Lewis County Sirens.com

Larry “Skip” Bailey appears in Lewis County Superior Court today for his arraignment.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The suspected bicycling bank robber pleaded not guilty today in connection with a seemingly quiet holdup in Chehalis, that took a stocking-capped man dressed in numerous layers of clothing inside a bank vault with two employees.

Larry Gene Bailey is charged in Lewis County Superior Court with first-degree robbery and possession of methamphetamine.

Exactly how much the robber nearly got away with is unclear. Charging documents say he was handed roughly $40,000 but police were waiting for Chase Bank to do an inventory. When Bailey was apprehended about 45 minutes later less than a mile from the bank, officers say they found $36,000 tucked inside a pinkish-purple floral print cloth bag in his backpack.

Police say the 52-year-old ditched a BMX-style bicycle on the West Street overpass and tried to get through two fences adjacent to Interstate 5 but was grabbed by a pursuing sheriff’s deputy.

That was on Monday. On Tuesday, authorities told a judge he was suicidal  and wouldn’t willingly be brought up to a courtroom for his first appearance.

“Skip” Bailey’s bail was set yesterday at $250,000, with prosecutors noting no apparent ties to the community and his history.

Prosecutors say they believe he has four federal convictions for bank robbery, in Kansas, Eastern Washington and Western Washington.

Lewis County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Will Halstead said today they are still trying to confirm those. The earliest one is 1991.

According to Halstead, he also has two first-degree theft convictions from 2005, for which he was sentenced to 10 years.

Bailey’s federal probation officer has informed them he is in violation of his probation, according to court documents.

Chehalis police say Bailey only arrived to the area a few months ago. Police Department spokesperson Linda Bailey said he shows an address on the 1500 block of Bishop Road.

The address is for a church, not far from an encampment next to Interstate 5 at LaBree Road that somehow caught fire in November, destroying a tent and all the belongings of a 52-year-old homeless person named Larry G. Bailey.

Chehalis police’s Bailey, no relation, said she thinks it is the same man.

Defense attorney Joely O’Rourke who represented Bailey initially yesterday said he is not employed and has no stable residence.

First-degree robbery has a maximum penalty of life in prison. If convicted and the state can confirm the prior robbery convictions, that would classify Bailey as a persistent offender – be a third strike – making him subject to mandatory life imprisonment without parole, according to O’Rourke.

According to charging documents, when police arrived to Chase Bank following the 10:47 a.m. call, the robber was gone.

The manger told officers he implied he had a gun, reaching into his coat pocket, telling her he had two strikes and had nothing to lose, so she needed to follow his instructions. A second teller was summoned because it takes two employees to get inside the vault, according to documents.

The charging documents offer the following details:

Officers were given photos uploaded from the bank security system, to use as they searched the immediate area.

A police dog brought to the scene led them to the nearby Rite Aid store where some discarded clothing was found that fit the description provided by bank employees. Police located more clothing in an alley between Southwest Fourth and Fifth streets.

Law enforcement officers from Chehalis, Centralia and the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office had set up containment and continued to search, while three nearby schools were alerted for lockdowns.

It was about 11:30 a.m. when an individual matching the suspect’s description was seen traveling on a bicycle near the West Street overpass by a helpful witness, who pointed a deputy in his direction, according to police.

Bailey had a meth pipe in his possession, leading to the drug charge, according to police.

Bailey qualified for a court appointed attorney, who sat with him in the courtroom this morning as he entered his pleas.

Chehalis lawyer Chris Baum said he doesn’t know much about the man he is representing, and what he does know is protected by professional confidentiality.

“I just got the case yesterday afternoon, and I saw him and spoke with him this morning,” Baum said. “I will sort it out after I get the police reports.”

An Associated Press news story from The Seattle Times in 1991 reports upon a 28-year-old Everett man named Larry Gene Bailey who was indicted for allegedly holding up three Spokane banks that summer, and was wanted in Kansas for another bank robbery.

He was arrested by a trooper for a traffic violation, and a large amount of cash was found stuffed in his clothing, according to the news story.

In that case, the man was riding a motorcycle.

Bailey’s trial was put on the court’s schedule for the week of March 23.
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For background, read “Suspected Chase Bank robber believed to have numerous similar convictions” from Tuesday January 27, 2015 at 8:59 p.m., here

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The 22-year-old Adna resident whose high profile escape from an attempted misdemeanor arrest at Centralia Municipal Court in December was followed by a drug arrest pleaded guilty today to two felonies.

Phillip A. Pinotti was out on bail from his escape incident when Centralia police arrested him two and a half weeks ago for twice having heroin and once selling it.

Phillip Pinotti

One case was from last August that was brought to the attention of prosecutors after the escape. The other involved newer incidents.

