Families to ask that Wah Mee convict be kept behind bars
The pain of Seattle's deadliest mass shooting will be revisited this morning as relatives of the victims of the Wah Mee Massacre ask the state parole board not to allow one of those convicted to take a big step closer to freedom.
Tony Ng, who was convicted of 13 counts of first-degree robbery and one count of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon for his role in the 1983 robbery and slaying of 13 victims at the Wah Mee gambling club, was sentenced to a maximum of life in prison for most of the robbery counts.
Under the state's old sentencing guidelines, Ng was ordered to serve some of the sentences concurrently and some consecutively. As Ng completed sentences for each count, he began serving time for the next.
Ng is now serving time for the second-to-last count. This month, the state's Indeterminate Sentence Review Board will consider granting Ng parole, which would allow him to begin serving time for the final count. He could then be eligible for release from prison within a few years.
For those who lost relatives in the shooting, testifying at today's hearing is a major step, since many have preferred over the years to maintain a public silence over the killings. The shooting thrust Seattle's Chinese community into a national spotlight and, many community members believe, promulgated stereotypes that worsened the hurt inflicted by the massacre.
"They don't want to have to revisit this painful time," said Dan Satterberg, chief of staff for King County Prosecuting Attorney Norm Maleng, who invited family members to the hearing and is opposing parole. "None of them want to do this. But they're willing to endure the trauma because they feel so strongly that they don't want him released."
At least 10 family members are expected to attend the hearing, scheduled for 9 a.m. on the fourth floor of the King County Courthouse.
After more than two decades, the Wah Mee Massacre remains the deadliest crime in Seattle's history.
Just before midnight on Feb. 18, 1983, three men entered the Wah Mee, an exclusive social club in the Chinatown International District, hog-tied the 14 occupants, robbed them and shot them in the head. Thirteen of the victims died.
Two of the men, Kwan Fai "Willie" Mak and Benjamin Ng (no relation to Tony Ng), were convicted of multiple counts of murder and are serving life sentences. A jury acquitted Tony Ng of murder but found him guilty of less-serious charges of robbery, which is why he is eligible for parole.
Satterberg said the fact that Ng is up for parole points out the insufficiencies of the state's old sentencing scheme. "We think he needs to be incarcerated for a much longer period of time," he said.
Under the current laws, Ng would face a minimum sentence of about 80 years for his convictions, Satterberg said.
Board members will consider several factors when deciding whether to grant parole, including public safety, Ng's behavior while in prison, his attitude toward his crimes, and testimony and letters from the victims' relatives and from Ng's family, said Board Chair Jeralita Costa.
The board generally conducts a review of cases every two years. Ng received parole from robbery convictions in 1988, 1992, 1995, 1999 and 2003. Once, in 1994, he was found not eligible for parole, according to the state Office of Crime Victims Advocacy.
Natalie Singer: 206-464-2704