Woman who killed sister will be resentenced

Published 2:09 pm Sunday, March 8, 2026

The Washington State Court of Appeals Division I ruled on Jan. 14 that a woman must be resentenced for the role she played in her sister’s death. The woman has been held at the Washington Corrections Center for Women in Gig Harbor since July 26, 2023.

Lisa G. Milam, 55, was convicted by a jury in Pacific County Superior Court on June 29, 2023, of first-degree manslaughter, domestic violence first-degree assault, domestic violence fourth-degree assault and felony harassment.

The charge of first-degree assault carried the highest sentence for Milam, who with an offender score of 10+ faced a standard sentencing range of 240-318 months in prison compared to 210-280 months in prison for first-degree manslaughter.

Double jeopardy standards prevent an individual from being convicted of the exact same crime more than once, which the first-degree assault and first-degree manslaughter charges did.

“Applying these facts to the case law, the court is compelled to find that manslaughter in the first degree is the ‘lesser offense,’” Pacific County Prosecutor Michael Rothman said in a memorandum dated July 21, 2023. “Both crimes are class A felonies, manslaughter in the first degree has a lower seriousness level, standard range, and mental state than assault in the first degree. Additionally, if these sentences were served concurrently the defendant would be required to serve the longer of the two sentences.”

Rothman subsequently motioned to vacate Milam’s conviction of first-degree manslaughter, which Judge Donald J. Richter approved. Milam was subsequently sentenced to 318 months in prison for the first-degree assault conviction.

Altercation between sisters

The incident happened on July 26, 2022, when Milam and her sister, Lorraine Riley, were involved in an altercation at their mother’s then-residence on the 500 Block of 7th Street in Raymond.

The sisters’ mother, Lela Riley, left her bedroom to find Lorraine on the ground and Milam over top of her pulling her hair and punching her in the chest. Their mother was able to call 911, and by the time law enforcement arrived, Lorraine was clinging to life.

Lorraine was transported to Willapa Harbor Hospital in critical condition and then transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where she later died. An autopsy determined the cause was a heart attack, and also found methamphetamine in her system.

Appeal

Following the convictions and sentencing, Milam filed an appeal on July 21, 2023 to the Washington State Court of Appeals Division II, which serves Western Washington. The case was then handed off on Jan. 27, 2025, to the Washington State Court of Appeals Division I, which serves Eastern Washington, due to a case backlog.

According to court documents for the appeal, Milam argued it was a case of her exercising “lawful force in self-defense leading to excusable homicide.”

Milam’s legal counsel, Jodi Backlund, argued in the appeal that the court made multiple errors with jury instructions, including not allowing a claim of self-defense to be weighed in their deliberations.

“Viewing the evidence most favorable to the State, a jury could have found that Milam knew of Lorraine’s health condition based on Lela’s testimony that she was there when Lorraine informed them of her condition,” the appeals court ruled. Alternatively, a rational jury could have concluded it was reckless to punch the chest and pull the hair of a woman who had health issues due to weight and drug use. Therefore, there was sufficient evidence for the manslaughter conviction.”

“Because the trial court failed to provide a self-defense instruction for the first-degree assault charge, we reverse and vacate that conviction. We remand to the trial court to reinstate the previously vacated manslaughter conviction and resentence Milam accordingly. We otherwise affirm,” the appeals court added.

The appeals court ruling has not yet been sent to the Pacific County Superior Court.

According to the memorandum filed by Rothman on July 21, 2023, for first-degree manslaughter Milam will face a standard sentencing range with an offender score of 10+ of 210-280 months in prison.

It is expected that Milam will again get the high end of the sentencing range.