by Dave Workman | Senior Editor
Redmond, WA, gun shop proprietor Roy Lin (left) contributed $1,000 to the reward fund spearheaded by SAF and CCRKBA’s Alan Gottlieb to find the killer of a longtime member of the Washington Arms Collectors. (Dave Workman photo)
Four Second Amendment organizations, including the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and Second Amendment Foundation, have pooled their resources and are offering a $4,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual or individuals responsible for the slaying of Donnie Chin, a respected activist in Seattle’s International District, and also a devoted firearms enthusiast and collector.
Chin’s involvement in the firearms community did not get any attention from the mainstream press covering the story of his slaying in the early hours of July 23.
CCRKBA and SAF were joined by the Washington Arms Collectors (WAC), of which Chin was a longtime member, and Protect Our Gun Rights (POGR), a gun rights umbrella group that led the unsuccessful fight against Initiative 594 in Washington State last year. While anti-gunners who pushed that measure have been quick to capitalize on the murder to push their agenda, it was gun rights groups that opened their wallets.
In addition, one gun shop operator also contributed $1,000 of his own money to the effort. Roy Lin, proprietor at Weapon Outfitters in Redmond, a Seattle suburb, stepped up to the plate almost immediately.
Chin was fatally shot while patrolling the Chinatown International District. He was the founder of the International District Emergency Center (IDEC) when he was a young teen. He was also an active WAC member and table holder at the group’s monthly gun shows at the Puyallup Fairgrounds.
It has not been determined whether he simply drove into the middle of a gunfight and was hit unintentionally, or whether he was deliberately targeted.
“Donnie was a dedicated WAC member for 20 years and often had a table at our events,” said WAC Executive Director Phil Shave, a retired law enforcement professional. “He was one of our own and his WAC friends and colleagues want his killer or killers brought to justice. He gave so much to his community in Seattle, and he was well-liked and respected by his WAC brothers and sisters. We won’t rest until those responsible are apprehended.”
“Donnie Chin earned the respect of his friends and neighbors in the firearms community, as well as those in the International District,” added CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb, a former WAC director. “He was a mainstay at Puyallup, and we owe it to his memory to help track down the people who did this.”
“We hope by offering this reward that someone will step forward and help put Donnie’s killer behind bars,” said POGR Treasurer Phil Watson. “Somebody knows who did this. They need to contact Seattle police immediately and help take Donnie’s killer off the streets.”
