Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A 54-year-old man was picked up on Interstate 5 just north of Kelso following a bank robbery in Chehalis this afternoon.

Police were called just before 3:30 p.m. to Chase Bank on the 600 block of South Market Boulevard. An employee told officers a man in his 50s handed a teller a note demanding money and left in a gold colored PT Cruiser, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

No weapon was displayed and nobody was injured, according to police.

Shortly after the 911 call, a Lewis County sheriff’s detective spotted a vehicle and driver matching the given description traveling southbound on the freeway, police stated in a news release. The car was stopped near milepost 42 and police concluded he was their suspect.

The suspect is identified by police as Jerrell S. Redmill, 54, of Kelso, according to police. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail for first-degree robbery.

How much money was stolen or if it was recovered was not reported by police.

The same bank was robbed in March of last year, by a pair of local men who got away briefly with less than $2,500 from Chase, moments after a failed attempt at the nearby Twin Star Credit Union – which keeps no cash in its drawers.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Investigators are re-thinking the string of fires that struck Centralia churches and other buildings two weeks ago, classifying all of them now as either arson or undetermined.

Centerville Western Store on May 3

In a three-hour span during the early morning hours of May 3, crews were called to four structure fires and then after daylight, learned of a failed attempt at a fifth location.

They still have no suspects or motive.

Initially, a 4 a.m. fire that damaged a wall at Calvary Chapel on Seward Avenue in north Centralia was believed to be caused by an electrical issue, but authorities are reexamining that conclusion in part because of the timing, according to Riverside Fire Authority Assistant Chief Rick Mack.

“It strains credulity to think that it isn’t somehow involved,” Mack said today.

The other undetermined fire is one that struck a coffee stand in north Chehalis at 1 o’clock that morning. Flames were quickly knocked down and while an investigator was considering the possibility of a cigarette butt in a trash can, Mack said they just don’t have enough information to say if it was one thing or another.

Clearly arson and attempted arson were Centralia fires that did minor to moderate damage at the rectory-turned teen center of the Centralia Church of the Nazarene, Cooks Hill Community Church  and Centerville, the western store at the north end of the Centralia Outlets, according to Mack.

Authorities are once again seeking the public’s assistance to find who is responsible.

None of the targets have suggested a person they think police should talk to, Mack said.

Mack spoke of chatter on social media that might reveal clues.

“We just encourage people, if they hear anything even if it seems unlikely or remote, we’d like to hear about it,” Mack said today.

No suspicious fires have been reported in the area since that night, but Mack pointed out the burned siding on Cooks Hill Community Church that wasn’t spotted until 10 a.m. that day.

“There may be fires that were set but not discovered,” he said.

He suggested some folks might want to take a look around the exterior of their buildings.

Mack said he, Fire Chief Jim Walkowski and the Centralia Police Department would each be happy to hear from anyone with information.

Crime Stoppers of Lewis County is also calling upon anyone with information to consider making an anonymous phone call to them, at 1-800-748-6422 or leaving a tip online at  www.lewiscountycrimestoppers.org

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For background, read “Arson: String of Centralia fires under investigation” from Friday May 3, 2013, here

Scooter the dog is revived by Firefighter Kylie Kavanaugh after mobile home fire. / Courtesy photo by West Thurston Regional Fire Authority

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Firefighters called this morning to a Grand Mound residential fire managed to contain the blaze to one room and resuscitated a small dog discovered unconscious under a bed.

When they started breaking down the room and pulled out a mattress, they found the little dog, West Thurston Regional Fire Authority Lt. Lanette Dyer said.

It was presumed dead, Dyer said, but was administered oxygen with a child bag-valve mask.

The cause of the 6 a.m. fire in a mobile home at the 6400 block of Southwest 201st Avenue is under investigation.

Dyer said the man and woman who live there were treated for scrapes and minor burns. The female was subsequently transported to Providence St. Peter Hospital, she said.

Dyer said she did not know how the occupants got their injuries, but the woman was hysterical because the pet, Scooter, had not come out of the trailer.

Fire Capt. Brian Christenson had crews treating both the people and the dog, after the dog was located, she said.

Dyer called it a bright spot what is otherwise a devastating event.

Firefighter Kylie Kavanaugh used the mask to help the dog breath.

“Within a couple of moments, it started taking a couple of breaths, and then the dog’s eyes came open,” Dyer said. “Then dog then began to lick at the mask; they were all pretty excited.”

Scooter was taken to Ford Prairie veterinary Clinic to be checked out for smoke inhalation.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A 21-year-old man who showed up at the Centralia police station wearing handcuffs, asking for help getting them removed found himself instead getting a ride to jail after officers discovered he had an outstanding warrant.

