THREE MEDICS INJURED IN GAS STATION BRAWL
• A 47-year-old man is jailed after he allegedly attacked paramedics while they were fueling up their ambulance at a Centralia gas station yesterday in an incident that turned into a melee involving a half dozen AMR employees, four police officers and even a female bystander who stepped in to help. One medic was bit on his arm, another struck in the face with his own radio and a third kicked in the chest before it was over, according to the Centralia Police Department.
Courtesy Centralia Police Department
Police said it began about 4:30 p.m. as Wade C. Buchanan was putting gas in his vehicle and AMR medics were getting fuel at the Chevron station on the 1200 block of Mellen Street, near Interstate 5. AMR’s headquarters is right around the corner. Police Sgt. Carl Buster said Buchanan for unknown reasons charged one of the medics after making a comment about them driving a new ambulance. “They’re calling for help on their radio, so other medics are real close,” Buster said. “They showed up and jumped in.” When officers arrived, they had Buchanan on the ground, Buster said. One officer used his Taser in an attempt to subdue Buchanan to no avail so another officer deployed pepper spray, Buster said. It had no effect either, Buster said. Buchanan was subsequently detained, according to police. “No one can explain why he went off,” Buster said. There were enough medics there, they treated themselves, he said. One officer suffered a possible shoulder injury, the medic with the bite was taken to the hospital for treatment and the 49-year-old Vancouver, Wash. woman was unhurt, according to police. Buchanan, whose address is in Olympia, had some scrapes on his hand, according to police. He was arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail for two counts of second-degree assault and one count of third-degree assault, according to the Centralia Police Department. Watch video on king5.com
WIRE STOLEN
• Someone broke into an outbuilding on the 3800 block of Ives Road in Centralia and made off with approximately 400 feet of wire, according to a report made to police yesterday morning.
BOAT MOTOR THEFT
• Two electric boat motors were stolen during the night from the 2000 block of Gallagher Road in Centralia, according to a report made to police yesterday morning.
WHISKEY SHOPLIFTED
• A 19-year-old was arrested for trying to steal a bottle of Jack Daniels from a grocery store on the 500 block of South Tower Avenue in Centralia on Friday evening. Jonathon Nickols, a Centralia resident, was cited for third-degree theft and minor in possession when he was contacted by an officer about 5:30 p.m., and then he was released, according to the Centralia Police Department.
MEDS MISSING
• Centralia police were called just after 11 a.m. on Friday to a residence on the 1000 block of Scammon Creek Road stolen missing Oxycodone. Officers have a suspect in mind, according to the Centralia Police Department.
METH AND HEROIN ARREST
• A 34-year-old Centralia man was arrested for possession of both heroin and methamphetamine at Alder and Cherry streets in Centralia on Friday afternoon. Scott R. Hotchkiss was initially contacted by police about a warrant just before 3 p.m., according to the Centralia Police Department. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to police.
NOT A GUN
• Centralia police got a report just after 1 p.m. on Friday regarding a male displaying a firearm to another driver on West Mellen Street. When officers caught up with the suspect, no gun was found in the vehicle, according to the Centralia Police Department. The officer suspected the driver simply had something in his hand that looked like a weapon, according to police.
TEENS FOLLOWED BY STRANGER
• Centralia police were called about 3 p.m. on Friday to the area of Cedarwood Drive regarding a male driving an older red pickup truck who had followed some teenagers home. Once the kids got home, the truck left and could not be located, according to the Centralia Police Department.
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Guest column: Right to bear arms begets responsibility
January 27th, 2013By Steve Mansfield
Lewis County sheriff
CHEHALIS – To the citizens of Lewis County:
As a result of the recent tragic shootings and escalating violence across our nation, we again find ourselves deliberating on the highly volatile topics of gun control and Second Amendment rights which are further fueled by political agendas and high emotions.
Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield
As your sheriff, I have sworn to support the Constitution of the United States and to support the constitution and enforce the laws of the state of Washington. This is my mandate and I will not lose sight of that. I made my position clear on this topic when you, the people of Lewis County, elected me as your sheriff. I have not wavered from such position or the responsibility you bestowed upon me to carry out these duties. Regardless of the path the federal government chooses to pursue, I am first and foremost responsible and accountable to you.
Doing nothing to address the problem of violence and fear is not an option.
Rather, it will only ensure that the violence will continue. Likewise, doing nothing will only empower those who have no interest in protecting rights afforded by the Second Amendment. Unchallenged, they will continue to move forward to a point where it will be too late to undo the damage of ill-conceived and misapplied legislative actions.
I fully support the ability of law abiding citizens to exercise their Second Amendment right to bear arms. However, every right begets responsibility. That being said, I do feel it is not only important, but imperative that we all be involved in ending this senseless violence that cannot continue to go unchecked.
So yes, I do believe action needs to occur, but not in a knee-jerk fashion. Rather, our actions must be deliberate and any new legislation must be crafted with scrutiny to guard against infringement upon our constitutional rights.
We must be active participants in the process to find answers that address the causes of our social problems, not just the symptoms. We must focus on the areas that make sense and that can have an impact on the root problem. I consider the root problem to be not guns themselves, but guns in the hands of the wrong people.
It is to this end I am continuing to focus efforts to:
• Close background check loopholes that will help keep guns out of the hands of criminals and the mentally ill.
• Aggressively work with our prosecutor to vigorously prosecute those who commit crimes with guns and have been restricted from gun ownership due to their criminal past.
• Work with our schools, businesses and citizens in facilitating successful “all hazard” planning and preparation efforts for critical incidents.
• Educate the public on issues of deadly force and safely carrying a firearm.
• Work with our legislature to ensure the rights of law abiding citizens are not compromised by knee-jerk legislation and politics.
To restate: I will faithfully support the ability of law abiding citizens to exercise their Second Amendment rights. I ask you to stay informed and engaged with the issues.
Also, I ask you to be able and willing to make your position known to our state and federal legislators. You can be assured I will uphold my oath of office, continue to do my best in meeting our mission, and protect our constitutional rights.
Sincerely,
Steve Mansfield, Sheriff of Lewis County
•••
Others sharing their views in recent days include Yakima County Sheriff Ken Irwin who told a gathering on Friday, according to the Yakima-Herald Republic, he favored “improved background checks, including at gun shows, and better access to mental health care, but not reinstatement of a law that expired in 2004 that banned certain semiautomatic rifles and high-capacity magazines”;
And former Thurston County Sheriff Dan Kimball who wrote a piece yesterday in The Olympian in which he says he does not support the claim the Second Amendment allows citizens to possess assault weapons or high-capacity magazines, and, he says, “Furthermore, no one should be able to purchase any firearm without submitting to a thorough background check, no matter where or how they purchase that weapon.”
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