A man who has been charged in connection with the drive-by shooting death of a Kent baby girl received a 46-month prison sentence in U.S. District Court in Seattle for a separate crime involving the illegal possession of a firearm.
DeMartrae (Marty) L. Kime, 24, whose hometown listings on court records include Auburn and Seattle, was sentenced Jan. 15 for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm in connection with an October 2014 Seattle incident.
“I take this case very seriously because you armed yourself and had drugs in the car,” U.S. District Judge Robert S. Lasnik said at the sentencing, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office media release.
King County prosecutors filed a second-degree murder charge last month against Kime for the death of 1-year-old Malijah Grant in April in Kent.
“This case exemplifies the need to keep firearms out of the hands of convicted felons,” said U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes about the illegal gun possession charge. “This defendant used a gun to threaten people who simply walked past his car at a gas station. I commend the witness who not only alerted police, but helped identify this defendant so he could be held accountable.”
According to records filed in the case, Kime was pulling his car into a gas station at 700 12th Ave., in Seattle as three people were leaving the parking lot to get into a ride share vehicle. Kime rolled down his window, pointed a black handgun at the three and told them, “Don’t come up on my car like that homey.”
After getting into the ride share car, one of the victims called 911, and described Kime and his car. Seattle police responded and took Kime into custody while he was pumping gas into his car.
One of the victims left the concert he was attending in downtown Seattle to return to the scene and identify Kime as the person who pointed the gun at him. At the time of his arrest, Kime had a dozen small packages of cocaine in his pocket. After getting a search warrant, police located a Taurus .45 caliber pistol in the glove compartment of the car that matched the description provided by the victims.
Kime is prohibited from possessing firearms because of his convictions for theft (2013), assault (2012) and robbery (2010).
After his October 2014 arrest, Kime was released pending state charges. He failed to appear and was later charged with armed robbery in Oregon. Kime was charged June 8 in federal court and was taken into federal custody in the Western District of Washington on June 12.
Last month, the King County prosecutors filed a second-degree murder charge, two counts of assault and one count of unlawful possession of a firearm against Kime in connection with the April 16 drive-by shooting death of Grant. The child was in the back seat of her mother’s car when a gunman in a dark colored sedan opened fire on Lake Fenwick Road.
Kent Police described the killing as a gang retaliation shooting, with the apparent target Grant’s father, who rode in the front passenger seat of the vehicle. Federal officials will transfer Kime to state custody on the King County charges. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Jan. 25 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent.
Kime also faces an armed robbery charge in Oregon.
