A 22-year-old homeless gang member is being held on suspicion of fatally shooting a man in front of his children near a Yakima skate park Monday.

Yakima police were called to the skate park at Chesterley Park, 3702 River Road, for a gunshot victim around 7:20 p.m. Monday. Officers found Raul Rudy Macias, 36, with a gunshot wound to his upper torso, and a bystander performing CPR, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Officers took over resuscitation efforts, but paramedics pronounced Macias dead at the scene, the affidavit said. Macias’ three children were with him and saw him get shot, police said.

Chief Yakima County Deputy Coroner Marshall Slight said an autopsy will be performed on Macias this week in Benton County.

YPD Capt. Chad Janis said the information at this time suggests the shooting may have been gang related. A court record said the suspect was a Norteño gang member, and he was described as transient.

A witness told police that Macias was involved in an argument with three men in the park when one of them shot Macias once. He provided police with a photo from his phone of the suspects, the affidavit said.

Sandra Macias, Macias' cousin, said he was at the park with his three sons when one told him that a fight was going on. He went over to try to break up the altercation when he was shot, her nephews told her. 

"He didn't anticipate he was going to get shot," she said.

Sandra Macias said her cousin was not involved in gangs and was a thoughtful, devoted father who went to the park to have a good time with his children.

Macias' sons are "very sad and heart-broken," she said.

The witness said the shooter was wearing red sweatpants and a red sweatshirt, the affidavit said, and the suspect pointed the gun at him after shooting Macias.

YPD officers, with assistance from Washington State Patrol troopers and Yakima County Sheriff’s deputies, searched the area and found two of the men from the witness’ photo in the 3400 block of Chesterley Lane between two homes. When officers went up to them, the men jumped a fence and ran but were eventually detained.

One of the men was released after he refused to cooperate, but police took the 22-year-old suspect into custody.

Officers also searched the area they believed the suspect was in when he fled the shooting and found two firearms, a revolver and a 9mm pistol, the affidavit said. Detectives at the scene found a single 9mm shell casing.

The suspect has been booked into the Yakima County jail on suspicion of second-degree murder, second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm and second-degree assault.

Police said the suspect was involved in a 2024 domestic violence incident that precluded him from possessing firearms. Court records also show the suspect had pleaded guilty in Yakima County Juvenile Court in 2019 to third-degree assault for body-slamming a boy into the ground.

As part of his guilty plea, his right to possess firearms was revoked.

The Yakima Herald-Republic typically does not publish the identities of suspects before they are formally charged.

Bail discussion

At a Tuesday preliminary appearance hearing in Yakima County Superior Court, Deputy Yakima County Prosecuting Attorney Richard Petersen argued for $250,000 bail. Petersen said based on the facts of the case, including that the suspect pointed a gun at a witness, his gang affiliation and lack of a permanent housing, he is unlikely to either show up for future hearings or not commit other crimes if he's released.

Had his gun not jammed when he pointed it at the witness, there would likely have been another shooting victim, Petersen said.

Aaron Case, a public defender representing those making preliminary appearances Tuesday, said bail in the $100,000-$500,000 range would be appropriate. Case said the suspect has strong family ties to the community, and that there are facts about the case that have yet to come to light, such as the nature of the altercation that triggered the shooting.

Judge Jeffery Swan recessed the hearing briefly to allow Petersen to talk with the mother of Macias' children, who was in the court gallery. Petersen said he had nothing additional to add to his argument after talking to her.

Swan, who noted that he had previously represented the suspect in juvenile court, said he had concerns about the suspect fleeing the scene, that guns were found along the path the suspect is believed to have fled on and that he changed clothes before he was arrested. He set bail at $200,000.

Macias’ death is the second homicide in Yakima in a week’s time. On Saturday, Richard E. Peterson, 37, was fatally shot in the 1100 block of North Fourth Street. Police arrested Ka-Sean A. Smalley in that case.

There have been four homicides in Yakima this year, and seven in the county.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional information.