Updated: Murder, attempted murder charges from ‘22 refiled in Sequim cases

Published 4:20 pm Monday, January 5, 2026

Updated Jan. 8, 2026.

Bret Allen Kenney, 37, of Sequim faces refiled charges for allegedly killing his mother and assaulting a Sequim police officer in May 2022.

He appeared in Clallam County Superior Court on Monday, Jan. 5 with Judge Brent Basden setting no bail for Kenney on charges of first-degree premeditated murder and attempted second-degree murder.

Kenney had been in Western State Hospital in Lakewood since he was deemed incompetent by state medical professionals in May 2023 and unable to stand trial, assist in his own defense and regain competency in a reasonable period of time.

He faces one charge of first-degree premeditated murder of his 53-year-old mother, Teri Ward of Sequim, who was found dead May 19, 2022, in her home from multiple sharp-force injuries, court documents say.

Kenney is also accused of attempted second-degree murder of Sequim Police Officer Daniel Martinez from an early morning traffic stop on May 19, 2022 at the Third Avenue/Washington Street intersection. Kenney allegedly tackled Martinez, and the two wrestled for Martinez’s gun, which discharged, court documents state.

In a follow-up hearing on Jan. 8, Kenney’s appointed defense attorney John Hayden requested a competency evaluation for him at Western State Hospital to see if he could assist in his defense and understand the nature of the charges.

Clallam County Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Michele Devlin did not oppose the evaluation and said due to the nature of the allegations, Kenney must be transported back to Western.

A competency evaluation hearing was set for 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30. A date for arraignment was not set yet.

Previous charges of first-degree assault and disarming a law enforcement officer were dismissed on Jan. 5 due to the statute of limitations, said Clallam County deputy prosecuting attorney Matthew Roberson in court.

Basden agreed to dismiss all of Kenney’s charges without prejudice on June 7, 2023 allowing prosecutors the possibility to refile charges if he was deemed competent.

Devlin said then that “there’s no statute of limitations for the counts against Martinez and Ward.”

Kenney has been admitted to Western State Hospital five times now following criminal charges with the sixth time pending, and he’s previously been diagnosed with schizophrenia (unspecified), stimulant use disorder and alcohol use disorder, court documents state.

Due to Kenney’s perceived unpredictability, Basden ordered Kenney’s hands be shackled on Jan. 5 in the courtroom due to his history of violence in multiple other cases. He also asked law enforcement to move up in the courtroom.

Basden weighed the perception of Kenney being shackled and asked jail staff if he had any incidents since being booked on Jan. 2 in Clallam County jail. He was told there had not been any incidents.

Kenney was transported from Western State Hospital and booked into Clallam County jail on Jan. 2 by Kitsap County Incident Response Team (KCIRT) members, according to Deputy Chief Jason Viada with Port Angeles Police Department.

KCIRT led the investigations, he said, because the Sequim Police Department cannot be involved in the investigation due to the crimes committed against Martinez. The murder investigation took place in unincorporated Sequim.

While advocating for no bail, Roberson said Kenney has an “incredible track record of violence” with four officers previously being assaulted by him during incarceration, and a Dec. 4 letter to the Public Safety Review Panel from Kenney allegedly alluding to his hallucinations/delusions despite doctors noting that they needed to remind him of what’s real and not.

Harry Gasnick was appointed as Kenney’s defense attorney for the Jan. 5 hearing, and did not object to him being in shackles, but he said with Kenney released from civil commitment, his hope is that a person still wouldn’t be suffering from hallucinations and delusions.

A representative from Attorney General Nick Brown’s office, wrote via email that civil commitments are renewed every 180 days and that they are prohibited from sharing certain information, such as if a patient is in a particular facility.

The spokesperson wrote that “if (the Department of Social and Health Services) is notified of an active warrant prior to a planned transfer or discharge, they will generally work with law enforcement to have the patient picked up from the facility (but they) generally are not involved or notified of that process unless some specific legal questions come up.”