Prosecutors said Alyssa Bradburn wrote about killing her father before she shot him in 2024.
SPOKANE, Wash. — A journal Alyssa Bradburn gave to police after killing her father became a central piece of evidence in the first-degree murder case that ended with a 340-month prison sentence.
The notebook mattered because the basic facts of the shooting were never in serious dispute. Bradburn called 911 after the gunfire, told police she had shot 68-year-old Timothy Bradburn and waited outside the family home on North Cochran Street. Prosecutors had to prove the killing was premeditated. They used her own writings, firearm practice and the timing of the shooting to argue that she made a deliberate plan and carried it out when her father came home from Hawaii.
Police arrived at 12:52 a.m. June 25, 2024, after dispatchers received the call from the home in Northwest Spokane. Officers detained Bradburn at the front of the residence and found Timothy Bradburn dead inside. Investigators said the shooting occurred as he entered the home after travel. Bradburn also told officers where the firearm was located. The journal, which she gave police at the scene, became a road map for detectives as they moved from an admitted shooting to a murder investigation focused on planning.
At trial, prosecutors said the writings showed that Bradburn had thought about killing her father before the night of the shooting. They also presented evidence that she practiced at a shooting range. The state described the case as calculated and pointed to the moment Timothy Bradburn entered the home as proof that he was not attacking her when she fired. Deputy prosecuting attorney Emily Sullivan said during sentencing that the evidence showed an extreme and elaborate degree of planning. The jury agreed and found Bradburn guilty of first-degree murder with a firearm finding.
The defense did not treat the journal as a simple confession. Bradburn’s attorney, Brian Raymon, argued that her mental health was part of the case and said she sometimes blurred fantasy with reality. Court records show a competency evaluation was ordered in November 2025, and a judge later found Bradburn competent in December 2025. That ruling allowed the case to proceed to trial. Defense lawyers later asked for a 25-year sentence, citing Bradburn’s lack of criminal history and mental illness.
Bradburn initially told investigators that she acted in self-defense and made allegations against her father, including claims that he abused her and harmed her dogs. Those allegations did not hold as the case moved forward. Her brother, Trace Bradburn, testified and later spoke at sentencing, saying Timothy Bradburn was a loving and supportive father. Investigators did not find evidence to back the abuse claims, and Alyssa Bradburn later withdrew them. That reversal left the journal and the preparation evidence at the center of the state’s story.
The court record shows a long path from the shooting to the verdict. After early hearings and trial delays, the case was set for trial in February 2026. Jurors heard the state’s evidence, including the writings and the circumstances of the shooting. They returned a guilty verdict in March 2026. Judge Julie McKay then sentenced Bradburn on April 2 to 280 months on the murder conviction, plus 60 months for the firearm enhancement. McKay also entered a no-contact order barring contact with Trace Bradburn and set restitution matters.
The sentencing hearing brought together the written evidence, the family’s grief and the court’s view of the crime. McKay said the crime was the most serious start to a criminal history. Trace Bradburn told the court he continued to live with the loss of his father. Alyssa Bradburn declined to give a formal allocution. Reports from the courtroom said she remained calm and smiled during parts of the hearing.
With judgment entered April 2, the journal that helped define the case is now part of the record behind a decades-long sentence. The next step is limited to post-sentencing matters, including restitution and any appeal Bradburn chooses to pursue.
Author note: Last updated April 27, 2026.