Islander Jacob Mulhair is receiving in-patient treatment after being sentenced in April over an assault that occurred in February.

The case involves an ordeal in which, under the apparent effects of drug psychosis, Mulhair tased and threatened to shoot his mother, Judy Mulhair. The incident triggered a large and highly visible police response, including a SWAT team and crisis negotiation team, to the island on Feb. 12, centered on AYH Ranch, a campground and lodging owned by the Mulhairs where the assault took place.

Jacob, 48, ultimately turned himself in to the police on the evening of Feb. 12. According to court testimony, he has had time to sober up and pursue a path toward treatment. In the meantime, Judy, who turns 80 next month, has been recovering at home from the incident.

Jacob pleaded guilty on April 11 to third-degree assault for the tasing and misdemeanor harassment for threatening to shoot Judy. He was sentenced on April 29 to receive 30 days of inpatient treatment for his mental health and substance use, starting the following day. He’ll only serve more jail time if he violates the terms of his sentence.

He will be on probation for two years, and will also serve a year of community custody on the felony charge. In addition to his sentence, a protection order will prevent Jacob from contacting Judy or coming within her residence or workplace, which includes AYH ranch, for five years.

Judy said that after getting an “easy” outcome that only involved two and a half months in jail, it’s up to Jacob to use that opportunity — and this time — to stay off drugs: “He seems remorseful,” she said. “I’m hoping he can turn his life around.”

“I want you to know that I love my son,” Judy told Judge Suzanne Parisien during sentencing. “I forgive him … For the past several years he’s gotten worse. He hallucinates, (and) has anger at everything, especially his family. He is in need of serious drug rehabilitation.”

Two major accidents resulting in head trauma, mixed with drug use, were part of the story behind Jacob’s depression and pain, Judy said.

At sentencing, Jacob expressed contrition and said the events of Feb. 12 spun out of a stressful day; he was trying to catch a ferry to get his medication in Seattle, and from his perspective, the situation devolved after his mom became frustrated with him at home and, he said, started insulting and mistreating him.

“I’m sorry to my mom,” Jacob Mulhair said in court. “I love you. I regret what I’ve done. I do hope to go to treatment.”

Jacob had been packing the morning of the assault at the ranch for a trip to Colorado, when an argument ensued between him and Judy about his leaving his things around the house, according to a police report.

Judy left the house for about two hours, and when she returned, the argument continued, according to a police report. Eventually, the argument escalated and Jacob shot Judy with a taser. But evidently, only one of the two prongs fired hit her, and had been stopped partially by her pants, Judy said.

Still, she said, she ended up spending five days in the hospital after the ordeal, her heart reduced to less than half its capability. Had both prongs hit her fully, she said, she “probably” would have died.

Mulhair tried to reload the taser, according to police records and Judy, and then pulled out what appeared to be a smaller handgun and threatened to kill her and another person with it. (In a later search of the home, police did not find a firearm but did locate several pellet guns that looked like real firearms. Judy concurred that Jacob did not own a firearm but did own paintball and BB guns.)

Jacob had demanded her cell phone, which she provided, and then gave her a roll of duct tape, instructing her to bind herself with the tape, according to a police report. Judy escaped and fled to another residence on the property. The resident there called the police at about 1:15 p.m.

Jacob visited the tenant’s residence and asked for Judy, but was told Judy was not there. He then walked into the private woods nearby, according to charging documents. Judy was taken to a Vashon Island Fire & Rescue station around that time, where she was treated and released.

Over the next four hours, a large group of law enforcement officers arrived on the island. By 5:45 p.m., a heavy police presence had gathered in front of the residence, and for about an hour, police called for Jacob to come out.

But Jacob was not there. As police began searching the property around 7 p.m., a friend of Jacob’s parked at the police command center in town with Jacob in the passenger seat, who was there to surrender and be arrested.

“Jake had enough common sense to turn himself in,” Judy said in an interview. “(He) was very remorseful, calling his dad and pleading with him — ‘I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry.’ … In his heart, he knew he was wrong.”

From the “earliest days” of the case, Jacob’s defense attorney Edward Wixler told the court at sentencing, Mulhair has endorsed the idea of getting treatment.

