Lewis County Sirens.com

Right to left, Guy LaFontaine's daughter Kandace Barton, son Eric LaFontaine and family friend William Young listen as Gail LaFontaine speaks to the court about her husband's death

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Gail LaFontaine’s husband had been badly beaten.

The 58-year-old welder from Federal Way had broken ribs, broken eye sockets, a broken forearm and what a sheriff’s detective described as a shoe or boot print on his head.

After spending some five hours in the emergency room at Morton General Hospital, where they sewed up a gash in his head, Guy LaFontaine’s wife was given a CD, an appointment for the following Monday with a facial re-constructionist and hope, lots of hope.

Guy LaFontaine

The 60-year-old woman took her husband and headed home in the middle of the night to Federal Way, on the back roads, she said.

Her daughter Kandace Barton followed them. The three had been together at the Randle home of taxidermist Erik Massa.

“He said, ‘Gail, I’m hot’, and I rolled the window down,” Gail LaFontaine said of her ailing husband. “And he grabbed my thumb.”

“Then he said, ‘Gail, I’m cold’,” she said. She turned on the heat.

“He laid back and I thought, good, he’s resting,” she said. “And he squeezed my thumb.”

When they pulled off the freeway, her daughter rolled her car window down and said ‘Mom, I don’t think he’s moving right, we’re going to St. Francis (Hospital)”, according to Gail LaFontaine.

When they arrived at the hospital, her husband of some 30 years was dead.

Massa, 44, was charged with second-degree murder in the March 14, 2010 death.

Erik R. Massa

Under an arrangement formalized today, his case was  pleaded down to second-degree assault and he was sentenced to as much as the judge could give someone with no criminal history – nine months in jail.

LaFontaine, who worked at Todd Shipyard in Seattle, was described in court today as a union representative so beloved, some of the Korean workers he assisted would literally bow to him and his wife.

Lewis County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher told a judge this afternoon there were no marks on the defendant; it was not a neutral fight.

“This is a particularly brutal beating, and there seems to be no reason for it,” Meagher said.

However, Meagher said, the pathologist who conducted the autopsy suggested LaFontaine’s death involved the altercation as well as heart disease and diabetes.

“And for whatever reason, Mr. LaFontaine was either forced to go or checked out of the hospital,” Meagher said.

Meagher said he would have had a hard time proving the cause of death at trial. Also, one witness has died and a significant piece of evidence had been suppressed – a broken shotgun found in a silo on Massa’s property, according to Meagher.

The standard sentencing range for second-degree assault is three to nine months in jail. Meagher recommended nine months. Defense attorney Chris Baum recommended three months.

Lewis County Superior Court Judge James Lawler chose nine months and ordered the defendant to be evaluated – and treated if necessary- for drug and alcohol abuse.

Massa spoke in court to the judge and his father-in-law’s family saying it is a family tragedy he will live with for the rest of his life.

“I did love him and I’m very sorry for what happened,” Massa said.

He admitted only to punching his father-in-law in the ribs.

Almost an hour was spent listening to family tell the judge what the sentence should be and addressing Massa, who wouldn’t look at the speakers.

Gail LaFontaine accused him of beating to death a crippled old man.

“My life is over, it’s done,” she said.

She held a photo of her smiling husband up and spoke of how much her husband adored his son-in-law.

All a person would have to do to get Guy LaFontaine to back off is remove his glasses, Massa was told.

“Erik, you’re getting out in nine months and I have terminal cancer,” she said. “You’re coming with me.”

Massa was told when one of Guy LaFontaine’s daughters heard the “worst news ever, she thought it would be her sister” – Massa’s wife who was dead.

The details of what occurred at the 11,000 block of U.S. Highway 12 in Randle won’t be heard in a trial, but bit and pieces emerged during the hearing today.

Defense attorney Baum told the judge his client didn’t hit Guy LaFontaine over the head with a shotgun.

“LaFontaine grabbed that shotgun, pointed it at my client and threatened to kill him,” Baum said. “My client wrestled the shotgun away and took it and broke it.”

There were allegations both men had been drinking.

Massa’s wife spoke of her husband’s drinking problem, and said she, her husband and both her parents were at the property that night.

It was all over the farm, it wasn’t just one spot, there was blood everywhere,” Barton said.

She described the trauma of seeing her father laying on the taxidermy shop floor, his face is smashed, and her “holding the blood in the back of his head.”

She persuaded her husband to leave, so she could get away with her toddler, she said. She wondered if they would get out alive, she told the judge.

“To know my husband is going to out in nine months and mad at me for doing this, that’s even scarier,” she said.

Massa will be subject to 18 months community custody after his release, $1,800 in financial obligations, and 10-year no contact orders with his wife and mother-in-law.

