Washington takes custody of suspects in Northwest killing spree

By KOMO Staff Published: Oct 18, 2011 at 10:34 PM PDT Last Updated: Oct 19, 2011 at 6:44 AM PDT
Washington takes custody of suspects in Northwest killing spree
Holly Grigsby (left) and her boyfriend, David "Joey" Pederson (right) wait before the start of their extradition hearing in Yuba County Superior Court in Marysville, Calif., Tuesday, Oct. 11, 2011. The couple waived extradition to Washington after authorities there discovered the bodies of Pedersen's father, who had been shot, and stepmother, who had her throat slit. In interviews with police and a reporter, the pair acknowledged killing a man in Oregon they thought was Jewish and a black man in California. (AP Photos/Rich Pedroncelli)

EVERETT, Wash. -- Suspected killers David Joey Pedersen and Holly Ann Grigsby have been extradited to Washington state from California.

The two are being held without bail at the Snohomish County Jail. They are scheduled to be arraigned on Wednesday.

The pair, who have expressed white supremacist beliefs, are suspected of killing Pedersen's father, David "Red" Pedersen, 56, and his wife Leslie, 69, around Sept. 26 in Everett, Wash., and, later, two other people -- 19-year-old Cody Myers of Lafayette, Ore., whom they believed was Jewish; and 53-year-old Reginald Allen Clark, a black man who lived in Eureka, Calif.

Grigsby and Pedersen were arrested outside Yuba City, Calif., when a police officer spotted them in Myers' car. Authorities had been tracking them by use of stolen credit cards and had warned police in several states to be on the lookout for them.

The two were charged last week in the Pedersens' deaths with aggravated first-degree murder in Snohomish County. Aggravated first-degree murder is punishable in Washington state only by execution or life in prison without release. Prosecutors have not determined whether to pursue the death penalty.

According to a prosecutor's affidavit in support of those charges, authorities have recovered bloody clothing, a knife and stolen credit cards that they believe the couple dumped in an Oregon trash can while on the run.

Grigsby told police she and her boyfriend were heading to Sacramento, Calif., to "kill more Jews," the affidavit said.

If true, that could be a basis for federal hate-crime charges. Emily Langlie, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Seattle, confirmed that her office had been in touch with counterparts in Snohomish County as well as federal prosecutors in other states to determine where the pair should be prosecuted.

During a jailhouse interview with the California newspaper the Appeal-Democrat, David Joey Pedersen said he takes "full responsibility" for "everything that's been reported."

He said he killed his father because he had molested his daughter - David Joey Pedersen's older sister - and an adopted cousin when they were young. He added he and Grigsby killed Leslie Pedersen because she knew about the molestation, but still supported him. He told the paper that his mother, with whom he remained close, informed him of the abuse about four years ago while he was prison. He soon resolved to kill his father, he said.

"I'm not glad he's dead. I don't get joy from it, but I do get satisfaction," he said. "He didn't deserve to be walking around anymore."

Grigsby told investigators David Joey Pedersen fatally shot his father while the older man was driving. The two then returned to the Everett, Wash. home where she killed Leslie Pedersen with two knives.

According to a prosecutor's affidavit, Grigsby told police she and Pedersen were heading to Sacramento to "kill more Jews." David Joey Pedersen said he expected to be charged with killing the "dead Negro" because "the bullet from my gun is in his head."

David Joey Pedersen has an extensive criminal history, having spent from age 16 to 31 behind bars, except for a one-year stretch. His convictions include assaulting a police officer and threatening a federal judge. He was released from prison in May.

Grigsby also spent time in prison beginning in 2006 for a variety of charges, including identity theft and unauthorized use of a vehicle. After completing probation, she served two years for identity theft. Even in prison, she got into trouble, including for assault.