By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – One person died at the scene and another was hospitalized after a single-vehicle wreck last night on state Route 508 near Forest-Napavine Road.
Troopers and aid were called about 8:40 p.m. to the wreck with entrapment south of Chehalis. The Honda Accord had been westbound, left the roadway to the right and struck a tree, according to the Washington State Patrol.
The passenger, Thomas D. Lininger, 43, of Chehalis died at the scene, according to the state patrol.
The driver, Kimberly J. McPherson, 51, from Centralia, was transported to Providence Centralia Hospital because no air transport was available due of the weather, according to responders.
Both had been wearing seat belts, the state patrol reports.
The state patrol is investigating the collision but indicates drugs or alcohol were believed to be involved.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
Livesinlewiscounty I think you just want to argue. It’s pretty obvious I was not in the car…right? So no I did not witness this act first hand but i did tlk and continue to talk with authorities and investigators. This tragic event was documented in reports as a collision due to the fact it was preventable…a deer running across a road that is hit is an accident. Nodding off due to substance abuse and driving straight into a tree without swerving OR touching the brakes is a single car Collison which again is preventable…im not sure how this don’t make since. My brother Tom yes was a grown man…he also along with Kim mad a choice to get into the car…yes I’m very aware of his drug addiction and his choice of live style. No one made Tom get into the car with her. It was a normal routine way of life for him. WITH THAT SAID because of a selfish act a life was taken…because of bad choices on both sides a life was taken….im not sure what exactly your point is other than you want to argue…is that it.. you want to argue. This is pretty black and white.. as far as facts go. You can say the family “his sister’s, ex wife” have handled things wrongly BUT it’s easier to throw opinions and comments when your an outsider looking in as opposed to actually living it…and our family…tom, john, jimette robin and I don’t have hate for each other at all…none of our family has hate. We love each other and we fight for each other…thats what family does. We get upset, argue and don’t agree always but hate…no we don’t hate each other at all. We ride or die together. This last year we have gone threw hell and back together. Us kids all sat with our mom as we watched her pass, held each other and cried and once again over tom…hate, far from. You come at that like you have a clue what our family is about…you don’t know us, but I thank you for a good laugh. I’ve been in need of a good chuckle🤣
“Would of ” “could of” doesn’t change the facts or who is gone little miss MOREPISSEDBYTHEDAY
Jamie: this was no accident…you don’t accidentally use drugs and drive…that is intentional and selfish!!! No one forced Kim to use drugs…no one forced Kim to drive…no one put her behind the wheel of her vehicle. KIM…a grown ass woman made that choice
Hmm…no one forced Tom into the car…no one forced Tom to go with her…Tom a grown ass man made his own choices.
It’s truly sad situation and I do feel for his kids but putting 100% of the blame on Kim isn’t fair.
TO LIVESINLEWISCOUNTY:::::
I’m pretty sure that Jamie was referring to it not being a accident, by stating clearly, it was not accident as it was avoidable. . Meaning yes they both were currently using, and both got in the car..!!!!! However she’s a grown woman and I’m sure knows wrong from right.. she chose to drive away under the influence of drugs, and well a senseless death occurred. . What about this for Food for Thought,,,, she could have killed anyone one the road, ,, I’m sure u would feel different differently if it was Yr mom or dad, or child. And whenn someone uses all the time in high amounts sometimes it’s easy to miss the qwarmsign
So you were in the car with them Jamie? You know for sure that Kim intentionally drove off the road? yes she made a bad decision yes she shouldn’t of been driving and yes she should be held accountable for driving under the influence but they both chose to leave and both took that risk.
