Lewis County Sirens.com

Updated at 6:04 p.m.

EAST END COFFEE STAND HIT BY ARSONIST

• Someone tried to burn down an espresso stand in Packwood last night and the fire is under investigation. A deputy was called about 11:30 p.m. to the 12000 block of U.S. Highway 12 after crews extinguished flames on the exterior of Cowboy Espresso, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Two separate spots on the outside were burned, Sgt. Rob Snaza said. Nothing inside was damaged, Snaza said. The same coffee stand was burglarized in mid-September.

POLICE: INTOXICATED THIEF RIDES BIKE DOWN STAIRS

• Police were called about 1 o’clock this morning to an apartment building in Centralia after a 63-year-old man allegedly stole a bicycle and rode away on it. He didn’t get very far though, according to police. Apparently he got on it outside an upper-level apartment, rode it down a long flight of stairs and crashed head first into a wall at the bottom, police said. Gerald R. Loveless was conscious, but injured and had been drinking, Sgt. Kurt Reichert said. It happened about 1 a.m. at the 300 block of Centralia College Boulevard. Loveless was issued a citation for third-degree theft by police, buckled up with a cervical collar onto a backboard by medics and transported to Providence Centralia Hospital. The damaged 10-speed was returned to its owners, police said.

DISPUTE

• A 46-year-old Chehalis man was arrested after police were called to a dispute on the 200 block of Southwest Chehalis Avenue which spilled out onto the street at about 10 p.m. yesterday. Wayne H. Reed became confrontational and was arrested for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, according to detective Sgt. Gary Wilson. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to police.

ATTEMPTED BREAK-IN

• Chehalis police responded to the 600 block of Northwest Ohio Avenue about 9:30 a.m. yesterday after the discovery someone kicked in a door. It’s not clear yet if anything is missing, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

THEFT

• Centralia police were called just after 5 o’clock this morning to the 500 block of Hemlock Street regarding the theft of a debit card. The investigation continues, according to the Centralia Police Department.

FROM THE COURTHOUSE

• A 47-year-old Rochester man was sentenced today in connection with a Memorial Day weekend incident at a small gathering near Adna after the bars closed in which he allegedly took advantage of a young woman who was extremely intoxicated. Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Shane O’Rourke told the judge the case was complicated and a charge of second-degree rape was pleaded down to third-degree rape with a recommendation the defendant spend six months in jail. O’Rourke said there was a question if the victim was actually unconscious, and therefore unable to give consent, and the DNA evidence was “by no means helpful to the state.” Defense attorney Don Blair said his client Michael T. Taylor has said from the beginning the two of them were messing around and both took their clothes off. They were prepared to go to trial but decided not turn down jail time because losing at trial meant a potential punishment of 10 years, Blair said. “The report said none of my client’s DNA was there,” he said. “What it did say there were three other DNAs there.” Blair asked for four months. Lewis County Superior Court Judge James Lawler said he didn’t see a reason to go below the standard sentencing range. He imposed the top of the standard sentencing range of 17 months. Lawler also gave Taylor three years of community custody following his release during which he may not drink alcohol. “As the parties are well aware, I’m not bound by any deal anyway,” Lawler said.

WRECK

• A woman and two girls were taken to Morton General Hospital yesterday after the car in which they were passengers struck the rear end of a stopped SUV on U.S. Highway 12 in Glenoma. The Acura Integra which 20-year-old John O. Salts of Randle was driving was described as totaled. A deputy called about 1 p.m. to the 8200 block of Highway 12 determined both vehicles were westbound and the Chevrolet Blazer driven by a 25-year-old Randle man was preparing to make a left turn into a driveway, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Salts was cited for second-degree negligent driving, according to the sheriff’s office. Sgt. Rob Snaza said the 27-year-old woman, the 9-year-old girl and the 7-year-old girl sustained minor injuries.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving with suspended license, shoplifting; responses for collision of two parked cars, suspicious circumstances, bicycle found in the middle of a street; complaint that a vehicle is in someone’s parking spot … and more.

BIG GUNS AT BIG RETAILER

• Chehalis police were called by Wal-Mart yesterday afternoon when at least one customer came into the store carrying a military-style rifle. There was no threat, there was no crime but the employee wanted to know whether it was legal or not, according to the Chehalis Police Department. Detective Sgt. Gary Wilson said the employee was told it’s a matter that’s up to the store and up to their policy as to whether they allow it or not. Wilson said he didn’t know the details because he wasn’t there and no report was written. Openly carrying a firearm in public is okay under Washington’s open carry laws, however, he said, it depends on where a person is at since it’s also subject to the rules of the property owner and different governmental jurisdictions have certain prohibitions in certain places.

ASSAULT

• Chehalis police were called yesterday about an assault earlier in the day at Green Hill School for boys that may have involved several individuals. The case is still under investigation, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

• Chehalis police are looking for a man who may have broken his hand when he punched a vehicle window during an encounter with a  female on the 400 block of South Market Boulevard. An officer was called about 11:20 a.m. yesterday because he allegedly also grabbed the female, and there is a protection order in place, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

THEFT

• Police were contacted by a Centralia man yesterday who discovered someone had charged approximately $350 worth of clothing on his Visa card at the Centralia Outlets.

• An officer was called yesterday afternoon to the 1300 block of Alexander Street in Centralia about a ring which was either lost or stolen.

WARRANT ARREST, SCUUFFLE AND POLICE DOG

• A 22-year-old Centralia man was arrested overnight after an officer contacted him on a neighborhood street and attempted to detain him for a warrant. It was about 1:30 a.m. near the 900 block of F Street in Centralia and police say Ronald A. Yeager Jr. and the officer tussled a bit before Yeager slipped out of his sweatshirt and ran. He was located about two blocks away a short time later by a police dog, according to the Centralia Police Department. Yeager was taken to be checked for for his dog bite and then booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to police.

WRECK

• A 21-year-old Centralia man was arrested for driving under the influence following a collision near Harrison Avenue and Johnson Road in Centralia about 5:30 p.m. yesterday. The fire department said nobody was transported to the hospital but police report Monte W.R. Sellards was booked into the Lewis County Jail.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving with suspended license, shoplifting; responses for alarms, minor and non-injury collisions, complaint by a man that his wife forged a check … and more.