Man and woman killed in a shooting on Sunday in Hawks Prairie have been identified
The man and woman who died in a shooting over the weekend were identified Monday as Damien Martinez, 23, and Ashley Hernandez, 19, according to the Thurston County Coroner’s Office.
Both were active-duty soldiers at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Coroner Gary Warnock said Monday. Information about whether they were from the area or outside the area wasn’t immediately available, he said.
About 5 a.m. Sunday, deputies were dispatched to an apartment in the 9300 block of Skokomish Way after the man called to say his girlfriend had shot herself. When deputies arrived, the man was found dead from a gunshot wound and the woman later died at an area hospital, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators are still trying to determine whether the incident was a murder-suicide or a double suicide. They hope medical examinations of the two bodies can answer that question, said Lt. Ray Brady of the Sheriff’s Office.
Warnock said the woman’s examination was complete and that the man’s examination was set for Monday afternoon. Exam results will first be shared with the families before the information is more widely shared, Warnock said.
Lt. Brady made clear Monday that Martinez and Hernandez were the only two people involved in the shooting.
He also said there was an “ongoing disturbance” between the two prior to deputies being called to the scene Sunday morning.
This story was originally published March 30, 2020 at 2:10 PM.