the fact they were driving a death trap honda POS had nothing to do with it. lol
I will also say this…people all grieve diffrently…I know when my mom passed away just smelling her clothes helped…sleeping with the little crazy looking monkey she kept by her side til the day she passed away in my hand helped…hearing her voice on my voicemail helped….material things won’t bring my brother back…he is gone BUT it does help his children. It was not items of money value they wanted…they wanted centimetal things, things there dad loved…Kim was there when the kids and I with my sisters were going through stuff. She physically helped us go through every last thing and that was SEVERAL weeks after my brother passed away…several weeks…after I took care of priorities…you know police reports, funeral arrangements, corners office, attorney papers…then was I able to deal with Tom’s personal affairs which I have right to considering I am his legal Power of Attorney and over his estate…
Also, this was no accident…you don’t accidentally use drugs and drive…that is intentional and selfish!!! No one forced Kim to use drugs…no one forced Kim to drive…no one put her behind the wheel of her vehicle. KIM…a grown ass woman made that choice….If this was a true, honest and sincere accident then I could handle it…my heart would break for Kim BUT THIS WAS NO FREAK ACCIDENT…this was an intentional selfish act!!! You can blame this, blame that but it all goes back to the simple fact that when we get behind a wheel we not only are responsible for ourselves but those who r also in our vehicles and others we share the road with! If you are that quote “tired” then DONT DRIVE. Had I known she was that tired I would have drove them home HOWEVER about 10…15 minutes before she left my house she went to the car and NEVER came back inside…she didn’t even say goodbye…she sat in the car, with it on and running ready to leave…my brother lost his life…his life….SHAME ON ALL OF YOU who are justifying this selfish act! Instead of making damn excuses how about you be a true friend and help assist her in getting help!!!! She needs help…i am praying through this she gets help. Obviously I care more about her well being than most of you posting your non since. I want her to be accountable for her actions…honesty is the first step to recovery…
Wow, I feel like the comments that have been made are by blind, tunnel vision people who have distorted there metal capability of thinking…KIM was NOT my brothers “pretty much wife” my brother was leaving her…He was making arrangements to leave Kim after the holidays. Why he chose to wait I’m not sure. He passed away before we could get details worked out. ALSO Tom was an adult. He made a choice to get into the car that was already running and kim was ready to go and any friend of their..family ext knows…know Kim ALWAYS DROVE.
The victims in this situation are his children and Kim also his Family! She will have to live with this for the rest of her life, if she goes to jail or not Tom wouldn’t her to. He wouldn’t want everybody blaming her it was an accident a horrible accident but Tom was a grown man and he made the decision to get in the car no one forced him he could’ve drove he could’ve asked to drive but would of, should of, could of, nothings going to change the fact that he’s gone. Every couple has problems and people say things all the time out of anger and don’t really mean them. Tom stayed with her because he chose to no one made him and he truly did love her and they both chose to live the lifestyle that they lived. People are mad, people are angry this whole situation sucks but to use that as an excuse to act out and threaten people doesn’t Make it OK regardless of what your relationship to him was. Robin you can continue to make up lies about people all you want it’s obvious that’s what you have to do to make yourself feel better. Tom and Kim got that truck while they were together regardless of why it’s in Kim’s name and wasn’t in his name was their business not yours. You had no right to steal it from her Robin. It is unfortunate that his kids have to see their only living parent act this way all over the Internet. Your first and only concern should be the kids. It looks like his sisters handled all the details and dealt with the authorities so instead of focusing on other people try being there for your kids and make them your priority. It’s pathetic how many different stories(lies) you have already told, Yes that’s what happens when you lie you forget what you’ve already lied about. Shame on his brother for what he has said and acting the way he has acted. Your brothers death does not give you any right to act the way u are acting. To all his kids and grandkids you are in many people’s thoughts and prayers.
This is such a sad story……..I am sure the driver feels horribly guilty for her life partners death. I am sad that his family is being so evil to their deceased loved ones basically wife. That to me shows no respect to their loved one and she fell asleep at the wheel, she wasnt drunk she was tired. I am sure all of you have been there we usually had a co-pilot who woke us or stopped in time for coffee. So sad that neither one of these things happened. I feel really sorry for Tom’s kids for the loss of their Dad but also in having horrible things being said by their mother and uncle etc. and i am sorry but any amount of material things will never make up for losing their Dad especially not a stolen truck from someones yard they didn’t even know and in someone else’s name! That is not a great memory or example for the kids. Are his kids even old enough to drive? Who is this really benefiting and who is even thinking about gathering all material things when grieving? Every thing of the deceased was shared or should have been shared with his common law wife in less a will was wrote up and it is up to her to decide where things should go. I am also convinced that addiction breaks couples up does not keep them together. The brother said some hateful stuff to the life partner, threatened her also. i can understand him grieving but does he have some sort of drug problem or mental type delays because normal people never sound or publically threaten people. We all hurt from these life changing things but back to his kids do you think they really need to hear all this hate at a most traumatic time in their life. We need to show them an example of some class and dignity and help them get through this. stealing and making assumptions on what happened that night is not what the kids should have to hear or have memories of. So if all these actions their mother said were for the kids sake please think before you speak or steal seriously. Come on Mom, start showing a good example you are all they have got now
This is Toms brother. Rot in hell Kim. Got a little surprise for you when you go to prison. Oh ya . truth so help me God my brother told me every day how much he hated you.
