A 27-year-old man pleaded guilty Thursday to fatally stabbing a Vancouver woman, critically injuring a Woodland man and assaulting a police officer during a methamphetamine-fueled rampage in Vancouver’s Sunnyside neighborhood last year.
In an agreement with prosecutors, Neal Cedric Kelly of Vancouver entered guilty pleas in Clark County Superior Court to second-degree murder, first-degree assault and third-degree assault. In exchange, Deputy Prosecutor Dan Gasperino dismissed charges of first-degree murder and first-degree attempted murder.
Kelly, who is represented by Vancouver attorney Jeff Barrar, is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Suzan Clark on Tuesday. He faces a possible sentence of nearly 13 years to more than 21 years in prison under the state’s standard sentencing range.
Kelly, who is hard of hearing, admitted through a sign language interpreter that he stabbed Jennie L. Brill, 43, of Vancouver to death and assaulted Sterling Robin-Scott Shaver, then 34, of Woodland with the deadly weapon.
The attacks occurred at about 4 a.m. on Sept. 28, 2013 at a home at 8707 N.E. 89th Ave. Kelly told investigators that he was high on methamphetamine at the time, according to a court affidavit by Clark County sheriff’s Detective Kevin Harper.
He had been out of jail for only three days on a second-degree theft conviction when he killed Brill in front of her daughter and six other people, according to court records.
The rampage began when Kelly argued with Nicholas S. Hammann, whom Kelly suspected of taking $40. He suddenly stabbed Brill for no apparent reason. Shaver reportedly tried to intervene, and Kelly then allegedly stabbed Shaver, causing life-threatening wounds, according to court documents.
Next, Kelly allegedly struck Hammann with a knife he took from a sheath on his leg, according to court documents. He pulled the hair of another woman, Theadora H. Hunsinger, and threw her onto the ground as she tried to flee the violence. Hammann told police that he yelled at Kelly to distract him, so that Hunsinger could escape, court documents say.
When sheriff’s deputies arrived, Kelly allegedly threw a bookshelf at Deputy Eric Cramer, injuring the officer’s wrist. Then Kelly dived through the living room window, shattering the glass.
During an interview with detectives conducted with an interpreter, Kelly said he stabbed “a witch” who came at him but didn’t recall harming anyone else.
Neither Kelly nor the two stabbing victims were residents of the home, according to the sheriff’s office.
A forensic mental health report by psychologist Ray Henrickson of Western State Hospital indicates that Kelly’s reported symptoms during the attack were consistent with literature and reports on methamphetamine use. That includes paranoia and other delusional ideations, out of body experiences and hallucinations.
