Lewis County Sirens.com

Tyler M. McKee and his lawyer face a judge this morning in Lewis County Superior Court.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A former Chehalis man admitted today he took advantage of a 13-year-old girl at a Centralia party when he was 19 years old.

Tyler M. McKee has been held since the end of July on $100,000 bail in the Lewis County Jail in connection with the 2012 case.

He and his lawyer made a deal with prosecutors in which he pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree child molestation, while a charge of second-degree rape of a child was dropped.

Lewis County Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt asked McKee if the words printed on his admission were what happened, that on May 4, 2012, he had sexual contact with a person under 14 and encouraged, aided and abetted another to also have sexual contact with the same victim.

McKee agreed and the judge asked if McKee knew her age.

“No, I didn’t know,” McKee said.

Earlier this summer, the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office secured an arrest warrant for one of three males the 13-year-old girl believed engaged in sex with her at the party, when she was so drunk she could not walk. DNA collected from her pants and McKee were a match, according to court documents.

The now 22-year-old was living in Las Vegas and returned to Lewis County at the end of July.

After this morning’s court hearing, the judge imposed a no-bail hold and scheduled a date to return to court for Oct. 20.

His sentencing can’t take place until after the state Department of Corrections completes a pre-sentencing investigation in which the state agency will make its recommendation for how long he should be locked up.

Lewis County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Will Halstead said the standard sentencing range for McKee is 31 to 41 months and the state will recommend 41.

McKee is represented by Centralia lawyer J.P. Enbody.

Another 22-year-old was arrested last week in connection with the same incident. Geffrey A. Duncan of Chehalis is charged with second-degree rape of a child.

He told the judge when he appeared in court on Friday he has no idea who the victim is. His bail was $25,000.
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For background, read “Suspect in rape of girl at 2012 Centralia party arrested in Vegas” from Monday August 1, 2016, here

Diana M. Rogerson consults with her lawyer Chris Baum today in Lewis County Superior Court.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A 37-year-old mother entered into a plea agreement and was sentenced today in a case in which she spanked her 7-year-old daughter so hard it left a bruise.

Diana M. Rogerson was given 60 days in jail and ordered to undergo drug and alcohol treatment as well as treatment pertaining to domestic violence, according to Lewis County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Will Halstead.

Lewis County Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt told Rogerson her right to possess firearms is revoked, following her plea of guilty to fourth-degree assault domestic violence.

Rogerson was charged in June with third-degree assault of a child shortly after her husband was charged with the same offense for a different incident involving the girl, his stepdaughter.

Joseph W. Rogerson was arrested after the girl told a school counselor her step-father punched her in the arm when she tried to get him to stop hitting her mom, while the family was target shooting in the woods near Pe Ell.

The family lived in Pe Ell.

Because of the arrest, Joseph Rogerson, 37, lost his deferred prosecution in a case of driving under the influence, from an arrest last summer after a head-on crash in Onalaska that killed three teenagers. The investigation by the Washington State Patrol concluded he was traveling in his own lane and not to blame for the wreck.

Joseph Rogerson has pleaded guilty to fourth-degree assault and is awaiting sentencing in Lewis County District Court.

The case was assigned to Child Protective Services. The children went to live with their father in Toledo.

Diana Rogerson will be allowed to serve her time with electronic home monitoring, if she qualifies, according to Halstead. Otherwise she will have to check in to the Lewis County Jail by Oct. 11. The judge also ordered her not to have any contact with her daughter, until she fulfills her obligations, he said.

She admitted taking a folded belt to her daughter, something the girl’s older brother told deputies happened after the child  refused to say prayers at dinnertime.
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For background, read “Pe Ell mother faces charge of assault of her child” from Tuesday June 21, 2016, here

Geffrey A. Duncan talks with temporary defense attorney Joely O’Rourke in Lewis County Superior Court.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A second young man has been arrested from a 2012 case in which a 13-year-old girl told police she was taken advantage of by three males at a Centralia party when she was so drunk she could not walk.

