vandiver is a tragic and unintentional result of the encounter with Mr. Webster,” he wrote. “However, the probability of a jury to unanimously find that Mr. Webster did not act in lawful self-defense is virtually zero.”
