The family of a Seattle woman who was brutally murdered last month held a demonstration at the Washington State Capitol on Sunday, calling for urgent changes to the laws governing the release and supervision of violent offenders.
Taneika Tigner, the mother of 31-year-old Kiara Sewell, led the protest just weeks after her daughter was found dead in a Seattle apartment complex. Prosecutors have charged 55-year-old Willie McCoo — Sewell’s boyfriend at the time — with her murder.
“I’m at the Capitol because I want to make a change,” Tigner said. “What this man did to my daughter was a brutal and savage act. I don’t want this to happen to anyone else.”
Court documents reveal that Sewell suffered devastating injuries in the attack, including severe disfigurement to her neck. Her hand was amputated and removed from the scene, and according to Tigner, it has yet to be recovered.
At the time of the killing, McCoo was under supervision by the Washington Department of Corrections. He had a violent criminal history, including a 2005 conviction for attacking a former girlfriend with a knife as she slept — an assault that left the woman with permanent injuries. McCoo was sentenced to 28 years in 2008 but was released in late 2024, eight years early, due to resentencing under the Washington Supreme Court’s 2021 Blake Decision.
The ruling found the state’s drug possession law unconstitutional, allowing many incarcerated individuals — including those with violent records impacted by drug-related charges — to qualify for reduced sentences.
“The Blake Decision was intended to address drug possession convictions,” Tigner said. “But it has unintentionally allowed people with violent pasts back into the community without adequate safeguards. I believe in second chances, but for someone who committed such heinous acts? No. He will do it again.”
Records show McCoo was arrested in May on a felony escape warrant issued by the Department of Corrections. He was released from custody just nine days later.
Sewell was officially declared dead on June 10. Her body was discovered five days later at the Aries at Bitter Lake Apartments during a welfare check. Police believe she and McCoo had been squatting in the building and were captured on surveillance footage coming and going before her death.
In response, Sewell’s family has launched a petition urging lawmakers and Governor Bob Ferguson to take action. The initiative — dubbed “The Kiara Sewell Act” — seeks to reevaluate early release policies and strengthen oversight for violent offenders returning to the community.
“We stand for criminal justice reform—but not at the cost of public safety,” the petition states. “This act is about balance: allowing for redemption while preserving the sanctity of life.”
Tigner says she plans to continue her protests at the state capitol until lawmakers address the systemic failures she believes contributed to her daughter’s death.
“I’ll be out here until someone hears me,” she said.