Geffrey A. Duncan, 22, went before a judge yesterday afternoon in Lewis County Superior Court, where he is charged with second-degree rape of a child.

The Chehalis resident came to court with his father, having bailed out of jail following his arrest on a $25,000 warrant.

The judge signed a protection order, prohibiting Duncan from contacting the alleged victim.

Temporary defense attorney Joely O’Rourke indicated to Judge Nelson Hunt her client could have trouble abiding by the order.

“He says he doesn’t know the victim, has no idea who she is,” O’Rourke said. “He’s not sure how to avoid (her).”

Judge Hunt told Duncan he needed to stay at least 1,000 feet from Centralia College, avoiding giving the girl’s address.

Earlier this summer, Centralia police arrested 19-year-old Tyler M. McKee, who was living in Las Vegas. He was charged with the same offense and remains in the Lewis County Jail with bail set at $100,000.

The allegations were investigated in May of 2012, and forensic evidence collected, but the girl only knew the first names of two of the individuals, according to court documents.

Last year, a detective at the Centralia Police Department interviewed a new witness and was given Duncan’s name, and Duncan subsequently recalled being at the party and said he may have kissed her once, according to court documents. He accused two of his friends of having sex with the girl after being told she was only 13, court documents relate.

Duncan’s DNA was excluded from the sample found on her pants.

Court documents in the case relate the girl said she’d never been intoxicated before, but played beer pong and “shot gunned” approximately 10 beers. She told police she remembered both “Tyler” and “Jeff” being on top of her, one after the other. She recalled a third man who came into the room and put his penis in her mouth, according to the court documents.

The new witness reportedly told a detective he tried to get Duncan out of the room but Duncan refused to leave, according to court documents.

O’Rourke told the judge yesterday that Duncan was asking for a court-appointed lawyer, as he didn’t think he could afford to hire someone.

“He makes about $4,000 a month, but he has about $3,000 a month coming out of his pocket,” O’Rourke said, citing bills such as $600 a month truck payment, a $200 a month phone bill, $600 a month obligation for his show dog and payments on haying equipment loans.

Hunt didn’t appoint him a lawyer, but told him to return in two weeks after talking with attorneys about their costs, and tell him again why he can’t afford to hire someone.

His next court hearing is Sept. 29.
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For background, read “Suspect in rape of girl at 2012 Centralia party arrested in Vegas” from Monday August 1, 2016, here

Courtesy photo by Kim Lannoye

Updated at 11:43 a.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Crews are extinguishing a two-alarm house fire in Chehalis.

Chehalis Fire Department Chief Ken Cardinale said everyone got out alright of the two-story home at South Market Boulevard and 11th Street.

He expects they will be on scene a couple more hours.

The call came just after 5 o’clock this morning. They were joined by crews from Lewis County Fire Districts 6 and 5 as well as Riverside Fire Authority, according to Firefighter Steve Emrich.

Just before 8 a.m., the blaze was mostly put out.

“They’re going in to what’s called overhaul,” Emrich said. “Had the fire knocked down, opening up void spots, putting out spot fires.”

Emrich said the residence is still standing, but he believed at the very least sustained heavy fire damage to the second floor. It seemed to have started at the garage area and spread from there, he said.

A fire investigator is looking into the cause today.

The man and woman, in their mid-20s, along with a toddler were helped out of a second-floor dormer window by a neighbor or friend before the fire department arrived, according to Cardinale.

The chief said the house has no interior stairwell to the second level and the exterior stairs weren’t an option because of the fire.

They had been sleeping and she said she woke up to use the bathroom, heard the sound of rushing wind, saw a glow and then the fire at the back of the house.

The Red Cross was summoned to assist the residents.

Kathy Brack speaks briefly at a gathering in her honor today as she prepares to retire, backed up by her Chief Deputy Clerk Lisa Conzatti.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – As many as eight individuals have expressed interest in being appointed Lewis County clerk, as the elected official holding the position is retiring before her four-year term ends.

Kathy Brack’s last day is tomorrow. Her chief deputy clerk Lisa Conzatti will take over as interim county clerk.

