Posts Tagged ‘news reporter’

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2015
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SWEEPING UP THE HOMELESS

• Police conducting a sweep through Rotary Riverside Park in Centralia yesterday morning for unlawful encampments for the second day in a row arrested a 53-year-old homeless woman for an outstanding warrant. Janie S Weibling was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Centralia Police Department.

RECOVERED STOLEN PROPERTY

• A fishing license and checks found in front of a business at the 1200 block of Lum Road in Centralia yesterday turned out to be stolen from an individual in the Olympia area, according to the Centralia Police Department. Officers will be attempting to locate the person that dropped the items, according to police.

• Centralia police are continuing to investigate after recovering a stolen computer yesterday from a 28-year-old homeless man, in a case associated with the 1000 block of H Street.

VEHICLE PROWL

• Centralia police were called about 7 p.m. yesterday to an vehicle electrical charging station on the 1200 block of Lum Road to take a report of a car prowl. The window was broken out and stolen were several items including including a cell phone and a computer that had been left in plain view, according to the Centralia Police Department.

• Chehalis police took a report yesterday of a combination flashlight-stun gun stolen from a pickup truck on the 300 block of Southwest 13th Street sometime between September 7 and 12.

DRUGS

• A 42-year-old Centralia resident was arrested for possession of heroin yesterday in Centralia. Chato R Ayres was booked into the Lewis County Jail following contact about 1:15 p.m. with an officer at the 1400 block of Mellen Street, according to the Centralia Police Department.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrant, drugs, hit and run, misdemeanor assault, violation of no-contact order, driving with suspended license, driving under the influence; responses for alarm, dispute, harassment, panhandling, vandalism, gas drive off, possible child abuse, barking neighbor dogs, collision on city street, missing bong/pipes, suspected misdemeanor theft regarding failure to return property to rental business … and more.

News brief: Pickup plows through front door of auto parts store

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2015
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Truck comes to rest just inside front door of O’Reilly Auto Parts. / Courtesy photo by Chehalis Police Department

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A 19-year-old driver of a shiny red Ford Ranger that crashed through the glass front doors of a business in the Twin City Town Center yesterday told police her accelerator stuck.

Officers responding about 12:30 p.m. to the 1400 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue found the pickup came to rest completely inside O’Reilly Auto Parts, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

Nobody was injured but one witness said he was returning a shopping cart when the truck came over the curb and nearly hit him, police said.

The Centralia teenager told the officer the gas pedal had stuck previously as well, police said.

No dollar estimate of the damage was available. A report was taken for informational purposes, but it didn’t appear the 19-year-old would be ticketed, according to a police department spokesperson.

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The scene at the Twin City Town Center in Chehalis at mid-day on Monday. / Courtesy photo by Chehalis Police Department

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Monday, September 21st, 2015
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Updated at 8:16 p.m.

JUMPED IN CHEHALIS

• Police are looking for two suspects after they assaulted a 46-year-old Chehalis man on the 400 block of Southwest 13th Street about 4 o’clock yesterday morning. It started as an argument at an earlier gathering elsewhere and the victim had to be seen at the hospital for head and facial injuries, according to the Chehalis Police Department. The pair are wanted for second-degree assault, according to police.

THREATENED IN RANDLE

• A 35-year-old Randle man was arrested after initially hiding in a neighbor’s house on Friday for felony harassment in connection with a report from his girlfriend earlier in the day that he had threatened to shoot her and then shoot himself in the shoulder so he could claim self defense. A deputy learned from Providence Centralia Hospital the day before that a 35-year-old woman had been assaulted on two occasions the week before at the 100 block of Paul Avenue, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Jeffry R. Williams was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the sheriff’s office. The case includes a referral for two charges of fourth-degree assault, Chief Deputy Stacy Brown said.

THREATENED IN GLENOMA

• A 48-year-old Glenoma man who was reportedly extremely intoxicated was arrested for allegedly producing a knife during an argument and pointing it at his roommate on Friday evening. Deputies responding about 7:30 p.m. to the 100 block of Fisher Road took Charles W. Olmstead to be medically cleared at the hospital and then booked him into the Lewis County Jail for attempted second-degree assault, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Prosecutors declined to file that charge.

BURGLARY CHEHALIS

• Chehalis police were called yesterday morning about a break-in to a shed on the 200 block of Southwest 10th Street where someone stole three marijuana plants.

WALLET LIFTED CENTRALIA

• Centralia police were called yesterday evening by an individual who said he’d spent the night at an unspecified location in Centralia and woke up to discover his wallet was missing. The case, associated with the 1000 block of South Tower Avenue, is under investigation, according to the Centralia Police Department.

MONEY MISSING

• Centralia police were called to a business on South Gold Street yesterday afternoon about suspected theft of a small amount of cash by an employee, according to the Centralia Police Department.