Aaron M. Perez came knocking at the back door about 4 p.m. yesterday, his hands linked together in front of him with genuine Smith and Wesson police handcuffs, according to Sgt. Kurt Reichert.

He said his friends were playing around and then pitched the key out onto the lawn so he walked to the police department, Reichert said.

Officers at first wondered where he might have escaped from and a check showed he had a warrant from Lewis County Superior Court for failing to show up for a court date, according to police.

Perez didn’t know he was wanted, Reichert said.

Reichert said he’s heard of this happening elsewhere, but it was a first for him.

“It was pretty cut and dried, other than we were laughing all our a*ses off about it,” he said.

The young man was transported to the Lewis County Jail, and booked, still wearing the cuffs he provided, according to Reichert.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Prosecutors filed charges yesterday against the now-former lifeguard from the Great Wolf Lodge accused of raping a young teenage girl whose family was staying at the hotel and indoor water park.

Nineteen-year-old Alex Eduardo Salazar is a senior at Rochester High School. The alleged victim is 14 years old.

Alex Eduardo Salazar

Salazar was arrested Tuesday afternoon at school and after his court appearance the next day was bailed out by his father.

Jaime Salazar Sr. said they were hiring an attorney today.

Salazar Sr. said he knows what the allegations are and his son has been very open with him.

It’s a totally different story, he said.

“I think it’s going to be a really tough case, but I think it’s going to be okay for him,” Salazar Sr. said. “There’s stuff she’s saying that’s not true.

“Hopefully that will come out in court.”

The younger Salazar is charged with second-degree rape as well as rape of a child in the third degree.

The second charge is based upon a victim who is age 14 or 15  – too young to give consent – with the perpetrator being at least 48 months older.

The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office has said the girl left willingly with Alex Salazar after his shift ended, the assault occurred in his car on a nearby roadside and that he dropped her back to hotel where she told her family. She had minor injuries, Lt. Greg Elwin said.

The Great Wolf Lodge is a family oriented destination resort in Grand Mound with an indoor water park for guests. Alex Salazar had been working there a little more than six months, according to his father.

Charging documents describe how the girl and her older sister befriended the lifeguard on Monday while in the water park and the sister gave him her phone number.

He texted her later and they arranged to meet; the sisters, another friend and he met in the parking lot and had a conversation in his car, charging documents go on to say.

They all went into the arcade and after some time passed, he and the girl went to his car. Surveillance video shows they left the hotel at 12:05 a.m.

The girl told a deputy she didn’t know he intended to drive away, and became uncomfortable; he parked on the side of a gravel road and they began to kiss, then they decided to get in the backseat, charging documents state.

Click below to read the rest of the story.

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Becky Heupel accepts hugs and farewells from her family and friends while waiting for a jail guard to arrive to take her away after sentencing.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – While the man convicted of a torturous death of a Centralia toddler sits in prison for possibly life, the little girl’s mother who failed to protect her daughter will continue her grieving behind bars for a year and a day, starting now.

Becky M. Heupel, 31, was handcuffed and taken into custody this morning, after a 30-minute hearing in Lewis County Superior Court.

Heupel pleaded guilty last month to second-degree criminal mistreatment, not for any abuse she inflicted but for her inaction.

Her short-term live-in boyfriend James Reeder was sentenced in March after pleading guilty to two counts of first-degree rape of a child, second-degree assault and homicide by abuse. And possession of methamphetamine. Two-year-old Koralynn Fister died from drowning and head trauma while in the care of Reeder on May 24 of last year at the home off East Oakview Avenue.

Today it was Heupel’s turn to be sentenced.

The deputy prosecutor stated that Heupel’s inaction was a gross failure of her parental responsibility but he spent more time explaining to the judge why he was not asking for a much harsher punishment.

“I think there’s a lot of people who think she should be charged right along with Mr. Reeder,” Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Shane O’Rourke said. “There’s simply wasn’t any evidence she knew about the activity of Mr. Reeder or participated in any way.”

O’Rourke noted extensive deliberations with the prosecutor’s office and police on what her level of accountability was.

He spoke of Heupel’s past, her level of intelligence, of naivety and even stupidity. He spoke of her lifetime punishment of losing her child.

“There’s some degree of selfishness on her part perhaps, blindly putting her faith in Mr. Reeder,” he said.

She has no previous felonies, he added.

Defense attorney Paul Strophy went down the same path, only farther.

“She’s already suffered a horrendous loss from someone she let into her life,” Strophy said. “Some would argue that is punishment enough.”

Strophy noted his client’s long mental health history, OCD, PTSD, agoraphobia, major depression, lack of self confidence and a history of abandonment issues.

