Wash. Firefighter, Wife, Stepson Shot Before Fire Set

Spokane County detectives believe a fire department lieutenant, his wife and her adult son were shot to death, then whoever did it set fire to the family’s home to destroy evidence of the crime.

The county Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the victims as Spokane Fire Lt. Terry Canfield, 59; Lisa M. Canfield, 52; and John Robert Constable, 23.

Investigators believe whoever killed the three may have left the area and could have dumped or tried to dispose of evidence. They’re asking people to report suspicious activities or vehicles, or potential evidence such as smoke-damaged clothing.

The fire early Tuesday consumed roughly two-thirds of the home as well as an outbuilding in the rural area in north Spokane County. The call came in just after 2 a.m. when a neighbor reported what they thought was an illegal slash burn. The victims each were found with multiple gunshot wounds.

Terry Canfield was a 28-year veteran of the Spokane Fire Department and lived at the home at 20 E. Chattaroy Road.

In a statement, Mayor David Condon said Canfield “dedicated his life to helping people by easing their suffering and improving their lives through medicine and training. His colleagues talk about Terry as a man that put his family and faith above everything, and how evident that was the minute he started a conversation.”

Canfield married Lisa Constable, who lived nearby, in 2012, according to court records. The Canfields became a couple after Lisa Canfield separated from her former husband, Kelly Constable, in 2010.

A relative and a neighbor both said Lisa Canfield’s adult daughter also may have been staying at the home.

Ken Everett, 62, who lives nearby, said it’s not uncommon to hear gunshots in the rural area, as many neighbors shoot targets on their land.

“I don’t think people even think twice about hearing shots,” Everett said.

At the crime scene Thursday afternoon, forensics workers were sifting through the rubble. The family’s belongings were strewn across the front lawn beside heaps of ash and debris. About a dozen vehicles, including a motorcycle and an Airstream trailer, were parked on the property.

“They were a happy family, no enemies,” said Travis Kaleikini, a neighbor whose family was close with the victims. Kaleikini said he visited Constable at the home about three times a week.

His sister, Cherisse Kaleikini, 18, said she and her mother had planned to ask Lisa Canfield to help pick out a dress for her graduation from nearby Riverside High School. It would have been “the ultimate girls’ night,” she said. But, “I never got the chance.”

The Kaleikinis and other neighbors have been taking care of the Canfields’ dogs, Hank and Tucker, since Tuesday.

“After the fire, Hank came running over here covered in soot and rain,” Cherisse Kaleikini said in front of her house, a quarter mile down the road. “He was scared. He knew something was bad. He was crying, whining.”

“I really want to catch the person who did this,” she said. “This is not what should have happened to them – they never deserved this.”

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©2015 The Spokesman-Review (Spokane, Wash.)

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