Barton filed for divorce shortly after her father died.

Massa took only one brief look toward his father-in-law’s family as he was handcuffed and led out of the courtroom.

Exactly the circumstances under which Guy LaFontaine was discharged from Morton General Hospital aren’t clear.

“It’s very sad the hospital in Morton let him leave,” defense attorney Baum said.

A sheriff’s deputy who had gone to the emergency room that night noted Guy LaFontaine’s substantial injuries, and later was notified by the hospital they couldn’t keep LaFontaine in his bed so they were releasing him.

Gail LaFontaine, who said the emergency room had lined up a LifeFlight at one point that night, characterized it this way: The doctor told her husband, “Guy, I’m tired of f-ing with you, get out.”

The King County Medical Examiner’s Office listed Guy Lafontaine’s death as a homicide caused by blunt force injuries to his head, torso and extremities.

This was updated at 2:02 p.m. and 3:56 p.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Beer cans were found at the scene of a wreck that left three people dead yesterday evening southwest of Oakville, the Grays Harbor County Sheriff’s Office said this morning.

A 49-year-old Rochester woman was flown to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle after the single-vehicle collision on the 400 block of Brooklyn Road, sheriff’s Lt. Matt Stowers said.

Colleen L. Stuart is listed in serious condition this afternoon in the intensive care unit, according to a nursing supervisor.

The small pickup was headed toward Oakville when it ran off the road down an embankment and its cab was crushed by a tree, according to Stowers.

Dead at the scene were the driver, 52-year-old Rochester resident Gregory D. Martin who is the boyfriend of the survivor; Travis W. Bennett, 26, and Jessica L. Brick, 22, both of Centralia, Stowers said.

None were wearing seat belts, according to Stowers.

“Not that it would have done them any good,” he said. “Although it might have helped the surviving passenger some.”

The  2004 Toyota Tacoma was an extended cab with two jump seats in the back, he said. The truck slid on its side and the damage was primarily to the cab, he said.

Stuart was riding behind the driver and that’s the area that had the most headroom left, he said.

Firefighters had to use the Jaws of Life to open a door and extricate Stuart.

She was conscious and taken to Oakville High School School where a helicopter picked her up, according to Grays Harbor Fire District 1.

The roadway which runs between Garrard Creek Road and the town of Brooklyn in Pacific County was closed until about 10:30 p.m. as the sheriff’s office investigated.

Update Tuesday January 3, 2012 at 9:17 a.m.: Stuart has been discharged from the hospital, the Grays Harbor County undersheriff said this morning.

Deborah Sue Knapp listens to her attorney during an appearance in Lewis County Superior Court.

This was updated at 8:59 p.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – If the allegations turn out to be true, the former director of the Lewis County Historical Museum routinely issued herself payroll draws and used the museum debit card to pay personal expenses at places such as a furniture store, a grocery store and even to pay her home’s electric bill – totaling more than $137,000.

Chehalis police and the Lewis County prosecutor both say they expect to find more wrongdoing as two more years of financial records are reviewed.

Deborah Sue Knapp, 52, of Chehalis, was handcuffed and wearing green and white striped jail garb as she appeared in Lewis County Superior Court this afternoon.

Knapp is charged with 10 counts of first-degree theft.

She was arrested yesterday at the end of an investigation into revelations the museum’s endowment fund of more than $460,000 was drained in less than four years. Knapp was hired in July 2006.

“I’m shocked at how much,” museum member Susan Gonzales said after the hearing.

Gonzales said she was not entirely surprised when Knapp’s arrest was announced because everyone knew a police investigation was underway. But she finds it implausible one person could have made off with all that money alone, she said.

“I thought there would be more people (arrested),” Gonzales said. “How could the board not know this was happening?”

The Chehalis woman finds herself in the unique position, she said, of considering Knapp a friend, and also a tenant who has left her rent unpaid in recent months.

Last month, after museum members learned there was no money left in the endowment fund, four officers on the 13-member board were replaced, the accounts were closed and the museum was shut down temporarily. Police were asked to investigate.

The current criminal charges cover the years 2008 through this year. The investigation into 2007 and 2006 is still underway.

Knapp attempted to keep her face turned away from news cameras and spectators in the Chehalis courtroom as attorneys read the charges and discussed bail.

Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer called them “egregious facts” and a violation of trust.

“We expect additional charges,” Meyer said.

Meyer asked for bail of $50,000 noting Knapp and her husband have moved in a motor home in Centralia, suggesting she is a flight risk.

Defense attorney Bob Schroeter pointed out his client is someone who has been an integral part of the community and requested an unsecured bond.

Judge Richard Brosey agreed Knapp could be released if her husband co-signed a $25,000 unsecured note.

Knapp’s husband, daughter and other family members were in the courtroom, but declined any comment.