“With her learning disabilities, and hearing loss, all these things played a role in how she was used,” he said.

Hindsight is 20-20, Strophy said, about the couple of short months in question.

He told the judge that while Heupel was informed Reeder had a history of domestic violence, she never saw it coming against her children.

“None of the injuries gave her any indication what he ultimately did would occur,” he said. “Her biggest mistake obviously was giving his explanations too much credence and that’s why it’s reckless.”

And she was cooperative, he added.

Prosecutors have indicated a lengthy list of injuries found on the child’s body, some old and some new, such as a missing toenail, a missing patch of hair, palm-sized pieces of skin missing from her buttocks, signs of penetration, bruising and more.

Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer said outside the courtroom Heupel knew her child was being injured when she was with Reeder, and Heupel did nothing except to continue to leave her daughter with him.

“When you open your home to someone like Mr. Reeder, in this case, you’re going to be held accountable,” Meyer said.

The plea deal worked out was that both attorneys recommended Heupel go to prison for one year and one day.

While the maximum penalty is five years, the standard sentencing range for someone with no criminal history, such as Hepuel, is six to 12 months. They asked for the extra time so she  could serve her time in state prison instead of in the Lewis County Jail.

Judge James Lawler said it gave him no pleasure to impose the sentence, but that it was appropriate in the case.

“It’s clear to me you were taken advantage of by Mr. Reeder,” Lawler said. “(But) your conduct constitutes a gross failure as a parent. You did what you did because it was easier to step back and do nothing instead of confronting Mr. Reeder.”

Heupel chose not to make a statement on her own behalf, after a long pause of seemingly considering it.

A crowded courtroom of mostly supporters formed a line to hug her before she was led away. Among them was Koralynn’s father, David Fister.

Fister said he’s forgiven the mother of his only child.

He said he agrees but mostly disagrees Heupel should be locked up.

“I don’t think that’s what should have happened to her, but I understand,” he said.
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For background, read:

• “Mother of dead Centralia 2-year-old admits some responsibility in case” from Friday April 19, 2013, here

• “Centralia man gets maximum prison term for sexual abuse, death of toddler” from Wednesday March 6, 2013, here

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The long saga of the short-lived Hub City Natural Medicine – medical marijuana dispensary – is winding down, with three of the participant’s cases settled and the fourth who is taking hers to trial.

The storefront opened in downtown Centralia in early 2011 with a city-granted business license, but was shut down after police realized what “education and sales of natural medicine” on the application really meant.

Lauri Spangler, 47, is charged with maintaining a premises for using controlled substances.

Jurors in Lewis County Superior Court were reminded by a judge today not to jump to conclusions as there are two sides to every case, and then they heard 10 minutes of opening statements from attorneys.

It’s simple, Lewis County Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher told them.

“But there are different parts of it that kind of lock this all together,” Meagher said.

Pay attention to the dates, and then to the law as it applied back then, he said.

At the time, some cities in Washington such as Tacoma allowed so-called dispensaries of medical marijuana to operate, where, in theory, patients with authorizations make donations to obtain cannabis. But the issue hadn’t come up in Lewis County.

Meagher told jurors that Hub City Natural Medicine’s application for a business license slid past city officials and was mailed out on Feb. 2, 2011. But then police found out they were selling marijuana.

Meagher said Police Chief Bob Berg sent them a letter advising them they could not do what they were doing.

The following month, police got a tip it was still going on and sent an informant into the store, Meagher said.

“And sure enough, the informant was able to buy it,” he said.

Twice more, undercover purchases were made and finally police went in and found marijuana, infused edible products and such, Meagher said.

The people involved were Daniel Mack, David Low and Colby Cave, who was Spangler’s live-in boyfriend, Meagher told the jury.

“And she helped by getting him him the business license,” he said.

Defense attorney Michael Underwood was brief when he addressed the courtroom.

His client had nothing to do with the operation of the business, she didn’t work there or go there, Underwood said.

“What the evidence is going to show is my client got the business license and set up the checking account and that’s pretty much it,” Underwood said.

They didn’t use the word “selling”, Underwood said. They gave the product in exchange for a donation, he said.

Underwood contended it was Cave, Low and Mack who handled the day to day operations.

Mack will be testifying against Spangler, he said.

“It’s gonna come out he got a heck of a deal,” he said. “In exchange for avoiding a long prison term.”

Cave and Low pleaded guilty earlier this year. Mack has pleaded guilty but has not yet been sentenced.

Maintaining a premises for using controlled substances is a class C felony.

The trial will continue tomorrow morning.
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For background, read “Centralia medical marijuana dispensary case winding down” from Saturday February 2, 2013, here