Archive for the ‘Top story of the day’ Category

Parents of mistreated Centralia teen are no shows for sentencing hearing

Wednesday, November 1st, 2017
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Attorneys huddle with Lewis County Superior Court Judge Joely O’Rourke after defendants fail to appear in court.

Updated at 4:53 p.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Authorities said law enforcement would go look today to try to find a Centralia couple who didn’t show up for their sentencing hearing in a case of the severe neglect of one of their children.

Mary G. Foxworth, 43, and Anthony S. Foxworth Sr., 45, are facing prison terms of as long as more than four years. Each pleaded guilty last month separately to one count of first-degree criminal mistreatment.

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Mary G. Foxworth

They were charged late last year after an investigation that began almost a year earlier. When they first appeared before a judge in Lewis County Superior Court in January, they were allowed to remain free on $10,000 unsecured bonds.

The Centralia Police Department got involved after the Foxworths took their 16-year-old son to the doctor with abdominal pain, and he was was hospitalized, suffering from severe malnutrition, severe constipation and anemia, according to Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Melissa Bohm. The boy weighed just 54 pounds, was missing patches of hair, could not stand on his own and had not seen a doctor or been enrolled in school for years, according to the allegations.

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Anthony S. Foxworth Sr.

Most benches in the courtroom today were filled for the hearing that was scheduled for 2 p.m.

Lewis County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Will Halstead, just after 2:15 p.m., told the judge neither defendant was present, although both were aware of the hearing.

Defense attorney Jacob Clark said the last time he’d heard from his client was Monday. Anthony Foxworth’s lawyer Chris Baum said his client had checked in on Monday as usual.

Judge Joely O’Rourke agreed to sign no-bail bench warrants for the couple.

Among those who were present was their son, now 18 years old. He looked well. Halstead said prior to the hearing he hadn’t decided whether he would address the court.

He was accompanied by at least a half dozen individuals wearing black leather jackets emblazoned with the logo of their group, Bikers Against Child Abuse.

One of the group from Kelso, who only gave his “road name” of Pops, said they work to support young victims.

“We want them to know, that child’s got someone protecting their back,” he said.

Clark said after the hearing adjourned, he asked Mary Foxworth’s mother to go check on her, as there have been mental wellness concerns.

Clark said he believes the couple no longer resides together, nor do their other two children live with them.

Baum said he didn’t know why they weren’t at court, and he didn’t want to speculate.

Halstead said the plan was to send law enforcement to look for them and pick them up this afternoon.
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For background, read “Centralia mother pleads guilty to severe neglect of son” from Tuesday October 17, 2017, here

Threat in note prompts searches of everyone entering Centralia High School

Wednesday, November 1st, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – An extra law enforcement presence, locked building doors and searches with metal detector wands at Centralia High School today is due to a suspicious note found yesterday, according to authorities.

The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office is investigating.

Ed Petersen, public relations coordinator for the Centralia School DIstrict, says otherwise, it’s been a pretty normal day.

The sheriff’s office says a teacher yesterday around 11:40 a.m. found a folded up suspicious note on a ramp near one of the outdoor classrooms.

It did not contain a threat to any specific person, but its context was a general threat to possible people at the school, sheriff’s Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said this morning.

Breen said deputies and officers from the Centralia Police Department would be providing personnel at the school to assure the safety of students.

Centralia High School Principal Josue Lowe sent a message to parents yesterday evening informing them of the situation.

Lowe said that students would not be allowed to bring backpacks or duffel bags to school today and that arriving students would go through a checkpoint to be searched with metal detector wands.

All exterior doors were to be locked today and anyone entering the building would be subject to search, according to the school district.

The high school is on the 800 block of Eshom Road.

Breen said deputies are working to learn who wrote the note.

“The Centralia School District in conjunction with local law enforcement agencies will do everything within our power to find out who is making the threat and prosecute them accordingly,” Lowe stated.

Gunshot punctuates angry voice message to attorneys, leads to arrest of Toledo resident

Friday, October 27th, 2017
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Ricky A. Satcher, right, is advised by temporary defense attorney Rachael Tiller in Lewis County Superior Court

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A 61-year-old Toledo area man who contends local lawyers stole his property is locked up in the Lewis County Jail after allegedly threatening their lives.

Ricky A. Satcher was detained on a $100,000 arrest warrant in a case investigated by the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

He was brought before a judge yesterday afternoon in Lewis County Superior Court for a bail hearing, represented by temporary defense attorney Rachael Tiller.

“Mr. Satcher has communicated, quite effectively I believe, he does believe he is the victim in this case,” Tiller told the judge.

Pacific County Prosecutor Mark McClain told Judge Joely O’Rourke he had significant concerns because authorities don’t know where all of Satcher’s firearms are.

When McClain noted he doesn’t know the defendant’s address, Satcher responded loudly, after having been asked already to direct his comments to his lawyer.

“I don’t have an address, Sir,” he said. “These people stole my land and stole my farm.”

