Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – For the past two years, going to the Lewis County Jail to visit an inmate has cost money, but that’s about to change.

The facility installed an Internet-based system for visitation that allowed for family or friends to avoid the drive to Chehalis to see their loved ones, by logging in and paying a fee.

The same technology is used however, with inmates chatting from their cell areas to a video screen while their guests are viewing another screen in the lobby area of the same building. The cost is 50 cents per minute.

Jail Chief Kevin Hanson said he hopes free visits in the jail lobby can begin again in mid-January. It will take some programming changes by the vendor, he said.

Part of the reasoning for the switch, Hanson said, is he got advice during a course on incarceration legalities he attended that suggested charging money to people who come in to the jail to see inmates was a practice on somewhat shaky legal ground.

When he and other administrators of the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office shared the news with the county board of commissioners earlier this month, Sheriff Rob Snaza said it was something they’d been talking about doing for awhile. The sheriff’s office runs the jail.

“It only makes sense,” Snaza said. “It’s the right thing to do.”

Defendants can be sentenced to up to 364 days in the jail. For those awaiting trial, their stay in some cases has been even longer.

Hanson is aiming for the change to take place around the second full week in January.

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For background, read Northwest Public Radio’s Jan. 13, 2015 piece about the Homewav video visitation system as used in Lewis County, here

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The Centralia teenager who accidentally shot his girlfriend when his pistol in his pocket discharged while she was sitting on his lap is off to prison after pleading guilty as charged.

Austin C. Courtright was facing a standard sentencing range of nine to 12 months but made a deal with prosecutors in which they agreed to recommend he serve one year plus one day.

Austin C. Courtright

The difference meant spending his time in state prison instead of at the Lewis County Jail, something he preferred, according to his lawyer.

His 21-year-old girlfriend was struck in her inner right thigh, and was treated at a hospital and then released the same day, Nov. 30. It happened in the basement of a home on First Street in Centralia.

Centralia police investigated and concluded it was accidental, but Courtright was charged with third-degree assault. He was also charged with second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.

The then-18-year-old with previous convictions that prohibited him from having a gun told police he knew he wasn’t supposed to, but was afraid of being victimized by gang members who used to be his friends, according to prosecutors.

Courtright pleaded guilty last Thursday in Lewis County Superior Court and the judge agreed to the sentence. He made a so-called Alford plea to the charge of third-degree assault, not admitting guilt.

Defense attorney Chris Baum said he had a real issue with the assault charge, calling it a “stretch”.

It was a criminal negligence issue, his client didn’t know the gun was loaded, Baum said.

“I wasn’t suggesting he plead to that, but he did,” Baum said.

Judge Richard Brosey also ordered 12 months of community custody upon Courtright’s release and $1,400 in fines and legal financial obligations.
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For background, read “Accidentally shooting girlfriend brings criminal charge for Centralia teen” from Wednesday December 2, 2015, here

Updated at 6:53 p.m.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Troopers continue to look for the driver of black Jeep said to have fired upon another motorist on Interstate 5 north of Centralia this morning.

One shot shattered the rear window of the victim’s car, hit the rearview mirror and exited the windshield, according to authorities.

The 25-year-old man from Spanaway exited the freeway in Chehalis, after traveling away from his assailant at speeds of 85 to 90 mph, according to the Washington State Patrol. He was uninjured.

Initial information suggested the incident occurred near the Lewis-Thurston county line, when the Jeep did a brake check, meaning he tapped on his brakes for the driver behind him, Chehalis Police Department spokesperson Linda Bailey said.

The victim driver decided to go around the Jeep and that’s when the subject in the Jeep pulled out what appeared to be a semi-automatic handgun, Bailey said.

The incident was reported by the un-named victim driver at 11:04 a.m.

It actually began farther north, around the Scatter Creek Rest Area, and included some aggression from both participants, according to a spokesperson for the state patrol.

“(The 25-year-old) is running late for something in Centralia or Chehalis, is driving in the fast lane and comes up on a black Jeep Cherokee and got brake checked,” Trooper Will Finn said. “He gets angry, he gets around this Jeep and brake checks him.

Then he looked in his mirror and saw the barrel of a gun come out the driver’s side window, Finn said.

“He says two rounds were fired off,” he said.

A chase ensued continuing southbound, with the silver 2012 Mazda hatchback darting in and out of traffic and the Jeep pursuing him, Finn said.

The last time the victim saw the Jeep was around milepost 80, and the victim got off the freeway at exit 77, according to the state patrol.

Finn said troopers and deputies were stationed south of the incident waiting for the Jeep, but they never saw it, leading them to believe the Jeep exited the freeway in that area.

“Right now we’re asking anyone who witnessed this or saw this to call us,” Finn said.

Chehalis police reported it was a Jeep Wrangler, but Finn said it was a black Jeep Cherokee, perhaps a 2005 model or as new as a 2010. It was described as a “stock” vehicle, with nothing extra that stood out on it, and it had Washington plates, he said.

The victim said the shooter was an elderly white man with a white beard and somewhere between 60 and 70 years old.

He said there was a female passenger who looked as old as 80, wearing an oxygen mask, Finn said.

Finn said it’s possible someone knows a couple like that, or has had a similar experience with the driver of the Jeep.

He urged anyone with any information to call the state patrol’s non-emergency number of 360-449-7999.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The passing of the baton at the Morton Police Department will take place on Thursday, as 2015 comes to a close.

Longtime Chief Dan Mortensen is retiring, although when he wakes up on New Year’s Day he will be mayor of the small East Lewis County town.

He ran unopposed in the November election. Mayor James Gerwig didn’t run for another term.

Mortensen describes his feelings as “anticipatory.”

“I’ve done this job a long time and I certainly will miss it,” he said. “The mayor position presents some new challenges for me.”

The mayor manages the city and runs the council meetings, but does not have a vote on the council.

Mayor Gerwig hired a new police chief, Roger Morningstar, who begins work on Jan. 1.

Mortensen and Morningstar were sworn in to their new positions by Mayor Gerwig at last night’s city council meeting.

The outgoing and incoming police chiefs have been working for a couple of days together, for a smoother transition at the department, according to Mortensen.

The police department employs a chief and two full time officers. Mortensen has been with the department since 1985.

Morningstar has law enforcement experience in Washington and a criminal justice certification, Mortensen said. He comes from the state Department of Corrections in Aberdeen, though he hails from Nevada.

“He comes with a pretty good repertoire of experience, I think he’s a good fit for the community,” Mortensen said.