Kenmore man convicted for killing half-sister, putting her burned remains in suitcase

A Kenmore man has been convicted for the brutal murder, dismemberment and disposal of his half-sister in 2016. 

A jury found 48-year-old David Haggard guilty of second-degree murder for killing his half-sister, Jamie, who was 27 years old when she vanished around June 8, 2016. 

Throughout the investigation, police had considered her disappearance suspicious. Jamie's cell phone and credit cards had not been used since she was last seen. 

In May of 2018, a litter crew picking up trash along a Snohomish County road found human remains dismembered and partially burned in a suitcase.

At the time, authorities did not know whose remains they'd found. The remains were decomposed to such an extent that sheriff's deputies could not tell even the gender of the person. A suitcase and a blanket were recovered nearby.

About two months later, the medical examiner confirmed that the remains were Jamie and that she had died by homicidal violence.

According to the King County Sheriff's Office, Major Crimes detectives spoke with witnesses who said Jamie had a "volatile relationship" with her brother, David. Jamie reportedly told her boyfriend that she was afraid David was going to kill her. David admitted to assaulting Jamie and slapping her just before her disappearance. 

The pair had fought about living arrangements at a home in Kenmore days prior to Jamie's death, according to court documents. 

Court documents say David went to extreme lengths to cover up the crime, including burning construction equipment so police couldn't get his fingerprints and texting family members as Jamie after her disappearance "because he did not want his family to worry." Court documents also say in 2019 when witnesses thought they spotted Jamie, twice, David told them it "was not possible." 

Officials have not announced a date for his sentence. A sentence for second-degree murder can range from 10-40 years in prison, according to local law groups.