According to charging documents, Knapp was paid a salary of $43,000 a year and did not receive overtime pay or so-called comp time.

Her responsibilities included overseeing the day-to-day operations of the museum in downtown Chehalis and supervising three part time employees and the volunteers.

Prosecutors allege Knapp routinely obtained “draws” from her employer but failed to account for them in subsequent paychecks. They go on to allege she wrote many of her own payroll draw checks without any one else’s knowledge, and many times listed them in the check register as voided although she cashed them.

For example, one of the theft counts alleges that in January and February 2008, she received more than $5,000 in payrolls draws in addition to her regular salary. It continued until Oct. 28, 2011, allegedly, adding up to more than $44,000.

“Knapp was questioned by law enforcement regarding the payroll draws she obtained and initially denied knowing she was overpaid, but later acknowledged she knew she had been overpaid,” prosecutors wrote.

Charging documents go on to describe it appears Knapp was using the museum debit card to pay personal expenses at Aaron’s Furniture, AGIA Insurance, Wal-Mart, Rite Aid, K-Mart, Walgreens, Safeway, Staples and Lewis County PUD.

Prosecutors wrote it appears she used the card to pay her power bill on Fineview Road for the previous two years.

The personal debit card amounts total $92,000 over the last four years, according to prosecutors. The total figure is still under investigation, according to charging documents.

No other individuals associated with the museum are suspected to be involved, according to police.

New museum board president John Panesko said on his talk radio show this morning nobody other than Knapp ever looked at the original records – the bank statements.

This afternoon Panesko said that was his understanding, and he could not explain how the board treasurer could have compiled her reports to the board without those records – even as she was also the paid part-time bookkeeper.

The dual-role is something the new board officers have eliminated, along with implementing several other layers of security relating to money, according to Panesko.

“No one who was involved in finances before is involved in it again,” he said. “Just for safety.”

He expected a decision to terminate Knapp would be made at next week’s board meeting, he said.

The museum has been operating with only volunteers, but Panesko said they expect next month to bring back the part-time curator and bring in a part-time director.

“We don’t now who that is yet,” he said.

The museum is open and its incoming revenue roughly matches its expenses now, according to Panesko.

“We have enough money to operate, now that we’ve plugged the leak,” he said.

Knapp’s opportunity to make her plea comes on Jan. 12.

Her income and assets are such she was assigned a court-appointed attorney, Ken Johnson.

•••

Read “Police asked to investigate finances of Lewis County Historical Museum” from Wednesday November 16  2011 for background, here

This news story was updated at 3:40 p.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The former director of the Lewis County Historical Museum was arrested today for theft in connection with the investigation of missing museum endowment funds.

Debbie Knapp, 52, of Chehalis, was brought into the Chehalis Police Department this morning for an interview and subsequently arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail for 10 counts of first-degree theft, according to police.

The police department says the current amount of suspected fraudulently used funds is in excess of $100,000. The investigation isn’t finished however, according to police.

Chehalis police were asked in November to review the financial records of the museum, following revelations its endowment fund of more than $400,000 was spent.

It appears money was transferred from the endowment account to a museum bank account where a debit card was used to make personal purchases by Knapp of various goods from local businesses and services such as utility payments, Chehalis Officer Linda Bailey said this afternoon.

Police say Knapp signed for paychecks in excess of her salary as well, according to a news release from the Chehalis Police Department.

Last month, after museum members learned there was no money left in the endowment fund, four officers on the 13-member museum board were replaced, the accounts were closed and the museum was shut down temporarily. Police were asked to investigate.

At the time, new board president John Panesko said the fund was meant to be left untouched, so it could generate interest which could be spent. The museum’s budget was “in the red” and its books hadn’t been in balance since 2008, Panesko said.

Chehalis police say the current investigation covers the years 2008 through this year. The investigation into 2007 and 2006 is still underway, according to police.

No other individuals associated with the museum are suspected to be involved, according to police.

Knapp was hired as the director in July 2006, according to Officer Bailey.

Rolando Carrillo-Cruz, Javier E. Martinez, Ulises Carrillo-Cruz and Francisco J. Robles, left to right, sit in Lewis County Superior Court after seeing a judge Wednesday afternoon.

This was updated at 6:06 p.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Twenty-year-old Ulises Carrillo-Cruz was ordered held on $250,000 bail when he was charged yesterday with first-degree assault following Tuesday’s shooting at the Centralia apartment complex where he lives with his older brother.

Also charged yesterday with rendering criminal assistance were his brother Rolando Carrillo-Cruz, 25; Francisco J. Robles, 18; and Javier E. Martinez, 18, all Centralia residents.

All four wore red jail garb when they appeared before Lewis County Superior Court Judge Richard Brosey.