He refused to sign the court documents put in front of him and the judge changed his bail from $100,000 to a no-bail hold.

Satcher is charged with felony telephone harassment related to alleged calls to Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer.

He is also charged with two counts of felony harassment, threat to kill in connection with voice mail messages he allegedly left for Scott Blinks and Bill Hiller. Both are private practice lawyers with offices in Chehalis.

Charging documents in the case go back to February, when Satcher allegedly began leaving voice mail messages for the three attorneys, speaking of grievances he has with them, the current sheriff, the Lewis County Superior Court administrator, former Lewis County Superior Court  Judge H. John Hall and others, complaints he had made and suits he had filed.

Satcher subsequently left messages for the three in which he indicated he had verified with the Washington State Patrol he could make citizens arrest, would be doing that in the coming week, and advised they should not resist or he would use force to overcome such resistance, the charging documents relate.

In the profanity-laced voice mail, Satcher asserts he will be discrediting and exposing the criminal activity of Blinks, Hillier and Meyer, Prosecutor McClain wrote in the documents.

Blinks provided the detective with one voice message in which Satcher says he will get even with Blinks in the end. Hillier’s law firm reported Satcher left messages referring to Hillier’s daughter.

But at the beginning of this month, the detective listened to voice messages Satcher allegedly left for Blinks and Hillier, discussing the investigation and saying if certain things don’t work out, he has “other means” of taking care of things.

“After a pause, there is a clearly recognizable gun shot and Satcher says he is practicing to get justice …” McClain wrote.

Satcher allegedly made other comments, such as how his father was a military sniper and he was taught to always shoot in the head because you don’t want anything to move after you shoot it; and that as a farmer, he knows how to get justice.

At one point during the investigation, Satcher had brought a packet of documents to the sheriff’s office that appeared to relate to a 2012 investigation in which Satcher asserted certain property was his and charges were not filed. He was very angry and yelling and the detective could not readily follow him, McClain wrote.

Charging documents show Satcher with a home address on Layton Road in Toledo.

Judge O’Rourke yesterday appointed Chehalis attorney Chris Baum to represent Satcher. His arraignment is scheduled for next Thursday.

The charges were filed on Oct. 17 and Satcher was booked into the Lewis County Jail on Wednesday.

Prosecutor Meyer said after the hearing, the Pacific County prosecutor is handling the case because Meyer is one of the victims, although Meyer’s name is not specifically noted in the information document filed.

Prosecutor alleges: Chehalis teen posing as woman tricked another teen into sharing naked pictures

Wednesday, October 25th, 2017
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By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A hearing to decide whether a Chehalis teenager’s felony case will be moved to adult court for alleged extortion in sexting activities has been postponed until next month.

The boy, now 16, was taken into custody last month after being summonsed to Lewis County Juvenile Court.

The investigation began a year ago, after a 16-year-old Chehalis boy revealed he had been communicating online with someone he thought was a 19-year-old woman, who shared images and a video of herself unclothed and in exchange, he shared similar-type images and a video of himself back, according to court documents.

The supposed 19-year-old woman then wanted more pornographic images of the 16-year-old and threatened to share what she already had with all his friends and family, the documents relate. When the victim refused, some of the pictures were sent to the 16-year-old’s younger brother and also a girl at W.F. West High School, according to the documents.

The investigation which began with the FBI and continued starting last November with a detective from the Chehalis Police Department led to a suspect, a 15-year-old Chehalis boy allegedly posing as the 19-year-old woman, according to court documents.

The teenagers had been using Instagram and Snapchat.

When the 15-year-old was interviewed, he allegedly admitted “extorting” sexually explicit photos from more than 30 people, according to the allegations.

Charges were filed against the suspect, now 16, on Sept. 25 of this year. He was charged in Lewis County Juvenile Court with one count each of second-degree extortion, first-degree possession of depictions of minor engaged in sexually explicit conduct and first-degree dealing in depictions of minor engaged in sexually explicit.

When he went to court on Oct. 10, a judge ordered him into the custody of the  Lewis County Juvenile Justice Center. On the same day, Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer filed a motion for a declination hearing, to determine whether the court should decline to exercise juvenile court jurisdiction and instead transfer the case to Lewis County Superior Court where he would be handled as an adult.

The suspect is represented by a retained attorney, Jonathan Feste with the Law Offices of Benjamin and Healy in Bellevue, according to a notice filed the following day.

The so-called decline hearing was scheduled for yesterday, but both parties requested it be moved to Nov. 29 at 1:15 p.m., according to court documents.

Honoring Sheriff Wiester

Saturday, October 21st, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS –  The Board of (Lewis) County Commissioners proclaimed today Sheriff William H. “Bill” Wiester Day throughout the county to recognize the former sheriff’s contributions to public service.

Wiester passed away Sept. 21, at age 91. A celebration of life was scheduled for today at Bethel Church of the Assemblies of God, south of Chehalis.

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William H. “Bill” Wiester
1926 – 2017

He was the longest serving sheriff in the county’s history, first elected in 1966 and continuing in the position for 20 years.