“Mr. Mulhair and I agree (that) this was a very serious incident,” Wixler said during sentencing. “We do not want to downplay the significance of what happened on Feb. 12. Mr. Mulhair is incredibly remorseful for his conduct that evening and decided very early on in this case that he wants to take responsibility for what happened.”

Recounting the life events leading up to Feb. 12, Wixler explained in court how Jacob Mulhair has previously been hospitalized at Harborview Medical Center after experiencing meth-induced psychosis. While under a great deal of stress on Feb. 12, he again used methamphetamine, Wixler said.

“He has told me that what he felt on Feb. 12 was incredibly similar to what he experienced when he was hospitalized,” Wixler said, “… as though he was in a bad dream, that he was not in reality, that he needed to do something in order to wake up. Mr. Mulhair was, I think by all accounts, experiencing methamphetamine-induced psychosis. That’s obviously not an excuse for what happened … but I highlight that to say this: Mr. Mulhair is seriously committed to the treatment that he is going to be required to undergo … as a condition of his sentence.”

In court, Judge Parisien acknowledged the “strong emotions (and) hurt feelings” on both sides for the mother and son, and the possibility for Jacob to one day rebuild his relationship with his mom if he works on treatment and his mental health.

Mulhair told Judge Parisien that he started smoking methamphetamine on-and-off about 10 years ago and has justified his use because it seemed to help fuel his creativity as an artist. He’s been clean since the incident on Feb. 12, which is the longest period he’s gone without using, he told Parisien: “I’ve been totally free and away from drugs being in this situation. I have a clear mind.”

After treatment, Mulhair said, he plans to stay at an outpatient day health program and shelter in Seattle. He has even made a friend, while in jail — an iron worker who has encouraged him to join the industry and get training on welding.

“I’m excited about it,” Mulhair said.

Struggles with addiction or family dynamics are far from unique on Vashon Island — but for family members who want to help loved ones with addiction or behavioral challenges, it’s not always clear what they should do

Nicky Wilks is the co-founder and executive director of Journeymen, a Vashon nonprofit that mentors and serves island youth. A family can offer a safe space for someone to be honest about their addiction, he said — a better strategy than trying to “fix” the addiction themselves.

“If we’re not a safe space for our loved ones, they won’t be honest with us,” he said. “They’ll try to hide all of these things from us. … I think, as parents, we can be really clear on what’s acceptable, or not, long term — but also what’s acceptable to be honest about.”

Young people often feel safer talking about their behavior and challenges at Journeymen than with their parents, Wilks said, recalling his own visits to Vashon Youth & Family Services office, near near Vashon High School, for help when he was a teenager.

“Personally, in high school, I was a really functional substance user,” Wilks said. “I went in for an intake when I was 17, and it was the first time in my life that I was ever honest with anybody about what I was doing. But that resource probably got me to graduate high school.”

In sharing her experience, Judy said she wants to help other parents avoid reaching the “crescendo” that she did with Jacob before finding help.

That’s a powerful step for healing, Wilks said.

Getting clean, kicking substance abuse and turning one’s life around is possible, Wilks said: “I’ve seen it in my work. I’ve seen it in my personal life.”

“My hope is that for Judy, and anybody in these experiences, they can remember that by sharing it, they will experience a release, more peace … and other people will benefit from that as well,” he said.

Help is available

If you or someone you care about is facing addiction, mental health challenges or domestic abuse, support is available.

• Families who need resources for a family member can call TRU, the Therapeutic Response Unit at 206-305-9509 for non-criminal issues.
• The 24-hour King County domestic violence “hopeline” can be reached at 206-737-0242 or hopeline.org.
• The 24-hour crisis line can connect loved ones in emotional crisis to help. It can be reached at 866-427-4747.
• Vashon Youth and Family Services offers counseling, therapy, and other social services. They can be reached at 206-463-5511, or info@vyfs.org.
• VARSA is a nonprofit coalition that seeks to boost mental health awareness and decrease substance use among youth. They can be reached at 206-567-2647 or info@varsanetwork.org
• Vashon’s DOVE Project supports survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. They can be reached at 206-462-0911 or info@vashondoveproject.org.
• In case of an emergency, call 911.