Archive for August, 2012

Prosecutors to ask state Supreme Court to overturn reversal of murder conviction

Monday, August 13th, 2012

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Kenneth Slert will have to wait a while longer to find out if prosecutors will attempt for a fourth time to get a murder conviction to stick.

The Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office will petition the state Supreme Court in hopes of avoiding yet another trial in the case of a fatal campground shooting from almost a dozen years ago.

An appeals court last week remanded the case for a new trial for Slert. Slert was convicted of second-degree murder in the October 2000 death of 53-year-old John Benson, a truck driver and father of five from Eatonville.

Three times Slert has been found guilty in Lewis County Superior Court and three times the appeals court has overturned his convictions.

Most recently, the panel of judges said there was a violation of a public trial right and Slert’s right to be present at all times.

At issue is a closed door meeting between the judge and attorneys that led to four prospective jurors being excused during his most recent trial.

The former Tacoma man claimed self defense when he shot Benson twice following an evening of drinking and arguing over politics at a hunting camp off Skate Creek Road in East Lewis County.

Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer excused himself from the decision making process because he represented the former Tacoma man when he was a defense attorney.

Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorneys Sara Beigh and Will Halstead were tasked with deciding whether to hold a new trial, not hold a new trial or petition the Supreme Court.

Beigh today said the office will ask the state Supreme Court to review the appeals court decision.

There are a lot of cases on hold regarding a similar issue, Beigh said.

“We’re hoping at least a decision to stay the decision until the court decides that issue,” she said.

Th office has until early next month to file its petition and then it usually takes three to four months to get any type of response from the Supreme Court, she said.

Slert was sent to prison in mid-2004 and has been serving a sentence of a little more than 23 years.

News brief: Motor home fire blocks I-5 near Napavine

Monday, August 13th, 2012
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Firefighters put water on a burning motor home / Courtesy photo by Lewis County Fire District 2

Updated at 6:20 p.m.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

An older couple escaped injury when their motor home caught fire on Interstate 5 near Napavine this afternoon.

Allen Goldey, 77, of Lake Stevens was traveling southbound when his passenger smelled smoke and he pulled to the shoulder, according to the Washington State Patrol.

Lewis County Fire District 5 called just after 2 p.m. found the motor home fully involved in flames, but the occupants got out, according to Fire Lt. Laura Hanson.

The roadway was partially blocked around milepost 71 until 3:30 p.m.

Goldey and his passenger, Irma Miller, 74, of Shelton, reportedly were uninjured. A cat traveling with the couple couldn’t be found however, according to District 5.

Members of four fire departments extinguished the blaze and prevented a neighboring field from catching fire, according to District 5. The process was complicated by a propane tank that was venting fuel as they worked.

The 30-foot 2005 motor home was described as totaled.

The state patrol says the cause is unknown.

Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Monday, August 13th, 2012

OPEN GARAGE DOORS INVITE THIEVES

• An air compressor, two nail guns and other tools were stolen from a garage on the 3100 block of Ives Road in Centralia yesterday, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. A 37-year-old man told a deputy he believed it occurred while his daughter was home and their garage door was open. The daughter said a man came knocking on the door asking for her father around noontime, according to the sheriff’s office. Images from a security camera show a silver SUV pulled into the driveway about 12:05 p.m. and two or three individuals took items the garage. They left at 12:08 p.m.

• A chain saw and a bicycle were stolen from a garage in Chehalis where the door was inadvertently left open overnight. An officer called Friday morning to the 700 block of Northwest New York Avenue subsequently learned the bike was recovered on the 200 block of Northwest Chehalis Avenue, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

CAR GONE

• An 26-year-old woman at the 700 block of West Second Street in Centralia awoke this morning to discover her car was stolen in the night. Missing is a green 1997 Honda, according to the Centralia Police Department. The car had been locked and the keys were accounted for, police said.

TRUCK AND MOTORS GONE

• A white 1975 Chevrolet truck, two Oldsmobile motors and a carburetor were reported missing from property on the 2100 block of Wildwood Road in Curtis, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office reported this morning. The loss, estimated at $3,650, was reported on Friday and occurred sometime since July 1, according to the sheriff’s office.

BURGLARY ON LUCAS CREEK ROAD

• A chainsaw and a .22 rifle were reported stolen from the 700 block of Lucas Creek Road east of Chehalis. The thefts are believed to have occurred between 10:30 a.m. and 6:45 p.m. on Friday, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said this morning.

DRUGS

• A traffic stop about 7:35 a.m. on Saturday at Fifth and Cedar streets in Toledo led to the arrest of a 41-year-old man for possession of methamphetamine and marijuana, according to police. A police dog did a “walk around” and alerted on suspected drugs, according to Officer Samuel Patrick. The vehicle was searched and Michael J. Bartley was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Toledo Police Department.

VANDALISM

• Police were called about 11 p.m. on Friday to the 200 block of Southwest Second Street in Chehalis where an individual found someone had broken their windshield. An officer suspects it might have been done with someone’s hand, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

LUCKY SLEEPY DRIVER

• A 49-year-old Lacey man was cited for negligent driving after he fell asleep yesterday afternoon with a 1-year-old passenger and ran off the road into a mailbox and some bushes at the 2300 block of Harrison Avenue in Centralia. A deputy called about 5:15 p.m. noted the man’s 1999 Saturn was totaled but both patients’ injuries were such they were simply treated at the scene.

