27-year sentence in 2009 killing of Ballard store clerk
SEATTLE - The teenager who killed a clerk at a Ballard convenience store in 2009 was sentenced Friday to 27 years in prison.
Elijah S. Hall, 19, received the sentence in King County Superior Court. He was convicted in October of first-degree murder.
Prosecutors said Hall shot and killed Manish Melwani during a July 26, 2009, robbery at the Pit Stop Express in the 5700 block of 15th Avenue NW.
Melwani was working in the back room when Hall, wearing a bandana to cover part of his face, entered the store at 6:28 a.m., according to court documents. Hall walked to the register and attempted to open it for several minutes.
When Melwani came out of the back room and spotted the man, he walked toward him, detectives said. Hall then pulled out a handgun and pointed it at the clerk.
When Melwani tried to grab him, Hall fired two shots at him, investigators said. After being shot, Melwani wrestled Hall to the front counter and held him down for nearly a minute before Hall managed to free himself and run out of the store, the document said.
The 28-year-old clerk was rushed to Harborview Medical Center with gunshot wounds to the abdomen and thigh. He died shortly afterward.
Despite being 17 years old at the time of the shooting, Hall was tried as an adult.
Elijah S. Hall, 19, received the sentence in King County Superior Court. He was convicted in October of first-degree murder.
Prosecutors said Hall shot and killed Manish Melwani during a July 26, 2009, robbery at the Pit Stop Express in the 5700 block of 15th Avenue NW.
Melwani was working in the back room when Hall, wearing a bandana to cover part of his face, entered the store at 6:28 a.m., according to court documents. Hall walked to the register and attempted to open it for several minutes.
When Melwani came out of the back room and spotted the man, he walked toward him, detectives said. Hall then pulled out a handgun and pointed it at the clerk.
When Melwani tried to grab him, Hall fired two shots at him, investigators said. After being shot, Melwani wrestled Hall to the front counter and held him down for nearly a minute before Hall managed to free himself and run out of the store, the document said.
The 28-year-old clerk was rushed to Harborview Medical Center with gunshot wounds to the abdomen and thigh. He died shortly afterward.
Despite being 17 years old at the time of the shooting, Hall was tried as an adult.
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