FRAUD CHEHALIS

• Chehalis police were called on Friday evening by an individual about a suspected fraudulent check.

CAR PROWL

• Police were called just after midnight on Saturday after an individual came out of a convenience store on the 100 block of Southwest Interstate Avenue in Chehalis and discovered someone had stolen suitcases and briefcases from their vehicle.

• Chehalis police were called to the 400 block of Northwest Pennsylvania Avenue in Chehalis on Friday about an overnight vehicle prowl.

• Someone got inside an unlocked car at the 500 block of Northwest Pennsylvania Avenue in Chehalis during the night and stole a pair of sunglasses and an empty purse, according to a report made to Chehalis police on Friday.

• Chehalis police took a report from the 900 block of South Market Boulevard on Friday of a vehicle prowl that had taken place a couple of days earlier to a work van.

TEEN FLEES POLICE

• A 15-year-old boy who ran off from an officer during an “investigative detention” for suspected drug transactions yesterday afternoon in Centralia is going to find the case referred to juvenile prosecutors for a charge of obstruction, according to the Centralia Police Department. The incident took place near the 200 block of West Oakview Avenue around 1:40 p.m., according to police.

DRUGS

• Officers conducting a sweep of Rotary Riverside Park in Centralia around 9 o’clock yesterday morning for unlawful encampments arrested three homeless individuals. Jackie F. Hamilton, 55, and Timothy P. McCann, 45, were booked into the Lewis County Jail for outstanding warrants and possession of methamphetamine,  according to the Centralia Police Department. Mitchell W. Sinclair, 47, was booked for a warrant, according to police. Prosecutors declined to charge McCann with meth possession.

• A 27-year-old Centralia man picked up on an outstanding warrant on Friday night at the 100 block of Southwest Ninth Avenue in Chehalis was subsequently arrested for possession of methamphetamine. Joshua G. Dagris was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to the Chehalis Police Department.

FROM THE COURTHOUSE

• A Centralia woman arrested late last year for coercing a girl into giving her oral sex entered into a plea agreement in which she was convicted of four counts of third-degree rape of a child. Chrystal G. Munoz-Rosales was given a five-year sentence but will spend 12 months in jail and the rest of time in a program that includes sexual deviancy treatment, according to the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office. During that time, she’ll be on community custody with the state Department of Corrections, Lewis County Senior Deputy Prosecutor Will Halstead said. The deal was made under the so-called Special Sex Offender Sentencing Alternative, something that can’t be done if the victim and perpetrator are strangers to each other, according to Halstead. “If she fails out at any point, she’ll got to prison for whatever time is left,” Halstead said. A charge of first-degree rape of a child was dropped, relating to an early allegation an incident occurred when the girl was 9 years old. The investigation began when the Centralia Police Department was given information from Child Protective Services regarding a 16-year-old girl last September. The abuse took place in a shared household, according to prosecutors. No assaultive violence was alleged. Munoz-Rosales pleaded guilty several weeks ago in Lewis County Superior Court and was sentenced on Thursday. Sixty months is the top of the standard sentencing range for the offense, involving a child who is 14 years old or 15 years old. Halstead said the victim agreed with the plea deal if Munoz-Rosales was found eligible for the SSOSA, though changed her mind on Thursday and said she’d like the now 38-year-old woman to spend the entire time locked up. Among the list of criteria Munoz-Rosales had to meet was taking a polygraph to prove there were no other victims, Halstead said. Judge James Lawler also ordered Munoz-Rosales to have no contact with any minors other than her own son.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrant, trespassing, possession of liquor by minor, driving with suspended license, driving under the influence; responses for alarm, dispute, shoplifting, vandalism, runaway juvenile, parenting plan disagreement, protection order violation, suspicious circumstances, loud neighbor music, possibly suicidal person, various unfounded reports, intoxicated man with a prosthetic leg on a bicycle suspected of panhandling … and more.

Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup

Sunday, September 20th, 2015
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CENTRALIA RESIDENTS WAKE UP TO FIRE

• A household of five is displaced after fire broke out in a Centralia home early this morning. Firefighters responding to the 5:50 a.m. call at the 200 block of East Chestnut Street were told the fire was burning in a back bedroom and everyone was outside and accounted for, according to Riverside Fire Authority. Nobody was injured and the majority of the damage was contained to the one room although the rest of the house sustained some smoke damage, according to Capt. Erik Olson. The specific cause is unknown, but firefighters believe it was accidental, according to Olson. The Red Cross is assisting with placement of the residents, Olson indicated. Damage is estimated at $15,000.

DISPUTE

• A 58-year-old man who allegedly picked up a piece of lumber and threatened to hit a person with it last night is being referred to prosecutors for a charge of harassment, according to the Centralia Police Department. Officers who responded to the approximately 7 p.m. call at the 1100 block of West Chestnut Street found the suspect had dropped the board and left the area, according to police. The victim was not injured, police indicate.

