PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The family of a Vancouver mother and daughter who were killed more than two years ago is suing Clark County.
In a lawsuit filed on Sept. 17, the mother of Meshay Melendez and the father of Layla Stewart accused the county of failing to prevent further abuse of the two victims. The complaint stated that authorities had placed Kirkland Warren on pre-trial supervision for attacking his ex-girlfriend, 27-year-old Melendez, when he murdered her and her 7-year-old daughter, Stewart.
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“Clark County Probation failed to follow its own pre-trial release policies and procedures and failed to ensure compliance with conditions of pre-trial release despite the known, obvious and extreme risk of danger posed by Warren to Meshay and her daughter,” Attorney David Brown wrote. “As a result of Clark County Probation’s negligence, Warren, free of any meaningful supervision, was able to rape, beat, and murder Layla and her mother.”
Melendez and Stewart’s bodies were discovered in an embankment near Washougal on March 22, 2023, about 10 days after they were last seen with Warren. Authorities named him a person of interest in their disappearances and then their deaths…