Family speak of loss as first anniversary of Plymouth shootings approaches

Stephen Washington, 59, was one of five people shot dead by Jake Davison on August 12 last year in the Devon city.
Forensic officers in the Keyham area of Plymouth following the shootings (Andrew Matthews/PA)
PA Wire
Rod Minchin10 August 2022

The family of one of the victims of the Keyham shootings have spoken of their loss as the first anniversary of the tragedy approaches.

Stephen Washington, 59, was one of five people shot dead by Jake Davison on August 12 last year in Plymouth, Devon.

The grandfather was the fourth victim in Davison’s shooting spree, gunned down in front of onlookers in a park in the Keyham area of the city.

Grandfather Stephen Washington was shot dead by Jake Davison on August 12 last year (Devon and Cornwall Police/PA)
PA Media

In a statement issued by Devon and Cornwall Police, his family said: “We the Washington family would like to say thank you to everyone for their kind support through the tragic events of August 12 2021.

“Our hearts and thoughts are still with the other families and survivors as we move forward towards the inquest in January.

“We miss Stephen every day and we are still struggling to come to terms with the tragic events of that fateful day.

“The grandchildren miss him dreadfully as they miss his fun and games and tickle sessions.

“We know as a family we will support each other through. We ask to be left alone now by the media so that we can focus on the inquest.

“Once again, thank you for all the help and support given by everyone.”

Jake Davison, 22, killed his mother and four other people in Keyham last year before turning the gun on himself (Devon and Cornwall Police/PA)
PA Media

Davison, 22, killed his mother Maxine, 51, after a row and then shot dead four others, including Mr Washington, in a 12-minute attack.

The other people who died were three-year-old Sophie Martyn, her father, Lee, 43, and Kate Shepherd, 66.

The apprentice crane operator then turned the pump-action shotgun on himself before armed officers reached him.

Plymouth will be marking the anniversary with a civic ceremony at the Minster Church of St Andrew and a vigil for the Keyham community in North Down Crescent Park.

The killings happened weeks after the shotgun and licence had been returned to him by Devon and Cornwall Police. They had been seized last year after Davison assaulted two teenagers in a park.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) is investigating how the force approved his application and then later gave him back the licence and shotgun.

In the wake of the shootings, the Home Office announced that the police would now have to check a person’s medical history before issuing a gun licence.

All firearms applications must be accompanied by a medical document signed by a registered, practising doctor.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in