Spice, tami and Lori your comments discust me…first of all I have NO criminal background what so ever…neither does my sister. I have kept In close contact with attorneys, police and have broken no laws. I am NOT a drug user and never have been….my interests are not in hurting or stealing from kim. I could care less about her or her personal belongings to be blunt not to mention she left out some major details or you failed to post them in your comments… MY brothers trust me and my sister both because of the creditable life styles we have lived and continue to live to handle their affairs. My brother knows I will protect AND take care of his children. My concern is NOT kim but TOMS children. Also, DO NOT sit and make MY brother John out to be the bad guy here!!!! He just lost his best friend, his twin brother…his other half!!! Kim has some nerve driving in my brothers truck to John’s house, showing up at HIS front door step just a couple of days after his brother died yelling and screaming at him. I don’t care what she thinks he did!!! Then you want to say he is at fault??? My brother is NOT perfect by any means but I refuse to sit here and let you blast him on here like he is a syco path! He is NOT at fault…and F.Y.I Tom would never…NEVER been okay with Kim going to john and approaching John like that after this tragic ordeal… unfortunately, my brother is not here to say if he would or wouldn’t want Kim to go to prison because at Kim’s selfishness he is now dead. So that is now up to the court what her consequences are. She is in her 50’s…she is a grown woman. She made a choice and in this life their our consequences for our actions… I love how you all are so concerned with Kim and her hurt little feelings…how she will live with this guilt and blah blah blah but have you stopped to put your self in any of our shoes?…NONE of you sat and listened to the moaning and unforgettable sobs of those babies as they were told their daddy passed away and why! NONE of you where there when MY brother John had to go and I.D his twin brother body…how he kissed him, held him and cried over him as he told him goodbye…NONE of you where there when I had to get with the funeral director and plan my brothers service…NONE of you were there as I had to go pick up his bloody wallet from the state patrol office…go through family photos!!!! NONE of you have cried night after night for their brother and his children that are left behind and the hard road they face ahead because their daddy is gone. None of you…my concern is Not kim and her feelings. You all think you know Tom but you apparently didn’t know him very well because before Kim his priority would be his children. His children want memories and his things. Those are his children and that is their dad!! Again put yourself in his kids shoes. They are angry and have every right to be. They are the victims of a selfish act. They are the ones who your heart shld feel sorry for, NOT kim. She choose her life style as well as Tom but those babies are innocent and as far as I’m concerned they are the ones we should all be trying to accommodate and make happy…not Kim! And FYI Kim was their and went through every little thing we took. Nothing that was taken was kims… It’s all on video. If u feel the need for proof of this then contact me.
And further more WHY WAS HIS NAME named before all his kids could be told, !!! his oldest and 2 youngest didn’t know yet!!!! Smh
First…. for lori, anyone who truly knew tom and Kim knew they hated each other, the addiction keep them together. .. right before he left that fateful night, he handed me a phone for our 11 yr old son which has text messages and voice mails he also gave me the password… what they say will come out in court, he had been covering his butt for awhile told me where things were that he had hidden, telling more than a few that he was afraid she was gonna kill him, although he thought it was gonna be a hotshot.. she hated my kids was mean to them all, they all have stories to tell about the way she treated tom and them behind closed doors. Tom and I were close, I know quite a bit, it will all come out in court… our kids begged him not to leave that night, I offered to drop him off, ….. now on to SPICE!!!! unless u know what u r talking about u shouldn’t butt in, our children are grieving and wanted some of thier dad’s belongings, is that a bad thing. NOT AT ALL!!! The lady that owns the property where tom and Kim had thier trailer parked, called me and told me to come up and get his belongings, that KIM had not been there since a wk after the accident, and she was only there to get a bogus community action check, and took Toms truck… the day we ( me his 2 oldest boys his 2 sisters ) got there last Sunday, there was nothing there left for them to get, none of his flannels, his clothes really, NONE OF THIER BELONGINGS THAT WAS ALREADY THIERS literally there was garbage and more garbage, not even a picture of our children, my boys got 2 baskets of dirty clothes. By the grace of God someone was smart enough to hide a few items for the kids and fire wood…. anyone that knew them knew that was his truck, (in her name because he didn’t have a license at the time) so rightfully his truck should go to the kids… all 5 of his children are the ones suffering from this. She was there the day we were there showing no emotions for our kids didn’t ask them how they were nothing….. the justice system will prevail and she shall rot in a hole where she can’t be a bully anymore.
