Manslaughter charged in fatal Shoreline shooting

A Shoreline teenager accused of accidentally killing a woman while playing with a handgun he thought wasn't loaded has been charged with manslaughter.

Prosecutors believe Robert Morris, 19, fired the shot that killed 20-year-old Amesha McIlvenna while goofing around with a .22-caliber revolver Thursday afternoon.

According to court documents, Morris, McIlvenna and three others were at Morris' Stone Avenue North home examining a handgun he'd obtained.

After attempting to unload the revolver, Morris handed it to a friend who pulled the trigger twice before returning it to Morris. When McIlvenna asked to see the gun, Morris offered it to her and then, as she reached for the weapon, twirled the gun in his hand and pulled the trigger.

The single shot struck McIlvenna in the right shoulder. She died moments later.

Morris told police he didn't realize the pistol was still loaded until it discharged.

He is scheduled to be arraigned Jan. 30 on first-degree manslaughter charges. He is being held at the King County Jail on $2,500 bail.