A Renton man, initially charged with a hate crime for allegedly saying a slur at a mother and two juveniles before he drew a gun in Bellevue, had his charge amended and his sentence suspended.
On Nov. 5, Kelly Bailey, 52, of Renton, pleaded guilty to the charge of reckless endangerment pursuant to plea negotiations. Documents state that Bailey’s reckless endangerment charge was an amended charge, which was initially a hate crime charge. Bailey was also initially charged with felony harassment, but at the time of his plea, that charge was dismissed.
At the time of his plea, Bailey received a sentence of 12 months in jail, but that charge was deferred for 12 months. However, the court ordered Bailey to serve 12 months of probation. Documents state that the resolution was reached through consideration of the evidence, Bailey’s willingness to take accountability, and his commitment to addressing the underlying causes of his involvement in the criminal system.
Bailey was ordered by the court to obtain a mental health evaluation, engage in mental health treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, take all prescribed medications, complete a firearms safety course and have no contact with the victims. Documents state that Bailey’s PTSD originated from when he was in the military and was part of a security force for a NATO general in the 1990s, and he was shot.
Bailey’s charge stems from an April 28 Bellevue incident where he allegedly almost got into a car wreck with the victims. Charging documents state that he followed them to a parking lot and then drew a gun when he saw the two juvenile victims, prompting the two juvenile victims to run away. Charging documents state that one victim’s mother stated that Bailey uttered a racial slur at them before drawing a gun, but Bailey’s sentence recommendation states that the mother’s memory of when this allegedly occurred was unreliable.
“Mr. Bailey adamantly denies using any slurs and (the mother’s) conflicting reports about when Mr. Bailey made those remarks hurt her credibility regarding that allegation,” Bailey’s attorney stated in documents. “At one point she reported he yelled the slur right after the near-miss, while everyone was still in their vehicle, driving. Later, she said that Mr. Bailey used the slur once he had gotten out of his vehicle.”
Bailey’s attorney stated in documents that after Bailey was almost hit, one of the victims stuck his head out of the window, and Bailey thought he had a gun. Documents state that the two juvenile victims said that what they were holding was a vape, and when they were searched, no firearm was found on them.
Bailey’s attorney stated that Bailey’s life experience and history in the military taught him never to turn away from someone with a gun, so he followed them, and he was about to decide to leave instead. However, Bailey saw one of the juvenile victims, whom Bailey believed had a gun, so he followed them and drew his gun, according to documents. Documents state that by the time police arrived, Bailey realized he was not in danger, he holstered his firearm and was compliant with police.
Case details
According to charging documents, at about 10 a.m. April 28, officers responded to the Chevron gas station in the Factoria neighborhood of Bellevue, 3724 Factoria Blvd. SE, for a call reporting that a man was walking around the parking lot looking for two juveniles while holding a gun. Officers spoke with the mother of one of the juvenile boys — the other juvenile boy was the son’s friend — who told officers what had happened.
Documents state that the mother said that she accidentally ran a red light while traveling north on Factoria Boulevard Southeast, causing her to almost collide with Bailey. She said she then pulled into the Chevron gas station parking lot, and Bailey followed them.
Documents state that while in the parking lot, the mother heard Bailey utter an insult at her, call her a slur and tell her that she would kill her. The mother’s son and his friend, both aged 14 years old, then got out of the car and saw Bailey holding a gun, prompting them to run inside the gas station.
The witness who called police said that he was in the parking lot when he saw two kids running, and he initially thought they were playing, until he heard them say, “He has a gun.” The witness said he then saw Bailey holding a firearm, and he looked angry as he was advancing to where the kids were, according to documents. When officers arrested Bailey, they found he had a holstered 9mm pistol with a round in the chamber, a magazine fully inserted and the gun appeared ready to fire.
According to documents, Bailey said he almost collided with a vehicle, and then he saw a Black male in the car, who pointed a finger pistol at him. Documents state that he said another male passenger then flashed what appeared to be a handgun at him.
Documents state that Bailey said that he pulled into the gas station parking lot to calm down. He said he didn’t realize that the car that almost collided with him was in the parking lot. Bailey said that he was scared to leave because he thought he would get shot, so he exited his vehicle, unholstered his gun and told the subjects to come out with their hands up. He said he then lost sight of the kids and reholstered his weapon. Bailey said that he probably did threaten to kill someone, but he didn’t remember it, and he insisted that he did not use any racial slurs. Documents state he also told officers that he had not taken his medication that morning or eaten since the night before, and had been previously diagnosed with intermittent rage syndrome. He said he would apologize if he had scared someone.
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