I see Kim left out the part of how she was their.. that’s ok it’s on servanlince 😉 Did you tell you how she fell and how we helped her up? Probably not… Did she tell you how I told her I would pray for her and how we talked just the two of us… listen don’t tell me what my brother would be of me..my sister and are I doing nothing but trying to get my brothers things for his kids I could care less about Kim’s personal belongs or whatever she has their lifestyle they chose to live isn’t my problem people were running in and out of that place and I’ll be kind and keep as to why to myslf… i hope the best for her but she isn’t the victim in this my nieces and nephews are.
After reading posts on this site and some pretty vulgar posts on Facebook I’m appalled at the way this whole sad situation as turned. Since when is it appropriate to go into someone else home when the owners are not there and steal every and anything that is not nailed down? Tom would be heart broken knowing his brother, ex, and sisters were behaving with such evil malice towards Kim. Whether Tom or Kim were using or not at that time does not give another human being the right to threaten to kill them, harm them, steal from them and then lie about it. I miss Tom, his smile, laugh and genuine caring he had for everyone. I know he’s looking down on u all, bewildered by the actions his family have taken, their words that have been used towards his girl and the example that his family is setting for his children! Shame on you!
Just now reading some comments that were posted…it was my house the family gathering was at…it was a family dinner NOT a party. There was absoulty no alcohol served and I sure did not allow or permit any drug use at my house or property. ..we can all say ” if, should could or would” but that does not change the situation or circumstances…my hands have no blood and I hold no guilt. What happened is not due to my carelessness. I held a family gathering that Jesus himself could have attended…people need tof start taking responsibility for their OWN actions and stop pointing fingers.
Tom was a wonderful, kind, caring man who loved Kim. He would be the first person to forgive her, and hope that she was treated kindly, knowing she would have a long road of recovery both physically and emotionally ahead of her. My family loved Tom, he was always quick to offer help and was in fact the only person we could count on to give us a helping hand in many situations. We will miss him every day and our hearts break for his family left behind. He certainly would not approve of his brother, breaking in and stealing their belongings (2 days after his demise) or threatening his life mates life with a weapon. God is watching and knows all! God Bless You Tom! You R Missed Everyday!
So if she was impaired according to people at his sisters party why didn’t anyone ask him to drive instead of her or were they both using?
No alcohol was served at our Christmas dinner.
So sad. This happens way too much. Why would someone say, this is nobody’s fault? It clearly is. Maybe if we take our Kiddy gloves off, and treat drunk drivers harsher, this wouldn’t happen so often. I’m sure the driver will live with this guilt and sadness her while life, but, that’s not enough punishment.
I pray for peace for those 5 innocent babies left behind.
Tom and kim have been a couple for several years and they loved (love)one another with their whole being. Tom would never want kim to go to prison or live with the guilt she will be faced with and those who know them would never judge this tragedy it’s a lose lose situation for everyone regardless the outcome. It’s a sad time for all families involved. And I agree with concerned if you know someone should not get behind a wheel maybe you should step up and stop them. Nobody is to blame here I’m sure guilt rides on everyone’s shoulders to some degree. And kim already will live with her guilt. she needs support right now Tom would want that ……..
So sorry for your loss Robin and kids.Tom will be missed.This is so sad.RIP TOM.
I am one of Tom’s brothers, Tom leaves behind his 5 kids, his dad, 2 brothers, 2 sisters, 2 grandkids & his girlfriend Kim. Tonya is his oldest daughter’s mom and grandma of his grandkids. Robin is the mother of his other 4 kids.
If she never should’ve been driving then why let them leave in such condition!!
Tragedy, prayers to all of their families…
Absolutely tragic. One person lost their life, another is facing prison time. Two families destroyed. I am not rushing to judgement but people it is never worth it. If you have had a drink or two stay put or call a cab or a friend.
This is such a tragic accident. Just 20 min prior we ( tom, our kids, his sisters , and family) were just eating christmas dinner together. .. this was also a completely preventable accident, she should never have been driving when they left. So sad. At a loss and shattered I haven’t even found the words to tell our 2 youngest children. ..
Man, this is horrible. I know both of them. I’d just wished them a Merry Christmas the night before. They are/were good people. My prayers are with them and their families.
This has been the biggest piece of sh*t year as far as death & dying go. From celebrities (RIP George Michael), to relatives, as well as several friends.
F*CK 2016…and there are a lot of people besides me saying that exact phrase.
R.I.P. Tom
This saddens my heart! RIP tom gone but n ver forgoten! Our hearts our heavy !