Idaho man who livestreamed shooting of homeless man in downtown Spokane sentenced to 3 years in prison

A 36-year-old Coeur d’Alene man who shot and nearly killed an unarmed homeless man earlier this year near Division Street and Second Avenue in Spokane during a livestream on his YouTube channel was “looking for trouble,” according to the judge who sentenced him this week.

Spokane County Superior Court Judge Dean Chuang followed a plea agreement reached by the prosecution and defense and sentenced Hoyt W. Webb on Wednesday to 39 months in prison for the early June incident.

Chuang said Webb instigated the shooting and fired at 47-year-old Thomas Hatch “really for no reason.”

“It feels like, Mr. Webb, you just came down there looking for trouble,” Chuang said. “And I know that you were concerned about the homeless population, but there’s a different way of going about it.”

In the video Webb posted to his “Kootenai County Press” YouTube channel, Webb is seen walking down Second Avenue and Division Street narrating about “crackheads” who were hanging around the area known for homelessness, drug use and violence.

Webb says on his YouTube page he is a “credentialed reporter and photographer with The Constitution First Amendment Press Association.” The association gives out free press credentials to people who apply for them, according to its website. The association tells people to “beware” of “qualified journalists” who have biased interests. It offers anonymity to its members.

Under Webb’s “Kootenai County Press” page, he has multiple videos of himself traveling throughout Washington, mostly in Spokane, and goading employees and police officers at various locations.

Webb, who is wearing a Trump 2024 hat in the video and holding a selfie stick, is seen in his livestream motioning the camera toward the 7-Eleven on Division Street to his viewers and repeatedly telling them, “Spokane, Washington, ladies and gentlemen.”

Few people are seen at the 7-Eleven when he is recording. Some who pass by in the video flip him off, and he curses at them.

After seeing a man with a knife downtown, Webb walks back to his parked car and retrieves his gun, telling his viewers, “It’d be a bad idea if they pull anything out on me, ’cause I’m pro-Second Amendment.”

At one point, a man walks past Webb with a confused look on his face. Webb claims the man “ran up” with a knife, but no knife is visible in his video.

Other people nearby begin to approach Webb and tell him to leave after he walks through a group gathered along a sidewalk about a block from Second near the corner of Short Avenue and Division. He yells back he is “constitutionally protected,” the video shows, and claims people are holding knives, guns and rocks.

Police indicated in documents Webb could have retreated several times during the incident and could have tried to stop his encounter with the crowd.

Webb then claims he was attacked with a pipe wrench, but the video doesn’t show anyone near him at the time.

“I’m trying to help you guys,” he claims, but does not elaborate how he intends to do that.

The confrontation escalates as he screams at people to drop a rock he claims that at least one of them is holding. A man nearby is heard saying, “Nothing on me,” though later a woman could be seen throwing one, which fell far short of where Webb was standing.

Webb at this point is yelling at people to get back. He shouts the full sentence “I feel threatened” numerous times. At one point, two women and a man walk across the several lanes of Division Street as traffic stops. One of the women is taking her own video of Webb as the man yells at Webb, asking him how it feels. More people are milling about and walking near Webb.

Hatch walks by with a mostly empty drink cup in his left hand and nothing in his right. As the confrontation continues, with Webb continuing to scream, “I feel threatened!” he fires a “warning shot” at the ground, according to records.

He then fires again, striking Hatch, who is briefly seen lying on the ground.

Webb was initially charged with first-degree assault, but he pleaded guilty Wednesday to second-degree assault, a class B felony. The 39-month sentence includes three months – the low end of the standard sentence range – and a 36-month firearm enhancement.

Hatch’s older brother, Eric Kessler, told Chuang a little more than three years in prison was not enough time. He said his brother lost a kidney and half his bowels, and he also sustained damage to a major artery to his heart. He said Hatch’s heart stopped beating during his transport to the hospital that day.

“The videos that I’ve seen, I don’t believe he went down there with the intent to just videotape people,” Kessler said. “I believe he went down there to humiliate them.”

He said he couldn’t even look at Webb during Wednesday’s sentencing.

“I don’t believe he is sorry for what he’s done,” Kessler said. “I believe, given a chance, he’d probably do it again.”

Matthew Duggan, Webb’s attorney, said Webb has “great remorse” for injuring Hatch and wished it never happened. He said Webb acted in self-defense.

“Mr. Hoyt was in a difficult position when this case occurred,” Duggan said. “He was downtown where he found himself in a situation where he was being approached by about 20 individuals. Mr. Hoyt decided that it would be in everyone’s best interest if he left the scene, and he was attempting to do that. However, the situation began escalating very quickly and became very chaotic.”

Duggan said his client was backing up in an attempt to get to his vehicle while keeping an eye on the approaching crowd. Webb realized he was “vastly outnumbered” by people throwing large rocks .

He said Webb first pepper-sprayed one of the people to deter the attack and then fired a warning shot, but neither worked. The crowd encouraged others to assault Webb, Duggan said.

Duggan said Webb chose to plead guilty to second-degree assault to avoid a trial where he would have to convince a jury he acted in self-defense. If convicted of first-degree assault, Webb could have faced 14 years or more in prison, Duggan said.

He said Webb served two tours in Iraq and was injured in 2007 by an improvised explosive device. He was later diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Webb said he accepted responsibility for his actions.

“To Mr. Hatch and his family, I would like to tell them that I’m sorry for all this, and you won’t ever see me back in court or arrested ever again,” Webb said.

Webb will serve 18 months of probation when he’s released from prison. He will receive nearly four months of credit for time served in the Spokane County Jail.