Lewis County Sirens.com

Jence S. Sawyer, left, and his attorney Don Blair listen to the prosecutor during proceedings today in Lewis County Superior Court.

By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – A former Chehalis area man was grilled in court by a judge today, through his attorney, about how he got a court appointed lawyer if he was earning as much as $20 an hour in North Dakota before his recent arrest.

Court-appointed attorney Don Blair had just told the judge his client spent the last year and a half working 12-hour days, seven days a week as a carpenter. The Centralia attorney was explaining his request to lower the bail for Jence S. Sawyer, from $150,000 to $20,000.

“So why are you appointed then,” Lewis County Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt asked.

Blair said he didn’t inquire as to why.

“Where did the money go,” Hunt asked.

Blair, as he queried his 23-year-old client, relayed to the judge a “bunch” was paid to a collection agency, and some spent on a new work truck that is sitting in the sheriff’s impound lot in North Dakota.

“Well, I’m going to be looking into this,” Hunt said.

Sawyer was in court this morning for his arraignment on two separate cases, one involving an underage girl and the other involving his estranged girlfriend, alleged to have occurred a year or so ago. He was charged last summer, but deputies only recently located him in Williston, North Dakota.

Lewis County sheriff’s deputies picked him this weekend and brought him back to Lewis County.

Sawyer is charged with second-degree assault and unlawful imprisonment, with sexual motivation, for a May 2014 incident in which he allegedly wouldn’t let his former girlfriend leave his home, although she finally was able to flee with her baby through a window.

He is also charged with third-degree rape of a child for an alleged encounter in November 2013 with a 15-year-old girl he befriended in Packwood.

Sawyer pleaded not guilty this morning and his trial was scheduled for the week of March 2. He has no prior felony history.

Judge Hunt did not reduce his bail.
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For background, read “Wanted Chehalis man found in North Dakota” from Monday January 12, 2015, here

Phillip A. Pinotti pleads guilty today as charged for December Centralia Municipal Court incident

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Originally charged with trying to run down a court security officer, a 22-year-old Adna man instead was convicted today of three misdemeanors and sentenced to time served.

Phillip A. Pinotti drew gunfire when he fled an attempted arrest on a misdemeanor warrant in Centralia last month, on foot and then in his car. The bullet shattered his driver’s window and glass fragments cut his face, but he was otherwise unharmed.

Last week, prosecutors dismissed a charge of first-degree assault and replaced it with obstructing, a gross misdemeanor, saying they concluded Pinotti had no intent to injure the officer.

Centralia Court Security Officer Steve Howard said after Pinotti started his engine, the car jerked forward, and he thought he was going to be hit. Pinotti said he put it in reverse and hit the gas as hard as he could.

No other witnesses spoke of the car moving forward.

Howard wasn’t injured either. His use of deadly force was found to be lawful.

Today, Pinotti was in Lewis County Superior Court to plead guilty to obstructing, third-degree escape and tampering with evidence.

Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer told the judge the state’s position is the evidence in the case did not reveal an assault.

He recommended a sentence of 364 days, with all but six days suspended, giving Pinotti credit for time served in the jail.

“Frankly Mr. Pinotti is lucky,” Meyer said. “He’s lucky he’s even sitting here. He’s lucky he’s not dead.”

Defense attorney Don Blair said he agreed with the sentence.

“I agree, and Phillip agrees, what he did back on the 16th was stupid,” Blair said.

Blair said clearly it was a bad decision on his client’s part, but one he will have learned from.

Judge Nelson Hunt read aloud Pinotti’s written confession, about his flight from Centralia Municipal Court and Officer Howard.

“I went out of the courtroom and ran to my car and did not stop when an officer told me to stop,” Hunt read. “I had my friends park my mother’s car in the garage.”

The judge asked Pinotti if those were his words, and numerous other questions. Pinotti addressed the judge as sir with each reply.

Pinotti’s only previous conviction was a misdemeanor.

When the hearing was over, Pinotti was escorted back to the jail, where he is being held on charges filed last week for alleged delivery of heroin while he was out on bail, and for possessing a large amount of heroin last summer.

His arraignment on those charges is scheduled for tomorrow.
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For background, read “Charge of assault that prompted officer to shoot, dropped for Adna resident” from Thursday January 8, 2015, here

Jeff Fosburg poses outside the Mossyrock Fire Department for a photo in October.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

A potentially fatal form of pneumonia has struck an otherwise healthy 28-year-old volunteer firefighter from Mossyrock.

Jeff Fosburg, a bachelor with a St. Bernard as a roommate was fine until he suddenly took ill early last month, according to his father.

“He was getting a cold,” Mossyrock Fire Chief Doug Fosburg said of his grown son. “It went from just a cold on a Friday afternoon, to being in ICU at Providence on Tuesday.”

That was Dec. 9.

Doctors found the younger Fosburg had contracted MRSA  pneumonia in both lungs. The MRSA bacteria is the strain which is resistant to most antibiotics, his father said.

They don’t know how he caught it, but he works at the Lucky Eagle Casino as a security guard, and is around a lot of people, the chief said.

Jeff was transferred to a Vancouver hospital, and then shortly after to a Portland hospital equipped to deal with the unusual illness. It’s only the sixth or seventh case of this type they’ve ever treated, he said.

He’s improving Chief Fosburg said this morning, but isn’t expected to be well enough to go home for two to three months, he said.

“He’s getting better, but he’s still on a ventilator, and still at Legacy,” Fosburg said. “If he hadn’t have been as healthy as he was, he probably wouldn’t have survived it.”

It’s going to be a long road to recovery, even after he’s released, he said.

One of his co-workers at the Mossyrock Fire Department has set up an account to assist with paying Jeff’s ongoing household bills while he is not working.

Jeff has health insurance, but his neighboring firefighters in Salkum are putting together a benefit to raise money, as it could be as long as six months before he’s able to work, according to Byron Peck, president of the Salkum Volunteer Firefighter and EMS Association.

Chief Fosburg said he understands that is aimed at helping out with excess health care costs.

Salkum firefighters say that any donations for their silent auction can be brought to their main station on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. until Feb. 5. That’s at 2490 U.S. Highway 12 in Salkum.

The auction and spaghetti dinner fundraiser will be held at the same location, on Saturday Feb. 7, from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m.