Lewis County prosecutors in a plea deal they said got both sides something they wanted, reduced the charge from August and dropped one of two counts in the more recent case.

“It seems like the quantity alone is not enough for possession with intent (to deliver),” Lewis County Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher told the judge this morning.

Meagher was referring to mid-August when police had him and Zachary J. Maurer under surveillance as they went to Longview to allegedly purchase heroin and subsequently impounded their vehicle finding drugs.

Pinotti’s responses were simply “Guilty, your honor,” when queried by the judge on each count.

Lewis County Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt said he found Pinotti guilty as charged, of possession of heroin in August and of delivery of heroin on Dec. 20.

Pinotti, whose lives with his parents in Adna, drew gunfire from a court security officer on Dec. 16 when he ran away as he was being taken into custody and jumped in his car.

He was there for arraignment on a charge of driving under the influence, and the judge saw he was wanted on a misdemeanor warrant for failing to appear in Chehalis Municipal Court, in connection with a third-degree theft.

Two weeks ago, Pinotti pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors for the incidents of that day; obstructing, third-degree escape and tampering with evidence. He was given a sentence of 364 days, with all but six days suspended, getting credit for time already served.

Court Security Officer Steve Howard said he fired one shot because Pinotti tried to hit him with his car, but the Lewis County prosecutor concluded Pinotti wasn’t trying to run him run down.

Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer cleared Howard of criminal wrongdoing in the shooting, but Centralia Police Department Chief Bob Berg’s decision if Howard’s actions were in line with department policies is still pending.

Defense attorney Don Blair told the judge today he wanted to set the sentencing hearing for later, because his client has a misdemeanor sentencing coming up, and if he gets sent to prison, he would miss that.

Pinotti’s sentencing for the drug cases is scheduled for Feb. 11. He faces a standard sentencing range of between 12 and 20 months, according to Meagher.

Before the events of Dec. 16, Pinotti had one misdemeanor on his record, from 2009.
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For background, read:

• “Summertime heroin case proceeds for two defendants” from Tuesday January 20, 2015, here

• “Sentence: Six days in jail for escape that led to gunfire in Centralia” from Wednesday January 14, 2015, here

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A fired Lewis County Jail guard was given a 90-day jail sentence today following a plea deal in which local prosecutors agreed not to file any charges of assault that could have occurred during his time as a corrections officer.

Trevor S. Smith was terminated last summer for mistreatment of two inmates, conduct his superiors wrote “shocks the conscience and could be viewed as violating basic civil rights possessed by all human beings regardless of status.”

Smith was arrested about two weeks later at his home in Chehalis for something unrelated however, for allegedly snooping into secure jail computer records. Computer trespass is a class C felony with a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

Smith was hired at the sheriff’s office in 2004 and promoted to jail sergeant in 2011. The inmate issues were investigated internally.

His June 27, 2014 termination letter and related documents show Smith was disciplined for directing that an inmate be kept in a restraint chair for approximately twelve hours without food, water or restroom breaks.

Also, after Smith directed the discharge of pepper spray into the closed cell of an inmate with mental health issues, the inmate was not offered a wet towel, a shower or any decontamination for more than five hours; the cell had no running water, according to the sheriff’s office.

Mark McClain is a former Lewis County deputy prosecutor who was elected in November as Pacific County prosecutor, and returned today for Smith’s hearing.

As part of the deal, prosecutors dropped two of the five counts of computer trespass, McClain said.

McClain said the sheriff was involved in the resolution of the case, and went along with it, acknowledging “the good things Mr. Smith did for the sheriff’s office.”

McClain and Defense attorney Shane O’Rourke said the state agreed not to pursue any collateral investigations as part of the plea agreement.

McClain asked the judge to lock Smith up for 90 days.

O’Rourke recommended his client be allowed to serve his time on electronic home monitoring.

O’Rourke said Smith qualified for several reasons. He’s working, for UPS; he’s going to school, getting an online MBA; and has partial custody of his children.

O’Rourke said his client doesn’t believe there was excessive force even in the civil context or the context of his profession.

As to the reason prosecutors would agree to not pursue criminal charges:

“If I was going to speculate, it would be because it doesn’t amount to criminal assault,” O’Rourke said.

Lewis County Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt ordered Smith to begin 90 days on home monitoring by Feb. 17.  He was given credit for one day, for the roughly 28 hours he spent in jail when he was arrested, according to his lawyer.

Smith declined a request by a reporter for comment after the hearing.
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For background, read:

• “Lewis County Jail sergeant let go for mistreating inmates, then arrested for computer snooping at work ” from Wednesday July 16, 2014, here

• “Sheriff’s Office: Fired corrections officer allowed inmates to suffer” from Friday July 18, 2014, here