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Bellingham: Man who killed ex-girlfriend shot himself

June 10th, 2010, incident report by jbtaylor

  • February 5, 2010
  • 2
  • 0
  • 2400 block of J Street
  • Bellingham
  • Washington
  • 98225

ZOE FRALEY; THE BELLINGHAM HERALD
Published: 02/09/10 6:10 am

Published on the News Tribune website at: http://www.thenewstribune.com/2010/02/09/1062919/autopsy-bellingham-man-who-killed.html#ixzz0qTGQW2Mr
 

BELLINGHAM - The death of the man who shot and killed his ex-girlfriend Friday morning, Feb. 5, has been ruled a suicide, according to the Whatcom County medical examiner.
Daniel Salas, 55, died from a self-inflicted handgun wound to the head, medical examiner Gary Goldfogel said Monday, Feb. 8.
There had been questions the day of the shooting whether Salas had killed himself or had been fatally wounded by Bellingham police, who apparently fired at the same time Salas put a gun to his head when confronted by officers. Goldfogel said no police bullets struck Salas.
Before he shot himself, Salas killed his ex-girlfriend, Tawnia Costan, 39, of Bellingham, in the 2400 block of J Street. According to a birth notice in The Bellingham Herald, Costan and Salas had a son together in 2000.
Costan's death has been ruled a homicide, Goldfogel said. She died of multiple gunshot wounds to the back, with injuries to her chest and abdominal organs.
The incident began at about 8 a.m. Friday when Costan and her boyfriend, Matt Donna, were looking at an apartment for her on Texas Street, said Bellingham police spokesman Mark Young. Salas blocked the couple in the parking lot because he wanted to speak to Costan. She refused and told him she would talk to him later. At that time, Salas didn't make threats or show his weapon, Young said.
Once Salas left, the couple drove to Donna's home in the 2400 block of J Street, and it appears Salas followed them there.
He shot Costan multiple times in Donna's yard before fleeing to his home in the 2800 block of Moore Street. A Bellingham Police officer fired at least one shot at Salas near his home before the man killed himself.
The Bellingham Police Department will investigate the incident up until the time its officer fired a shot. From there, the Whatcom County Sheriff's Office will take over the investigation, as is common practice so a department isn't investigating its own officer's actions.
All the information, as well as the medical examiner's report, will then be compiled for a shooting review board. Following standard procedure, the officer who fired the shot has been placed on administrative leave during the investigation. A date has not yet been set for the shooting review board.
Friday's incident is the second murder-suicide in Whatcom County this year. On Jan. 6, Sean D. Wilson fatally shot 14-year-old Felicity Boonstra inside his Peaceful Valley home before turning the gun on himself. Boonstra was the daughter of his girlfriend, who was shot and survived