Judge sets $1M bail for Lacey woman after police find dead body in her apartment
A 45-year-old woman is being held in the Thurston County jail in lieu of $1 million bail after police found a dead body in her apartment.
Evelyn Laine McMurray attended her preliminary appearance in Thurston County Superior Court on Wednesday, Feb. 26. Lacey police booked her into the county jail the day prior on suspicion of second-degree manslaughter.
McMurray called 911 for medical aid on Tuesday, saying she felt unwell after taking too much fentanyl the night before, according to court records. Lacey Fire Department medics responded to the scene to treat McMurray and learned from her that there was a dead body inside the apartment.
Lacey police later entered the home and confirmed the presence of a dead 39-year-old woman in a bedroom. She was reportedly bound with duct tape and a ratchet-type strap and appeared to have been dead for several days.
Police allege McMurray pointed to herself when medics asked her how the woman died.
When reached on Friday, Coroner Gary Warnock said he could not yet release the identity or cause of death of the dead woman due to the ongoing investigation.
Judge Allyson Zipp found probable cause for second-degree manslaughter, domestic violence, and set the bail amount for McMurray on Wednesday.
Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Emily Leddige had asked the court to hold McMurray without bail given the severity of the alleged crime. However, Zipp opted to set a high bail instead.
Zipp determined the court could not be reasonably assured McMurray would return to court when required, and there was a substantial danger she may commit a violent crime or interfere with the case.
McMurray has no known criminal convictions or additional open cases, according to court records.
What the investigation shows
A probable cause statement describes the investigation into the woman’s death from the perspective of law enforcement.
Lacey Fire Department medics arrived at McMurray’s apartment at 9:19 a.m. Tuesday. The medics called police after McMurray divulged there was a dead person inside the apartment.
McMurray told the medics her partner had been dead since Feb. 19 and pointed to herself when asked how she died. McMurray reportedly had a laceration on her neck and told the medics she had been trying to commit suicide since Feb. 19.
Medics and police found a bound body inside the apartment through the windows. A Lacey officer entered the apartment under “exigent circumstances” and immediately noticed a strong odor of decomposition.
The officers found the woman’s body lying face up on a bed. Her face was purple and black and there was a pillow slightly covering her face. Officers then exited the apartment.
Later that afternoon, detectives entered the apartment with a search warrant. The detectives noted that the woman’s body had blue, rainbow-patterned duct tape over her mouth and around her hands and wrists.
She also had a “red ratcheting tie-down strap” tightly fastened around her neck, according to the statement.
The detectives found the woman’s driver’s license “staged” on a nightstand and a notebook signed by McMurray.
The notebook contained passwords for the pair’s phones and a laptop as well as several different versions of a letter.
The letter generally talked about “how the world was cruel” and it did not deserve McMurray and the deceased woman, police reported.
This story was originally published March 3, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
