A gunman, later identified as Maurice Clemmons, entered the shop, shot the officers while they worked on laptops, and fled the scene with a single gunshot wound in his torso.

After a massive two-day manhunt that spanned several nearby cities, an officer recognized Clemmons near a stalled car in south Seattle.

During one trial, he was shackled in leg irons and seated next to a uniformed officer because the presiding judge had ordered extra security, claiming Clemmons had threatened him.

[11][12] The heaviest sentence came in 1990, when he was given a 60-year prison term for breaking into an Arkansas state trooper's home and stealing $6,700 in property, including a gun.

And who has in the midst of the harsh reality of prison life developed the necessary skills to stand along [sic] and not follow a multitude to do evil, as I did as a 16 year old child.

[12] As a factor in his decision, Huckabee cited the unusually long sentence for Clemmons' age at the time the crimes were committed.

[18] On May 9, a Pierce County Sheriff's deputy responded to Clemmons' home after reports he was throwing rocks at houses, cars and people.

He also told a police officer that then-President Barack Obama and LeBron James were his brothers, and Oprah Winfrey was his sister.

However, the Arkansas Department of Community Correction notified Pierce County on July 22 that they did not intend to ask for his extradition and that he should be adjudicated on his Washington charges.

Stephen Penner, a deputy prosecuting attorney in Pierce County, said of the Arkansas decision, "There's a built-in incentive to not following through.

[11] The evaluation, completed by two psychologists from the Western State Hospital on October 19, concluded Clemmons was dangerous and presented an increased risk of future criminal acts.

[9][11] After a mental evaluation, a psychologist concluded Clemmons was competent to stand trial on the charges, which eliminated him as a candidate for involuntary commitment.

Officer Tina Griswold and Sergeant Mark Renninger were first; they were both shot in the head and killed instantly while they still remained seated.

Clemmons fled the scene, stepping over the slain officers and leaving behind a trail of blood and DNA evidence.

Robbery was quickly ruled out as a motive as Clemmons stole a single service weapon from one of the four officers, but it was believed he did so as a means to further commit later attacks against other members of law enforcement.

[22][26] The afternoon following the shooting, the Pierce County sheriff identified Maurice Clemmons as the suspected murderer, saying that he had a long, violent, criminal history in Arkansas and Washington.

[27][28] An intense manhunt ensued, and police from agencies in Pierce and King counties conducted searches at the University of Washington campus, Rizal Park, and in Renton, without success.

[29] While sitting in his patrol car to report the stolen vehicle, Kelly noticed a man matching Clemmons' description approaching him from behind,[29] walking first on the sidewalk and then in the middle of the street.

[31] Clemmons had a bullet wound to his abdomen sustained during the shooting in Parkland, which had been stuffed with cotton and gauze and sealed with duct tape.

In March 2012, Lakewood police officer Skeeter Timothy Manos pleaded guilty to charges of stealing from the account, using funds for his personal use.

[43] In May 2011, Darcus Allen, the remaining suspect, was convicted of four counts of murder as the getaway driver for Clemmons, and sentenced to 420 years in prison the following month.

[44] In January 2015, the Washington Supreme Court overturned his conviction and ordered a new trial, citing prosecutor misconduct similar to the earlier reversals.

[45][46] Allen maintains that he did not know Clemmons intended to commit a crime, and believes he has been a scapegoat for the public anguish and outrage evoked by the murders.

[52][53] In his statement, Huckabee said, "Should he be found to be responsible for this horrible tragedy, it will be the result of a series of failures in the criminal justice system in both Arkansas and Washington State.

[51] Clemmons has been compared to Willie Horton,[54][55] a convicted felon who was furloughed from a Massachusetts prison in 1986 but never returned and committed more violent crimes several months later.

The Horton case eventually factored into the 1988 presidential campaign of Democratic Party candidate Michael Dukakis, who was Governor of Massachusetts at the time and supported the furlough program.

Timothy Egan, opinion writer for The New York Times, said of Huckabee's role in Clemmons's release, "If this case does not sink the presidential aspirations of Huckabee…it should.

"[50] In his book about the shooting, The Other Side of Mercy, Jonathan Martin of The Seattle Times wrote that Huckabee apparently failed to review Clemmons' prison file, which was "thick with acts of violence and absent indications of rehabilitation."

"[56] Some university professors, criminologists, and attorneys speculated that U.S. governors will become more reluctant to grant pardons and clemencies to convicted felons, in order to avoid the negative publicity faced by Dukakis and Huckabee in the Horton and Clemmons cases, respectively.

[57] The day began with a 10-mile (16 km) procession from McChord Air Force Base past the Lakewood police station to the Tacoma Dome.