Escapee Convicted In 1993 Murder
EVERETT - A man who escaped from Western State Hospital while awaiting trial was convicted yesterday of first-degree murder in a 1993 stabbing death.
A Snohomish County Superior Court jury deliberated less than two hours before returning the verdict against Isaiah Enault, 26, in the death of 39-year-old Bradley Wandler on June 21, 1993.
Yesterday, attorneys had wrapped up their arguments in Enault's trial, which began Oct. 16, and turned his fate over to the jury of five men and eight women.
Enault maintained the killing was self-defense after he went home with Wandler.
Enault told the jury Tuesday he fell asleep on Wandler's couch and was awakened when Wandler sexually assaulted him. Enault said he tried to stop Wandler and stabbed him after Wandler injured him.
Defense attorney Jett Whitmer called Wandler's death tragic but said the prosecution's version of the facts left reasonable doubt about the circumstances of the killing.
"You must apply the law to the facts and find him not guilty of both first-degree murder and second-degree murder," Whitmer said.
However, Snohomish County Deputy Prosecutor Rebecca Quirk scoffed at Enault's version of the killing and his contention of self-defense. She told the Superior Court jury Enault had given several versions of events since his arrest.
The first time Enault mentioned self-defense was in 1995, more than two years after the incident, she said.
Quirk said a bloody handprint on a sliding-glass door at Wandler's home indicated he had tried to escape his attacker. Other blood evidence indicated Wandler was stabbed when he was on the ground and even after he was dead or nearly dead, Quirk told jurors.
Quirk also focused on a 12-inch neck and head wound that she said could have been made only if the victim were attacked from behind. "The person who cut Mr. Wandler in that fashion intended to kill," she said.
In November 1993, before he could be put on trial, Enault escaped from Western State Hospital, where he was being evaluated for his competency to stand trial.
Last July, Enault was found in a Tampa, Fla., jail, where he was being held on charges of prostitution and resisting arrest.
A former cellmate turned him in after recognizing Enault from the television show "America's Most Wanted." He later was returned to Snohomish County.