Driver of car involved in fatal accident at Edmonds ferry dock is in Snohomish County Jail in lieu of $2 million bond

The driver came down this road in the dark at a very high rate of speed. He broke through the crossing gate, continued onto the dock and into the water. In this image, it is daytime, the long red & white striped gates are up, and the ferry is in. Photo from Google maps.

Republished from MyEdmondsNews.com

William Russell-Leonard — the 29-year-old driver of the 2012 Mini Cooper that ran off the Edmonds ferry dock shortly before midnight on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 — is being held in the Snohomish County Jail in lieu of $2 million bond.

His case was heard in Everett District Court on Friday. Documents filed with the court establish probable cause for him to be charged with second-degree murder, vehicular homicide, vehicular assault and attempting to elude police. He remains in custody pending formal charges by the Snohomish County Prosecutor.

Two of the five occupants died at the scene. Russell-Leonard and two others survived the crash and were transported to Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center. Russell-Leonard was treated for minor injuries, released into police custody and subsequently booked into the Snohomish County Jail.

According to police reports, the sequence of events leading up to the tragedy began on June 13, when Russell-Leonard’s girlfriend (who has not been named) was released on a weekend pass from The Tacoma Project, where she had been undergoing treatment since January for substance abuse.

In an interview with detectives, a Tacoma Project counselor confirmed that because the woman had “phased up,” she was able to earn the weekend pass and was released to spend the time with her family. 

Her family gave her a car — a 2012 green Mini Cooper — to commemorate her six months of sobriety. He went on to say that the woman “deviated” from her stated plan, and instead went to meet Russell-Leonard (who had also been a patient at The Tacoma Project) at his father’s house on the Muckleshoot reservation.

The report went on to say that at approximately 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning June 15, Russell-Leonard “proceeded to beat her [the girlfriend] up and steal the car.” After the assault, she phoned for help, and Tacoma Project staff subsequently found her “running down the street in the Muckleshoot reservation.” Staff brought her back to the treatment facility and later to the hospital for evaluation.

Two days later — at approximately 11:30 p.m. June 17 — the Mini Cooper was observed by a Washington State Patrol trooper speeding southbound (79 mph in a 60-mph zone) on Interstate 5 near Silver Lake. The trooper pulled the car over, but as he walked up to the passenger side, the vehicle “accelerated away at a high rate,” court documents said. The trooper initiated a chase and immediately radioed WSP, which advised him to stop the pursuit.

A few minutes later, the vehicle was observed by Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office deputies “driving at speeds over 100 mph and weaving in and out of traffic” southbound on I-5 near the South Everett Park and Ride, and began a second pursuit. 

The vehicle exited I-5 at 196th Street Southwest in Lynnwood and proceeded westbound toward Edmonds. The incident ended at the Edmonds ferry terminal shortly before midnight when the vehicle crashed through the crossing gates and plunged into Puget Sound, coming to rest on its roof under approximately 40 feet of water.

Three occupants – Russell-Leonard, along with a 38-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman — were recovered from the water and transported to Harborview for medical evaluation. The two other occupants – women ages 45 and 48 years old — were recovered from the vehicle by the sheriff’s office dive team and pronounced dead at the scene.

Subsequent interviews conducted at Harborview with Russell-Leonard and the other surviving man reveal that both had been high on heroin and meth. In his report, the detective conducting the interviews stated: 

“Based on my training and experience, his [Russell-Leonard’s] appearance and demeanor, and the decisions made during driving, were consistent with drug impairment.” The surviving woman reported that all three women had been riding in the back seat of the Mini Cooper.

The detective’s report concludes with a summary statement in which he presented his arguments for probable cause, including that Russell-Leonard “actively evaded attempts at being stopped,” and “drove recklessly onto the dock, risking the life and property of his passengers and the general public while being under the influence of drugs.”

Court records show Russell-Leonard has prior convictions for attempting to elude police in 2019 and reckless driving in 2018.

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Occupants of the vehicle:

1. William G. Leonard, male age 29, driver, from Tulalip - injured
2. Jose Serrano, male age 38, passenger, from Federal Way - injured
3. Licia T. Gonzalez, female age 30, passenger, from Auburn - injured
4. Melanie E. Ross, female age 48, passenger, from Auburn - deceased
5. Portsha C. Sapp, female age 45, passenger, from Lakewood - deceased