This story has been updated with new information from the defendant’s June 24 court appearance.

William Russell-Leonard — the 29-year-old driver of the 2012 Mini Cooper that ran off the Edmonds ferry dock shortly before midnight on Tuesday, June 17 — is being held in the Snohomish County Jail in lieu of $1 million bond.

Two of the five occupants died at the scene. Russell-Leonard and the two other survivors were transported to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center, where he remained hospitalized through the weekend. Detectives conducted interviews with all three at the hospital as part of their investigation.

Despite his absence, Russell-Leonard’s case was heard in Snohomish County District Court on Friday, June 20. Documents filed with the court establish probable cause for him to be charged with second-degree murder, vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and attempting to elude police. The court issued a provisional order setting bond at $2 million, conditions of release should bond be posted, and ordered that his preliminary complaint hearing be continued until Monday, June 23 when he was expected to be able to appear.

He was released from the hospital in time to appear at this hearing, during which his bond was reduced $1 million and he was ordered to appear again on June 24 where prosecutors would present charges.

At that hearing prosecutors filed a formal criminal complaint charging him of two counts of vehicular homicide and one count of vehicular assault, all committed under the influence of drugs and while on release under community custody. The court set his felony dismissal date for July 11 to allow the Snohomish County Prosecutor sufficient time to prepare formal changes and present them in Superior Court.

According to police reports, the sequence of events leading up to the tragedy began on June 13, when Russell-Leonard’s girlfriend (who has not been named) was released on a weekend pass from a housing program, where she had lived while being under care since January for substance abuse. Her family gave her a car — a 2012 green Mini Cooper — to commemorate her six months of sobriety. The report went on to say that at approximately 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning June 15, Russell-Leonard assaulted the woman and stole the car.

Two days later — at approximately 11:30 p.m. June 17 — the Mini Cooper was observed by a Washington State Patrol trooper speeding southbound (79 mph in a 60-mph zone) on Interstate 5 near Silver Lake. The trooper pulled the car over, but as he walked up to the passenger side, the vehicle “accelerated away at a high rate,” court documents said. The trooper initiated a chase and immediately radioed WSP, which advised him to stop the pursuit.

A few minutes later, the vehicle was observed by Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office deputies “driving at speeds over 100 mph and weaving in and out of traffic” southbound on I-5 near the South Everett Park and Ride, and began a second pursuit. The vehicle exited I-5 at 196th Street Southwest in Lynnwood and proceeded westbound toward Edmonds. The incident ended at the Edmonds ferry terminal shortly before midnight when the vehicle crashed through the crossing gates and plunged into Puget Sound, coming to rest on its roof under approximately 40 feet of water.

Three occupants – Russell-Leonard, along with a 38-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman — were recovered from the water and transported to Harborview for medical evaluation. The two other occupants – women ages 45 and 48 years old — were recovered from the vehicle by the sheriff’s office dive team and pronounced dead at the scene.

Subsequent interviews conducted at Harborview with Russell-Leonard and the other surviving man reveal that both had been high on heroin and meth. In his report, the detective conducting the interviews stated: “Based on my training and experience, his [Russell-Leonard’s] appearance and demeanor, and the decisions made during driving, were consistent with drug impairment.” The surviving woman reported that all three women had been riding in the back seat of the Mini Cooper.

The detective’s report concludes with a summary statement in which he presented his arguments for probable cause, including that Russell-Leonard “actively evaded attempts at being stopped,” and “drove recklessly onto the dock, risking the life and property of his passengers and the general public while being under the influence of drugs.”

Court records show Russell-Leonard has prior convictions for attempting to elude police in 2019 and reckless driving in 2018.