Stabbing suspect to undergo competency evaluation

A competency evaluation was ordered Wednesday for a Washougal man accused of stabbing his wife to death.

Robert W. Burdick, 56, was scheduled to be arraigned in Clark County Superior Court on a charge of first-degree domestic violence murder. However, Burdick’s court-appointed attorney instead asked for the court-ordered mental health assessment.

A review hearing is set for July 26.

Burdick is accused of killing Linda Burdick, 49, in the early morning of June 18 at their Washougal apartment. Police say Robert Burdick held off on attacking his wife until they arrived at the couple’s residence. He had reportedly told an emergency dispatcher, “I want you guys to come here and shoot me,” police said.

Burdick called 911 at 2:05 a.m. from an apartment complex in the 600 block of West Lookout Ridge Drive. He said he was armed with butcher knives and holding his wife hostage in their home, according to a Washougal Police Department news release.

Court records show he told the dispatcher that he’d been drinking and wanted police to shoot him.

Officers responded to the couple’s residence and spotted a light shining from the window of a third-story apartment. Linda Burdick opened the window and yelled for help as officers approached the building. Robert Burdick, who was holding a knife over his head, pulled her away, police said.

When officers entered the apartment, they heard Linda Burdick yelling for help. As officers ascended a flight of interior stairs, Robert Burdick appeared at the top of the staircase with his hands up, court records say.

Police found Linda Burdick lying on a bed with stab wounds to her neck, chest and arms. A bloody knife was found near her. She died shortly before 7 a.m. at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center in Vancouver after undergoing emergency surgery.