KENT, Wash. – The family of a man murdered over medical marijuana is frustrated that his killer is still on the loose, and they wonder how much effort police are putting into the investigation.
Mike Howard, 38, was killed in March. He was hit in the head with a crowbar by someone stealing his medical marijuana plants. He grew the plants to deal with chronic back pain from a motorcycle accident. He had no health insurance and couldn't afford prescription painkillers.
"He wasn't out to make money on it. He was just trying to survive," said Howard's mother, Diana Atkins.
His ashes now sit on a shelf at his parents' home because they cannot afford a proper committal.
The family wonders if investigators have put Howard's case on the back burner because it involves medical marijuana. But that's only part of their pain. After the murder, Howard's stepfather, Mike Atkins, slipped into a deep depression and then suffered two strokes. His speech is affected and he's lost most of his short-term memory. But, he hasn't lost his anger over the killing.
"I don't know who this S.O.B. was that killed him, but he better be scared because he is going to be found," said Mike.
Diana is on an indefinite leave from her job as a school bus driver to care for her husband.
A spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriff's Department says they have received several tips about the murder and are continuing to follow up on them. The family is offering a $1,100 reward for information leading to an arrest.
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