TWO VEHICLE CRASH ON I-5

• Three individuals were hospitalized after a rear-end collision on Interstate 5 near Vader yesterday afternoon that knocked a car into the concrete barrier and then caused it to roll onto its top. Both vehicles were totaled during the approximately 2:20 p.m. wreck in the northbound lanes near milepost 60, according to the Washington State Patrol. The state patrol ticketed Lauren G. Sullivan, 18, of Rochester for going too fast. Sullivan’s Toyota Camry struck the rear of a Kia Sorento carrying a couple from Victoria B.C., according to the state patrol. All three were transported to Providence Centralia Hospital as a precautionary measure, according to the responding trooper.

CHEHALIS MOTORCYCLIST AIRLIFTED AFTER WRECK

• A 73-year-old Chehalis man was airlifted after a motorcycle accident late Saturday afternoon in which he swerved to miss a dog and took out several wooden fence posts on the 700 block of North Fork Road east of Chehalis. Aid called about 7:40 p.m. found the man had “long bone fractures,” according to Lewis County Fire District 6. His Harley Davidson went through a ditch and came to rest in a driveway, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

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Personnel from Lewis County Fire District 6 and AMR load up their patient at a private air strip off Hewitt Road. / Courtesy photo by Lewis County Fire District 6

News brief: Teen hikes five miles to get help for grandfather

Monday, August 13th, 2012

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A 64-year-old Mineral man was rescued after he was injured when he was thrown from his mule and his 14-year-old grandson hiked out to get help on Saturday outside of Packwood.

The sheriff’s office said the man was hurt on Friday at the northwest corner of Jug Lake and was unable to stand stand or get back on his mule. He was with his grandsons ages 9 and 14, Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown said.

The teenager hiked out about five miles the following morning to call for help, Brown said.

The man was airlifted to Tacoma General Hospital with potential injuries to his ribs and pelvis, according to Brown.

News brief: Eighteen potential victims survive U.S. Highway 12 crash

Monday, August 13th, 2012

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A two-vehicle collision on U.S. Highway 12 west of Rochester on Saturday sent seven people to the hospital, including four children riding in the open back of a truck.

It was a T-bone crash at the intersection of Anderson Road that occurred when the driver of a Chevrolet Avalanche blew a stop sign, according to the Washington State Patrol.

The van it hit had 11 passenger, Trooper Guy Gill said.

“It’s never a good idea to let children ride in the back of a pickup truck,” he said.

Troopers called about 3:40 p.m. said there were no life-threatening injuries, but the occupants of the Avalanche were all taken to Providence St. Peter Hospital in Olympia. The speed limit on Highway 12 is 55 mph.

Nobody in the van was hurt, Gill said.

“In this case, we’re lucky we’re not dealing with fatalities,” Gill said. “In a collision like this, it could have been much much worse.”

The driver of the Avalanche, a 25-year-old Oakville woman, shouldn’t have even been behind the wheel, he said.

She was cited for driving without insurance, third-degree driving with a suspended license and four counts of allowing individuals under 16 to ride without a seat belt, according to Gill.

News brief: Bothell resident drowns in Ohanapecosh River

Monday, August 13th, 2012

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A Bothell man drowned in East Lewis County after getting pinned down in a river between large logs and rocks.

Michael Lloyd Barrett, 41, was rescued by a group of kayakers who assisted Barrett’s fellow campers, but was pronounced dead at Morton General Hospital.

It happened Saturday afternoon on the Ohanapecosh River just outside the southern border of Mount Rainier National Park.

The Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said Barrett was sitting in a shallow area of the river cooling off and when he moved to a deeper area lost his balance.

It is believed he may have intended to ride over a waterfall into a lower pool, something he’d done during previous visits there, according to Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown.

His fellow campers tried but couldn’t get him out of the water, according to Brown. A well-trained group of kayakers happened upon the scene and pulled him out, she said.

Barrett was transported to the hospital, but didn’t make it, according to Brown.

News brief: Fires strike two structures in Centralia

Monday, August 13th, 2012

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A Centralia man was hospitalized yesterday for smoke inhalation after a fire at his apartment on the 100 block of West First Street.

Firefighters called about 9:30 p.m. learned that neighbors alerted the resident, knocking on his door and waking him up, according to Riverside Fire Authority.

The fire affected an exterior wall; there was no damage to the interior of the ground floor unit but smoke got inside, according to Fire Capt. Scott Weinert.

The cause is still under investigation but it began in an area where the resident kept an ashtray and said he smoked, Weinert said.

Earlier in the day, firefighters were joined by crews from Chehalis and Rochester at Century Market on the 500 block of North Tower Avenue when a fire broke out.

Firefighters called about 1:30 p.m. quickly extinguished it, according to Weinert.

That blaze started outside the building and began to extend into a storeroom, Weinert said. Tower Avenue was closed for about an hour, according to police.

The cause is under investigation but one possibility may be discarded smoking materials, Weinert said.

Centralia firefighters were extremely busy yesterday, with 21 calls in the first 20 hours of their shift, the captain said.