Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The triple-murder trial set to begin next week for John A. Booth Jr. has been postponed.

Booth, 32, is charged in the August 2010 Salkum area gunshot deaths of David West Sr. 52, David West Jr., 16, and a friend Tony E. Williams, 50, of Randle. He is also charged with the attempted murder of Denise Salts, then 51, survived a gunshot wound to her face.

The trial is now scheduled to begin December 5 in Lewis County Superior Court in Chehalis.

Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher said the judge today allowed the postponement requested by defense attorney Roger Hunko.
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By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The grade school in Winlock was locked down briefly this morning while police and a K-9 attempted to track down whoever it was burglarizing a nearby shed .

Police were called about 10:40 a.m. by a female who spotted someone prowling around her father’s shed on Northwest Arden Avenue, according to Police Chief Terry Williams.

Vader Police Chief Sean Uhlich and his dog attempted to search the area, but had no success, Williams said.

It’s just short walk to Winlock Miller Elementary School, so Williams asked them keep the children inside for about 30 minutes, mostly as a precaution and to keep the K-9 from getting distracted, he said.

Police are looking for four people “of interest”. It’s not known yet what if anything was stolen, he said.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The sheriff’s office is investigating an arson that destroyed a Boistfort-area home on Saturday night.

Firefighters from Lewis County Fire District 13 were called about 10 p.m. to a double-wide mobile home on the 500 block of Boistfort Road. The 46-year-old woman who lives there heard two loud bangs or booms and discovered flames on her front porch, according to authorities.

She woke up her companion and they tried using a garden hose on the flames which spread into the attic and collapsed about half the roof, fire investigator Jay Birley said.

A passerby called 911. Nobody was injured.

Birley said it’s possible what sounded like explosions were a light bulb and a plate glass window breaking.

There are no suspects at this time, but anyone with information is asked to call 911, Crime Stoppers or the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said this morning.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Firefighters and troopers called to a motor vehicle accident on northbound Interstate 5 in Centralia this afternoon found the driver had suffered an apparent cardiac event before his car slid along the inside concrete barrier and came to a stop.

The 79-year-old Centralia man was taken to Providence Centralia Hospital where he was declared dead, according to the Washington State Patrol.

His wife was with him and was not injured, responders said.

It happened just before 2:30 p.m. near milepost 81.

Richard A. Pliska, 79, had no apparent injury from the collision, according to the state patrol.

Their 1998 Mercury Marquise sustained an estimated $1,000 damage.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The Mossyrock Police Department issued a news release this afternoon saying they investigated an alleged child luring case in town and determined no crime was committed.

“While parents and community members should always be observant of unusual behavior we are glad in the instance there was no criminal activity found,” Officer Rebecca Sutherland stated.

The Mossyrock Elementary School principal encouraged teachers to talk with students Tuesday about stranger danger after learning of an incident the evening before in which a fifth-grade girl  said she was approached by a male while she was at Smith and Son Grocery.

The report followed two incidents in Morton in which a children told police of a man driving a white pickup truck offering them money if they would get into his vehicle.

Sutherland thanked the public for its diligence and encourages folks to call 911 immediately to report suspicious activity.

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Read “News brief: Attempted child lurings reported in Mossyrock, Morton” from Tuesday October 25, 2011 at 12:51 p.m., here

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Twenty-four-year-old Kody Chipman was sentenced today to just under three and a half years in prison for a March hit and run in which two men were seriously injured.

The south Thurston county resident, who most recently lived in Littlerock, was found guilty last week by a jury of two counts of vehicular assault and also hit and run.

Dee L. Cooper, 70, of Olympia, and Daniel I. Kitchings, 37, of Rainier, were attending a scout meeting off of South Bay Road when Chipman put his car in reverse and drove off following a confrontation about Chipman speeding, according to the Washington State Patrol.

Chipman’s grandmother, Sharon Hallman, was at Thurston County Superior Court this morning when a judge gave her grandson a 40 month sentence.

“We think the sentence is fair,” Hallman stated.
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