Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist will seek a life in prison without the possibility of parole sentence for Aaron Lamar Livingston, 39. Livingston has been charged with two counts of aggravated first degree murder and one count of attempted first degree murder. He is being held in the Pierce County Jail without bail.

“In Washington State, the death penalty is reserved for the most heinous crimes and the worst of the worst defendants,” said Prosecutor Mark Lindquist. “After we spoke with the families of the victims, as well as the surviving victim, and taking into account the facts and current law, I decided to seek a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.”

On May 23, 2014, Livingston murdered Andrew Giessler, 25, with an axe because he believed Giessler was in a romantic relationship with Livingston’s girlfriend. Livingston then choked his girlfriend, who survived. He strangled her roommate, Denyse Marshall, 60, to death.

After committing the murders, Livingston called his father to tell him what he had done. Livingston then contacted Tacoma police and provided a full confession. Livingston’s criminal history consists of non-violent property crimes in 1993, and subsequent traffic misdemeanors.

In February, Governor Jay Inslee issued a moratorium on the imposition of the death penalty. Prosecutor Lindquist and other elected prosecutors have said they will still consider the death penalty under the current law, which remains unchanged during the Governor’s moratorium.

Charges are only allegations and a person is presumed innocent unless he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.