Double murderer Charles Finch dies

Convicted double murderer Charles Ben Finch died quietly in an Everett hospital Sunday night after refusing medication to treat dangerously low blood pressure.

Finch, 51, died at 7:36 p.m. from a cardiac arrest, in the presence of a guard and a nurse at the Colby Campus of the Providence Everett Medical Center, a hospital supervisor told The Herald of Everett. No efforts were made to revive him because he had asked hospital officials not to try, the supervisor said.

Finch leaped from a 15-foot cellblock balcony and landed on his head Oct. 25, the night before lawyers were scheduled to give closing arguments in his penalty trial in Snohomish County Superior Court.

He was convicted of aggravated first-degree murder and sentenced to die for the shooting death of Ronald Modlin, 38, a blind friend of his estranged wife, and sheriff's Sgt. Jim Kinard, 34, on Aug. 15, 1994, but the sentence was overturned on appeal because the jury had seen him shackled and handcuffed to the defense table.

A second jury was empaneled in October and heard two weeks of testimony and arguments before failing to reach unanimous agreement about whether Finch should be put to death.

That left life in prison without release as the only sentence under state law, but Judge Ronald Castleberry postponed formal sentencing until Finch's health improved enough for him to participate.