kevin coe defense attorney who drove into river

by May Kilback 10 min read

Who is Kevin Coe?

Jul 20, 2010 · In a dramatic 1981 trial, Kevin Coe was convicted on four of six rape counts. In a sensational twist, his mother, Ruth Coe, was arrested months later for trying to arrange a "hit" on the judge and prosecutor. She was caught on tape asking an undercover officer to turn the prosecutor into "an addle-pated vegetable."

What happened to Kevin Coe after he was convicted?

Kevin Coe is an American convicted rapist from Spokane, Washington, often referred to in the news media as the South Hill Rapist. As of May 2008, Coe is still a suspect in dozens of rapes, the number of which is unusually large; his convictions received an unusual amount of attention from appeals courts. Coe's mother Ruth was convicted for hiring a hitman against the judge and the …

What happened to Kevin Coe’s mother?

Sep 19, 2008 · SPOKANE, Wash. - As jury selection in the Kevin Coe case wrapped up for the week on Thursday afternoon, Coe's attorneys introduced a bevy of pre-trial motions in their client's defense, including ...

What did Kevin Coe say about the Defense’s strategy at the trial?

Oct 16, 2008 · SPOKANE, Wash. - Jurors reached a verdict in Kevin Coe's civil commitment trial Thursday afternoon.

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Arrest and trial

During the wave of sexual assaults perpetrated in Spokane between 1978 and 1981, many involved an extreme level of physical injury to the victims.

Mother's arrest

Three months after Coe was convicted, Ruth was arrested for trying to solicit the murder or maiming of her son's prosecutor and judge. She was convicted the next year and served several months in jail.

Confinement history

Coe served the entire twenty-five years of his sentence at Walla Walla State Penitentiary. Maintaining his innocence, he did not attend any prison counseling programs. Coe became eligible for parole in 1992 but never applied.

Who is Kevin Coe?

Kevin Coe timeline. Key moments leading to the arrest and conviction of Kevin Coe, known as the South Hill rapist.

Where is Coe being held?

16: After a monthlong trial, a Spokane County jury declares Coe a sexually violent predator, a designation that gives the government the right to hold him indefinitely at a special confinement center in Western Washington.

When is Coe going to be released from Walla Walla?

Aug. 30: The state attorney general files a petition to have Coe civilly committed as a sexual predator. The filing blocks Coe’s scheduled Sept. 8 release from the Walla Walla State Penitentiary.

How long is Coe on parole?

Hypnosis is cited in the two reversals. The decision could mean Coe is eligible for parole in less than four years, but he never appears for parole hearings.

How old was the girl who took the bus home from a rock concert?

Aug. 30: A 15-year-old girl who took the bus home from a rock concert is raped about 12:30 a.m. at 16th and Cedar. In a live lineup, she will identify Coe as her attacker.

Where is Kevin Coe's sister?

Kevin Coe’s younger sister told a Spokane jury Thursday she’s willing to help her 61-year-old brother move to Nevada and to pay for his care in a group home if he’s released after his civil commitment trial. Kathleen Coe said her brother likely will need special care because he has become deeply depressed and has “lost hope” after being detained ...

How long was Coe in prison?

The case could go to the jury late next week. For 25 years in prison as he served his first-degree rape sentence, Coe kept a good attitude, exercising regularly and looking forward to his release, his sister said. But that “changed overnight” when he was sent to McNeil Island, she said.

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1978

  • April 26: A 19-year-old woman walks home from a restaurant after a quarrel with her husband and is raped shortly after midnight in the West 1200 block of Indiana. In a photo lineup, she will later identify Frederick Harlan Coe as her attacker.
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1980

  • Aug. 30: A 15-year-old girl who took the bus home from a rock concert is raped about 12:30 a.m. at 16th and Cedar. In a live lineup, she will identify Coe as her attacker. Oct. 23: A 27-year-old woman, returning from work by bus on her first day in a new neighborhood, is raped about 6:30 p.m. in the East 3600 block of 22nd. In a live lineup, she will identify Coe as her attacker. Dec. 17…
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1981

  • Feb. 9: A 20-year-old woman drops off her son at her mother’s home and is raped three houses away about 6:30 a.m. in the West 400 block of 24th. In a live lineup, she will pick out Coe. Feb. 25: Police begin steady surveillance of Coe’s movements. March 4: Under mounting public pressure, Spokane Police Chief Robert Panther calls a press conference to announce that police have spe…
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1982

  • Jan. 8: Ruth Coe pleads innocent before Snohomish County Judge Robert Bibb. Meanwhile, Kevin Coe’s lawyers appeal his case. May 28: Bibb, who heard Ruth Coe’s non-jury trial, convicts her. She serves several months in jail before being granted work-release.
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1984

  • June 7: The Supreme Court overturns four first-degree rape convictions, in part because three of the four rape victims were hypnotized before identifying Coe as the rapist. Oct. 1: Spokane County Superior Court Judge Michael E. Donohue grants defense motion to hold Coe’s second trial in Seattle because of intense publicity in Spokane. Dec. 26: King County Superior Court Judge Patri…
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1985

  • Jan. 7: Coe’s second trial begins in Seattle. Feb. 12: Coe is found guilty of three counts of first-degree rape. The jury cannot reach a verdict on the fourth rape count.
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1986

  • March 3: Coe’s lawyers file an appeal brief with the state Supreme Court citing police hypnosis of witnesses as the cornerstone of the appeal.
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1987

  • Jan. 27: During oral arguments before the Supreme Court over Coe’s appeal, Chief Justice Vernon Pearson calls hypnosis “witness tampering of the worst kind.”
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1988

  • Jan. 28: The Supreme Court reverses two convictions and upholds a third. Hypnosis is cited in the two reversals. The decision could mean Coe is eligible for parole in less than four years, but he never appears for parole hearings.
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2006

  • Aug. 30: The state attorney general files a petition to have Coe civilly committed as a sexual predator. The filing blocks Coe’s scheduled Sept. 8 release from the Walla Walla State Penitentiary.
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