The family of a hiker who was discovered dead next to his dog on a remote trail in Washington state have launched a $20m lawsuit alleging sheriffs “sabotaged” a criminal investigation into his death.
Portland musician Aron Christensen, 49, was camping with friends at Walupt Lake in Lewis County when he went on a solo hike with his four month-old Australian Cattle Dog Buzzo on 19 August last year.
Christensen’s body was discovered lying next to the dead puppy on a trail in the Cascade Mountains the next day by a pair of hikers.
His brother Corey Christensen told The Chronicle that sheriffs initially claimed he had died of a heart attack from laced marijuana and fallen onto a stick.
However, autopsies appeared to show both Christensen and Buzzo had died from gunshot wounds.
A bullet recovered from Christensen’s chest showed traces of canine DNA, suggesting they may have died from a single shot.
A 19-year-old, named by The Chronicle as Ethan Asbach, later told investigators he had been hiking in the area with a 17-year-old companion when he fired a single shot from his father’s 9mm pistol.
Mr Asbach told authorities he came across Christensen and Buzzo’s bodies. He claimed he continued walking and became lost, before leaving the forest the next day.
In a transcript of his phone call with law enforcement obtained by the Wall Street Journal, he admitted he hadn’t called 911 when he got back to cellphone range because he was worried about getting into trouble.
He said he had fired at a wild animal which was threatening him, only to later realise it was Buzzo.
The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office referred manslaughter and animal cruelty charges to prosecutors, who announced in April they were declining to charge Mr Asbach, according to The Chronicle.
Since then, veterinarians who examined Buzzo have offered conflicting reports about his cause of death.
An initial autopsy conducted by local veterinarian Brandy Fay claimed the dog’s injuries were more consistent with a stabbing than gunshot wounds.
According to The Chronicle, a second necropsy commissioned by the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office found an exit wound from a gunshot.
Buzzo, a four-month-old Australian Cattle Dog, was found dead beside Aron Christensen’s body in Washington’s Cascade Mountains— (Corey Christensen)
When the Christensen family requested Dr Fay examine Buzzo a second time, she reportedly found a broken rib that was not present during her earlier necroposy, suggesting the dog’s body had been tampered with.
The first deputy to reach the bodies had determined there was no sign of suspicious activity, according to his incident report.
“It is difficult to tell if it was from a bullet or from a tree limb or stick that may have protruded into his body,” deputy Andrew Scrivner wrote, in a report viewed by the Wall Street Journal.
He said he spent 25 minutes searching shell casings, before diverting detectives who were on their way to the crime scene.
Deputy Scrivner carried Christensen’s body down the mountain with help from other campers, meaning there was no scene investigation.
The next day, Ethan Asbach’s father contacted authorities to say his son had accidentally shot Christensen after being approached by what he thought was a wild animal.
Sheriff Rob Snaza told The Chronicle that the deputy who responded to the shooting had made a mistake in not identifying the cause of death as a gunshot.
Corey Christensen, who recently filed a $20m lawsuit against the sheriff’s department, told the Wall Street Journal his attempts to find answers about his brother’s death had been infuriating.
“I thought I was going crazy for a while,” he told the paper. “But there’s a difference between you being crazy and it driving you crazy.”
The family has set up a GoFundme page to cover legal fees as they continue to search for answers about Christensen’s death.
Mr Christensen’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment by The Independent.