BAD TOUCHING

• A 45-year-old man who allegedly groped a nurse a Providence Centralia Hospital on Friday morning was arrested for third-degree assault and also possession of methamphetamine, according to the Centralia Police Department. David A. Ramirez, of Centralia, was booked into the Lewis County Jail, according to police.

THEFT

• Someone stole a stop sign from the corner of Main and Buckner streets in Centralia sometime before 6:30 p.m. on Friday.

CAR PROWL

• Police were called about 6:40 a.m. today to a vehicle prowl at the 400 block of East Carson Street in Centralia in which the registration was stolen.

• Police were called about 2:30 p.m. yesterday to the 600 block of Centralia College Boulevard where someone had taken a duffel bag containing clothing from the bed of a truck.

VANDALISM

• Police were called about 12:03 a.m. today to a dispute in which a car’s window was broken at Gold and Marion streets in Centralia. The case, involving a juvenile male suspect, is being referred to prosecutors for a charge of third-degree malicious mischief, according to the Centralia Police Department.

AND MORE

• And as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrant, misdemeanor assault, violation of no-contact order, driving with suspended license, driving under the influence, possession of liquor by a minor; responses for misdemeanor theft, collision on city street, vandalism including graffiti on bathroom walls at a tavern … and more.

 

News brief: Campfires are cool again

Saturday, September 19th, 2015

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The city of Chehalis lifted its ban on recreational campfires yesterday following similar actions earlier in the week in the city of Centralia and in unincorporated areas of Lewis County.

But Chehalis Fire Chief Ken Cardinale wants the public to continue to be careful.

“I strongly encourage all city residents and property owners to still take proactive fire prevention measures,” Cardinale said in a news release yesterday afternoon.

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Lee Napier, the Lewis County community development director, acting as the county fire marshal, on Monday indicated she made a careful review of the current and extended weather forecast and determined conditions within Lewis County have improved.

Recreational campfires are once again allowed in designated campgrounds and on private lands if built in the following manner, according to Napier:

• The campfire shall be no greater than three feet in diameter and constructed of a ring of metal, stone or brick 8-inches above surface with a two foot wide area clears down to exposed soil surrounding the outside of the pit.
• The campfire shall have an area at least 10 feet around it cleared of all flammable material and at least 20 feet of clearance from overhead flammable materials or fuels.
• The campfire must be attended at all time by a responsible person at least 16 years old with the ability to extinguish the fire with a shovel and a five-gallon bucket of water or with a connected and charged water hose.
• Completely extinguish campfires by pouring water or moist soil in them and stirring with a shovel until all parts are cool to the touch.

The use of self-contained camp stoves is encouraged as an alternative, Napier stated.

The city of Centralia announced the rules there are the same as those imposed by the county.

The state Department of Natural Resources announced just before Labor Day weekend it would allow campfires in established fire rings in official campgrounds on western Washington lands protected by DNR.

Right after Labor Day weekend, the Gifford Pinchot National Forest lifted its ban on campfires outside of developed recreation sites.

The forest service advised common sense measures such as building a campfire away from overhanging vegetation, removing all flammable materials from around the pit; and recommended using existing pits keeping fires small.

Fire Chief Cardinale offers additional information on how the public can protect their property from wildfires on the department’s web site.

Other outdoor burning in Lewis County remains prohibited until the restrictions imposed in mid-June are lifted by the Board of County Commissioners.

Anyone with questions can call their fire department. For further information on outdoor burning, Napier can be reached at 360-740-1146. The fire marshal’s office is in the Lewis County Public Services building, located at 2025 NE Kresky Avenue in Chehalis.

News brief: Identity released of fisherman who drowned

Friday, September 18th, 2015

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The fisherman who was rescued from the current of the Cowlitz River but subsequently died has been identified as John S. Babbit, a 63-year-old resident of Gig Harbor.

Babbit was fly fishing about 500 yards downstream from the Blue Creek Boat Launch south of Ethel on Tuesday morning when witnesses saw him wade out into the water and he apparently slipped, according to authorities.

Another fisherman jumped in and pulled him to shore and a boater helped them across to the other side to meet an aid unit.

He was transported to Providence St. Peter Hospital where he died that afternoon, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office said.

Thurston County Coroner Gary Warnock confirmed Babbit’s death was accidental and the result of drowning.

News brief: Death in Winlock under investigation

Friday, September 18th, 2015

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

Deputies are investigating a death at the 1700 block of Ferrier Road in Winlock, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

The 44-year-old Winlock man was visiting people on the property, Cmdr. Dusty Breen said this morning.

Deputies were called about 4:50 p.m. when he was found deceased in the yard, according to Breen.

There were no obvious signs of trauma, he said, and detectives will be waiting for further information from the coroner’s office.