County commissioners in issuing their proclamation noted how Wiester started with the sheriff’s office as the resident deputy in Randle, was a long-time first aid instructor and was instrumental in initiating the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office K-9 program.

He served as president of the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs.

“He was proud of his time spent with his bloodhounds, Ole Blue and Maggie, and his reputation for search-and-rescue missions proceeded him, with state other and local agencies contacting him to spearhead searches for missing children,” the document stated.

In May of 1980, after the catastrophic eruption of Mount St. Helens, U.S. Army leaders turned to the three county sheriffs with jurisdiction over the blast zone and the Toledo Airport where search and rescue operations were based, and suggested it would work best if the three chose a leader to represent their group. They chose Sheriff Wiester.

Wiester was born Jan. 9, 1926, living in Morton, according to his obituary, and after high school went into military service as a Merchant Marine. His work before law enforcement included a state fire warden, a cannery worker and logging. He married Jeanne Olson on March 1, 1945 and they raised three children.

“The sheriff’s reputation as a gifted storyteller and his steadfast dedication to public service has created a legacy that will be remembered by many for generations,” the Lewis County BOCC wrote.

Half dozen young people implicated in beating teen in retaliation for Wal-Mart stabbing

Thursday, October 19th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS –  Four people were arrested overnight and two teenage suspects are at large in connection with a nighttime baseball bat attack on a 19-year-old rural Chehalis resident which he believes was retaliation from when a friend of his recently stabbed a person outside Wal-Mart, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

The sheriff’s office only this morning revealed the assault occurred, about 1 a.m. on Friday at the 200 block of Brockway Road.

Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said deputies learned the 19-year-old male had been walking his dog when a car pulled up at the entrance to his driveway and an individual wearing a red bandana exited and asked him what he was doing.

The 19-year-old victim said a male and a female then got out of the vehicle and confronted him. At one point, he said, they were armed with bats and hit him in the head two or three times, according to Breen. The victim suffered lacerations and bumps, Breen said.

The car, which he thought was a white 1990s Honda Accord-type vehicle, then left driving toward state Route 6, according to the sheriff’s office.

Breen said an investigation and interviews beginning about 9:30 p.m. yesterday led to the arrests and booking of four suspects for second-degree assault.

The first is a 16-year-old Chehalis girl who was not named, and was booked into the Lewis County Juvenile Detention Center.

Booked into the Lewis County Jail were Victor E. Gonzalez, 18, of Centralia; Jesus A. Gomez, 19, of Centralia; and Taylor S. Rodgers, 20, of Chehalis.

The other two suspects who have not yet been located are Stormie M. McKenzie, 19, from Winlock, and an un-named 17-year-old boy from North Bend, according to Breen.

Two weeks ago, officers were dispatched for a fight between two males in Wal-Mart’s parking lot at the 1600 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue in Chehalis, but when they arrived both were gone. Police soon learned a 17-year-old boy  was seeking medical treatment at Providence Centralia Hospital for a stab wound in his chest. Friends of the 17-year-old in the hospital waiting room said he’d gotten into a fight with another male who stabbed him.

The following day Jose F. Chagolla Flores, 18, of Onalaska, and his vehicle were found at a friend’s home on Brockway Road and he was arrested for first-degree assault.

Chagolla Flores allegedly told police he was meeting someone at Wal-Mart to sell them some marijuana when the 17-year-old showed up and knocked him down, so he stabbed him.

The adult suspects for the baseball bat attack are tentatively scheduled to go before a judge this afternoon in Lewis County Superior Court.
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For background, read “Chehalis Wal-Mart stabbing suspect says teen hit him first” from Tuesday October 10, 2017, here

Mossyrock resident admits to felony DUI

Wednesday, October 18th, 2017

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS –  The Mossyrock man arrested less than three weeks ago for felony driving under the influence pleaded guilty this morning and was sentenced in Lewis County Superior Court.

James G. Blunt, 51, was facing a standard sentencing range of 13 to 17 months in prison. The judge imposed a 15-month sentence, Lewis County Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher said.

“We gave him a little slack because he pled out right away,” Meagher said.

He wanted to plead guilty back at his arraignment, Meagher said.

Blunt was arrested early on the morning of Sept. 29, pulled over for speeding on Centralia Alpha Road near Oppelt Road.

Charging documents stated he told the deputy he’d consumed about half the Mike’s Hard Lemonade alcohol beverage with him in his vehicle and had about four hits of marijuana roughly five minutes earlier.

The offense was a felony for Blunt instead of a gross misdemeanor because he has a past conviction for vehicular homicide while under the influence. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison after striking and killing a bicyclist near Mossyrock while intoxicated in 2001.

Meagher said he appreciated Blunt’s attitude, saying the defendant had been staying on a program since his release from prison, and although he fell off, so to speak, he said he’d he’d just take the next year and a half to get back in line.
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For background, read “Mossyrock man charged with felony driving under the influence” from Saturday September 30, 2017, here