Previously convicted murderer sentenced to an additional 35 years for killing man in downtown Spokane

A man previously convicted for murdering his wife was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Wednesday morning for killing a man in downtown Spokane in 2020.

A jury convicted Nathan O. Beal of first-degree murder last month for shooting and killing Andrew Bull April 3, 2020. The killing was characterized by prosecuting attorneys as a “practice run” before Beal later killed his ex-wife, Mary Schaffer, in August of the same year.

Bull, a 29-year-old homeless man, was shot once in the head in a downtown alleyway near the 900 block of West Second Avenue. Beal was not suspected of the crime until killing his ex-wife months later.

Beal, 38, was sentenced last year to 31 years for killing Schaffer. His most recent sentence will start after he completes serving the time for Schaffer’s killing.

“Andrew wasn’t just some homeless guy,” Jennalee Bunting, the youngest of Bull’s siblings, said in between sobs. “He had a family and we loved him very much. I lost not only my brother but my best friend.”

Beal, who has been in jail since 2020, did not make a statement in court on Wednesday.

Spokane County Superior Court Judge Michelle Szambelan said she thought long and hard about Beal’s sentencing. 

“A homeless person is not a person you can dispose with impunity,” Szambelan told Beal. “There has to be accountability.”

Bull’s family said that they were satisfied with the sentence.