Updated at 6:15 p.m.
COLLISION
• A 63-year-old man was taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle after he wrecked his scooter-type motorcycle late yesterday afternoon along the 3500 block of Cooks Hill Road in Centralia. Responders called just after 5 p.m. found the man from Lake Tapps was wearing a half-helmet which may have come off and he had serious facial injuries and a possible head injury. It happened when he attempted a left-hand turn, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. His 2007 Yamaha XC50 had only minor damage, the sheriff’s office reports.
VEHICLE VERSUS PEDESTRIAN
• A woman was hospitalized after she was struck at a crosswalk in downtown Centralia by a small pickup truck today. Firefighters called at noon to South Tower Avenue at Cherry Street found her conscious but with suspected internal injuries, according to Riverside Fire Authority. She was transported to Providence Centralia Hospital, according to Capt. Scott Weinert.
FROM THE COURTHOUSE
• The former Onalaska volunteer firefighter and part time substitute school bus driver was sentenced today to life in prison with a minimum of just over three years in connection with allegations of sexual abuse of a teenage relative. Richard L. Crumbliss, 44, was arrested in April and has remained held in the Lewis County Jail. Crumbliss in August admitted no wrong doing when he made a so-called Alford plea of guilt to second-degree assault with sexual motivation and second-degree child molestation. His lawyer David Arcuri said the “indeterminate” sentence means Crumbliss could be released after 37 months, or even sooner with good time. But if or when he does get out, he will be under the supervision of the state Department of Corrections for the rest of his life, so if he ever fails to abide by DOC conditions, he could be sent back to prison, Lewis County Superior Court Judge Richard Brosey said during this morning’s hearing. Crumbliss would be required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life and would not be allowed to ever go where children congregate, according to Arcuri. Nothing under criminal law would prevent him from working again as firefighter-EMT, although since Crumbliss didn’t respond to the July temporary suspension of his EMT license by the state – stemming from the criminal allegations – the state Emergency Medical Services and Trauma System Program earlier this month imposed a 15-year suspension of his license.
AND MORE
• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, driving with suspended license, drunk teenager; responses for dispute, suspicious circumstances, suspected protection order violation, collisions on city streets, possibly suicidal individuals, misdemeanor theft such as a stolen shopping cart, request for assistance dealing with an elderly family member who insisted on going to Walgreens to deal with collecting money she’d been told she won … and more.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
Wow a life sentence with possibility of being released after 37 months. Justice?