Michael A. Hedges, right, is represented by defense attorney David Arcuri in Lewis County Superior Court.
By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – A Chehalis man who was arrested after a 66-year-old Centralia woman woke up to find him standing over her bed, unzipping his pants this past spring was sentenced today to at least 10 years in prison.
Michael A. Hedges, 43, was charged with multiple felonies in Lewis County Superior Court on April 4, the day after his arrest.
The woman told police Hedges grabbed her hand and placed it on his private parts and she told him he had to leave then escorted him out of her house on Nick Road, according to charging documents.
Police subsequently found him hiding in a nearby trailer park.
Lewis County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Will Halstead and defense attorney David Arcuri struck a plea agreement to get Hedges an exceptionally long sentence even though both seemed to agree it was a case in which he thought he was in a different residence.
“It was clear he didn’t know where he was,” Halstead said. “As soon as he realized he was in a house he didn’t know, he immediately left.”
Arcuri told the judge his client was in the wrong place because of drugs.
“This is another example of the incredibly insidious nature of controlled substances,” Arcuri said. “They warp your mind.”
Hedges previous to this morning pleaded guilty to second-degree assault with sexual motivation, residential burglary and third-degree assault. Police said he tried to spit on a doctor when they took him in to have an injury on his head – from his arrest – checked out.
The victim didn’t come to the hearing in Lewis County Superior Court.
Hedges told Judge James Lawler he knows what he did was out of line, and admitted his drug habit.
“I get it, that kind of, that kind of stuff is inappropriate,” he said.
Halstead and Arcuri recommended Hedges be sentenced a minimum of 120 months and up to life.
Halstead said that means after his release, if he has any violations, he could be potentially be pulled back into prison for the rest of his life. He will have to register as a sex offender.
The judge went along with the suggested sentence.
“I’m sorry the victim wasn’t here, so you could hear directly what this did to her,” Lawler said.
Hedges had supporters in the benches behind him. One of them said he knew if Hedges could change what happened, he would.
“Everything Michael did is 100 percent out of context for him,” his Pastor Keith Heldreth said.
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“Centralia resident finds stranger in her bedroom, unzipping pants” from Monday April 4, 2016, here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
That’s my dad for real he has been messed up since before I was born but when I heard about this I wasn’t pleased and I yelled at him. He is still my father and I still love him but will never forgive him.
Another prime example of Washington’s leniency on weirdo crimes! Let’s say this 66 year old woman hadn’t woke up for say 5 minutes ? Or how about 10 minutes?
We would be dealing with a RAPE or possibly a MURDER then he might get a sentence that fits the crime? Makes me sick to think of how many REPEAT
OFFENDERS really are running around are so called “safe streets” There really ought be stiffer sentences for wacked out freaks breaking into houses and peeing on old lady’s “!