Defense attorney Bob Schroeter argued unsuccessfully for lower bail on Ulises Carrillo-Cruz, noting he has been a local resident his entire life.

The other three men were ordered held on $50,000 bail.

Seven pages of charging documents describing interviews with the four as well as others involved and residents of the Edison Terrace Apartments contain conflicting accounts of exactly what transpired.

Three individuals said alleged gang member Joshua Rhoades showed up to the apartment complex with other people, Rhoades being someone who “tries to jump him,” Ulises Carrillo-Cruz told police.

Rolando Carrillo-Cruz told police he saw two fast-moving vehicles pull over on Ash Street and several individuals began walking then running towards them yelling “LVL and other gang slang” as well as making threatening gestures.

Ulises Carrillo-Cruz said he fired two rounds into the ground and claimed self defense, according to charging documents.

Charging documents contain the following information:

A green Ford Taurus that reportedly fled the scene was found at the emergency entrance at Providence Centralia Hospital, where Rhoades told an arriving officer Genevieve Purser had been shot. She was inside with a gunshot wound to her right shoulder.

With Rhoades were Richard Molina and Augustina Flores-Purser.

Flores-Purser told police she and Rhoades had driven to North Ash Street to pick up Molina and Purser who had been walking.

Purser was shot before she got into the vehicle, two of them told police.

The victim, 28-year-old Purser of Centralia, remained hospitalized this morning but has been upgraded to satisfactory condition.

What is clear is police responded about 1:15 p.m. to a report of shots fired at the 400 block of North Ash Street.

A divot found in the ground appeared to be from a bullet, and indications were the trajectory came from apartment 20, according to police. Police report a spent handgun cartridge was found there as well.

A 9 mm pistol was found in some brush west of the apartments near the railroad tracks. The slide was partially opened and a round jammed in the “action,” according to charging documents.

Witness accounts indicate the four who were eventually arrested fled to another apartment in the complex.

Three of them brought two baseball bats there, one of them had allegedly hidden the gun, one or two of them flushed shell casings down the toilet and one of them hid a pair of black gloves and some marijuana behind the toilet, according to charging documents.

Rolando Carrillo-Cruz told police he had purchased the loaded gun for $50 for protection at his apartment.

Rolando Carrillo-Cruz was the alleged intended target of an August 2010 drive-by shooting in Chehalis that authorities described as perpetrated by the LVL gang.

The apartment where the two live with a female roommate was the target of window and car smashing earlier this month.

Both Carrillo-Cruz’s are additionally charged with unlawful possession of a firearm.

Arraignments are all set for Jan. 5.

•••

Read yesterday’s story here

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The Centralia woman shot yesterday in what police are calling a gang-related dispute at an apartment complex is listed in serious condition this morning and the man accused of firing the gun is expected to go before a judge this afternoon.

Edison Terrace Apartments

Ulises Carrillo-Cruz, 20, confessed to shooting the woman, but police were told he wasn’t targeting her, according to the Centralia Police Department.

“There’s a claim he fired to scare them off, and rounds were fired into the ground,” police Sgt. Kurt Reichert said this morning.

Carrillo-Cruz, also of Centralia, was arrested yesterday at the apartments for first-degree assault and felon in possession of a firearm, according to police.

According to police, a group of at least four people – including 28-year-old Genevieve Purser who was shot – showed up at the complex on the 400 block of North Ash Street in Centralia.

“The short version is one group went to the other group’s apartment to raise hell,” Reichert said.

Officers were called just after 1:15 p.m. by the manager who heard two gun shots and then saw two males standing nearby at the corner of Ash Street and Park Way screaming and cussing toward one of the apartments.

Carrillo-Cruz and his brother Rolondo Carrillo-Cruz, 25, reside at the apartment with a young woman, according to the apartment managers.

Purser was taken to the Providence Centralia Hospital by friends, according to police. She had a gunshot wound to her shoulder, according to police which they described as non-life threatening.

Purser was then transferred to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

Centralia police reported they found a firearm yesterday hidden in some bushes near the scene. Police have not said how many shots were fired, only that it occurred in a “common area”.

Three other males were also arrested yesterday at the complex, called the Edison Terrace Apartments.

Rolondo Carrillo-Cruz was arrested and booked also for  first-degree assault and felon in possession of a firearm, according to police. It’s not clear what his role was.

Francisco J. Robles, 18, and Javier E. Martinez, 18, were arrested and booked for rendering criminal assistance; they are suspected of hiding evidence, according to Reichert.

Reichert said it was the same general group of people who showed up at the apartments earlier this month and took baseball bats to the windows of that apartment unit and a Kia car.

All four men are scheduled to go before a judge in Lewis County Superior Court at 4 p.m. today.