Brack spoke at a farewell gathering held in her honor today, at the Historic Lewis County Courthouse.

The 65-year-old Toledo resident has been under treatment for cancer, and made good on a promise to her spouse.

“I told my husband if my last doctor’s appointment came clean, then I would retire,” Brack said.

The Lewis County clerk serves as the official record keeper for the Lewis County Superior Court. The office on the second floor of the Lewis County Law and Justice Center in Chehalis has 15 employees.

Brack’s retirement brings to an end 44 years of public service. She was the Lewis County District Court administrator beginning in 1972 and then in 1986 took over the same position in Cowlitz County District Court.

In 2002, the Republican ran against the incumbent Lewis County clerk, and won, running unopposed three times since then.

Because her term hasn’t ended, the Lewis County Board of Commissioners will select a replacement, who will have to run for the office in a November 2017 special election if they want to continue. And then run again in November 2018 for a normal four-year term.

The commissioners will have a slate of three candidates to choose from, names given to them by the Lewis County Republican party, since the outgoing clerk is a Republican.

Local party Chairman Mark Anders said today he’s got six people on his list who have expressed interest and he’s happy to share information about the steps to being considered to anyone who is interested.

“This is a political process, it’s a partisan position,” Anders said. “One thing the precinct committee officers will be looking at, is we want to elect someone, get someone appointed, that could win that seat and hold that seat as a Republican.

“It’s not just this is the best, most qualified person for the job, though we want that too.”

Anders said there are 45 to 50 precinct committee officers who will come together on a Saturday not yet selected in October to make nominations, hear from the nominees and choose three potential appointees.

Surveillance images from the Handi Store showed boots that looked familiar to business’s owner. / Courtesy image

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A 45-year-old local man has been arrested and charged in last week’s holdup of the Handi store in Winlock.

When Tamrick A. Torres was brought before a judge this afternoon for a bail hearing, temporary defense attorney Joely O’Rourke told the judge her client has lived for eight years at the same address in Winlock.

Torres has his own business, a cat rescue, O’Rourke said. But it doesn’t bring in any income, she said indicating he would qualify for a court appointed lawyer.

“Robbery second is a violent offense,” Chief Deputy Criminal Prosecutor Brad Meagher said. “We’re asking the court to impose a $25,000 bond.”

Lewis County Superior Court Judge James Lawler agreed.

Police responded to the report of robbery at about 10:30 p.m. last Tuesday, and learned from the clerk who was working alone the individual was wearing a black and white mask, like of a skull, and displayed a handgun. The clerk said he demanded she give him all her money and reached toward his waistband where she saw what looked like the black handle of a firearm, Meager wrote in charging documents.

The owner reported $1,589 in cash was missing, according to Maeagher.

The court documents show it was his footwear and yellow sport utility vehicle that led the Toledo Police Department to Torres.

After viewing surveillance footage, the store’s owner told an officer he thought the suspect was a person he’s seen driving a yellow sport utility vehicle and wears boots like those on the video, according to the court documents. Amarjit Rai said the way the suspect walked looked familiar too.

Toledo Police Officer Andrew Scrivner observed video that showed the yellow vehicle pass the convenience store on Kerron Avenue shortly before and after the robbery, and knew of just one person in town who drove such a vehicle, Meagher wrote.

On Friday when police conducted a search of Torres’s residence, they found boots that looked similar and also a dark jacket with the same type of white stitching worn by the person in the video, according to Meagher.

Torres reportedly told police he and the clerk had conspired to rob the store because she was unhappy with her wages there, according to Meagher.

When interviewed by police, the clerk said she had nothing to with planning the robbery, but the investigation is ongoing, according to court documents.

Torres was charged today with both second-degree robbery and second-degree burglary, which each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $20,000 fine.

Centralia attorney Shane O’Rourke was appointed to represent him. His arraignment is scheduled for Thursday.

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For background, read “Robber with black and white Scream-type mask hits Winlock store” from Wednesday September 7, 2016, here

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Tamrick A. Torres is brought before a judge in Lewis County Superior Court this afternoon.