Suspect in fatal stabbing of trans student charged with first-degree murder
Juniper Blessing (left), suspect Christopher Leahy (right) (Santa Fe New Mexican / Courtesy Photo | X @SeattlePD)
Prosecutors charged 31-year-old Christopher Michael Leahy on Monday (18 May) with first-degree murder in the fatal stabbing of 19-year-old University of Washington student Juniper Blessing, alleging he acted with “premeditated intent”.
Blessing, a transgender student who was studying within UW’s Department of Atmospheric and Climate Science, was found dead in a laundry room at the Nordheim Court apartment complex on 10 May after being stabbed more than 40 times, according to the medical examiner.
New court documents reviewed by KOMO News allege that Leahy had attempted to enter private homes and campus buildings in Seattle’s Ravenna neighbourhood in the days leading up to Blessing’s killing.
In the charging document, reviewed by The Stranger, prosecutors say Leahy allegedly stalked another UW student through a multi-building apartment complex before following her into the same building where Blessing’s body was later found.
Leahy turned himself in to police on 13 May after surveillance images were released publicly, with his family reportedly accompanying him to surrender. He is currently being held on a $10million bail.
At this time, prosecutors say there is no evidence indicating that Blessing was targeted because she was transgender, though the case has deeply shaken LGBTQ+ communities in Seattle and beyond. “Today and every day, we remain focused on our Juniper, whose loving spirit has no bounds,” Blessing’s family said in a statement. “Juniper was a beautiful human being with a heart full of love, tolerance, talent, determination and intellectual curiosity that was a light in our world and to the world at large.”
Friends and loved ones have remembered Blessing as deeply kind, talented, and compassionate. A 2024 graduate of the New Mexico School for the Arts, she was passionate about meteorology, singing, and video games, and had already become a cherished member of the UW community before her passing.
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