Clark County sheriff’s detectives arrested a local firefighter Friday in the January death of his wife. Kevin West was booked into the Clark County Jail on a charge of first-degree murder, according to the jail roster.
West, a 49-year-old captain with the Camas-Washougal Fire Department, is suspected of strangling his wife, Marcy West, 48. The arrest follows the Clark County medical examiner’s determination that Marcy West died of asphyxiation and blunt-force trauma rather than a medical emergency, as Kevin West claimed, according to sheriff’s officials.
Kevin and Marcy West have two children, according to a GoFundMe page set up to raise money for the family.
On the morning of Jan. 8, Kevin West called 911 and reported that his wife was having seizures, according to a statement from the sheriff’s office. First-responders arrived and provided medical aid but Marcy West died.
The sheriff’s office said it took over the case at the request of Washougal police to avoid a potential conflict of interest due to West’s position as a captain at the Camas-Washougal Fire Department.
In late January, detectives obtained a search warrant and searched the West house.
Kevin West is scheduled to be arraigned March 25. The sheriff’s office said the investigation into Marcy West’s death is ongoing.
