Court records detail domestic violence at Ephrata home
Ephrata police stand outside a home where Craig Dempsey, 22, of Ephrata, reportedly died after stabbing himself.
EPHRATA - The 22-year-old man who died after stabbing himself at his home Friday was subdued by several officers before being taken by the hospital.
Details on the officers' involvement in the incident are not being released at this time. Police were initially called to a home on Second Avenue Northwest in Ephrata for a report of domestic violence. According to sheriff's office media reports, a woman reported her ex-boyfriend, identified as Craig Dempsey, was refusing to let her grab her belongings from the home.
Arriving officers found the woman and a child outside the home and Dempsey inside, reportedly holding a knife and bleeding from the chest. Dempsey was subdued by several officers and transported to Columbia Basin Hospital in Ephrata where he died a short time later, according to the Detective Sgt. Brian Jones, of the Columbia Basin Investigative Team. Grant County Coroner Craig Morrison confirmed Monday Dempsey died of a self-inflicted stab wound.
A protection order was in place ordering Dempsey to have no contact with the woman living at the home. Police had responded to previous incidents at the home regarding domestic violence assaults, including a recent incident May 24, when the same woman reported Dempsey allegedly grabbed her arm during an argument and then picked up a rock from the road and threw it at her, according to Ephrata police reports.
The Columbia Basin Investigative Team is investigating Friday's incident. Anyone with information is asked to contact Jones at 509-764-3887. More information is expected to be released as the investigation moves forward.