Alexis Kimsey lost her grandmother, her mother and her sibling in the worst mass killing Washington County has seen in years. On Tuesday, Aug. 25, she broke her silence with a request that surprised many: show kindness to the killer's family.

"One thing that I'd like to make a sincere and heartfelt request to the general public, particularly, is to treat Ben Parker's family with respect and compassion," Kimsey told The Oregonian/OregonLive in her first public statement since the killings. "I am holding them very close in my heart, and I know that they are struggling with an unimaginable loss and trying to come to terms with something no one should ever have had to know about someone that they loved."

Her plea came the same day investigators detailed the premeditated killings at a press conference at the Washington County Sheriff's Office building in Hillsboro. Kimsey said other members of her family support the public request, and that she believes her sibling, mother and grandmother would have wanted the same.

Five lives lost on a rural property

The five victims, identified by the Washington County Sheriff's Office, are Mary Elizabeth Kimsey, 85, of Portland; Rowan Karla Kimsey, 60, of Forest Grove; Stella Jade Kimsey, 26, of Forest Grove; Linsey Mae Haraldsen, 26, of Portland; and Alvin Raymond Chu, 27, of Portland. Chu was Haraldsen's partner.

Stella Kimsey was the partner of suspect Benjamin C. Parker, 36. Rowan Kimsey was Stella's mother, and Mary Kimsey was their grandmother. Rowan owned the property at 47350 NW Otis Lane in unincorporated Washington County outside Forest Grove, where the bodies were discovered Saturday, Aug. 22, after Forest Grove Fire & Rescue crews responded to a vehicle fire at approximately 5:27 a.m.

Parker was found dead by suicide on Sunday, Aug. 23, in Enumclaw, Washington, approximately 180 miles from the scene.

A family remembered

Kimsey described her grandmother Mary as the family's "matriarch," a deeply spiritual person and activist for people and the environment. Her mother Rowan was an artist who worked in tattooing and traditional mediums, teaching aspiring artists across the Pacific Northwest. Her sibling Stella, she said, "was incredibly passionate and fiercely loving" and took to farm life on the property as if born to it.

Haraldsen was Stella's best friend and considered part of the Kimsey family. Kimsey called her "like a sister to Stella." Haraldsen's family said in a statement that Linsey loved art, made mosaics with her mother and was known for wearing extravagant colors and patterns.

What investigators revealed

At a press conference Tuesday in Hillsboro, Detective Mark Povolny said Parker confessed to the killings in a phone call to his mother hours after the slayings, according to Beaverton Valley Times coverage of the briefing. Parker told her the killings were premeditated and that he had planned to kill three people, but two more were also killed. He did not explain a motive.

Investigators believe Parker killed Stella first, then Rowan as she came to check on her daughter. Haraldsen drove to the property to check on them and was killed next. Mary Kimsey and Chu arrived separately and were both killed. Parker then killed animals on the property, set fires and fled, passing some of the first responding fire trucks as he drove away.

All four women had been shot multiple times with a .22-caliber firearm. Investigators believe Chu died the same way.

Washington County District Attorney Kevin Barton framed the case in the context of domestic violence at the press conference. Amy Babcock, executive director of the Domestic Violence Resource Center, said domestic violence is not a private issue but a community issue that can include intimidation, threats, isolation, stalking and financial control.

The investigation is ongoing, with evidence processing and lab analysis expected to take months, according to the sheriff's office. More than 100 people have worked on the case, and Hillsboro Police Department assisted in the investigation.

Anyone experiencing domestic violence can contact the Domestic Violence Resource Center or call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.

If you are having suicidal thoughts, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.