Lewis County Sirens.com

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

The Washington State Supreme Court yesterday issued a ruling saying a Lewis County judge’s order to make a man undergo a polygraph examination about his sexual history is invalid.

Jake Hawkins is the subject of an attempt by the state to label him a sexually violent predator so the state can commit him to civil detention following his sentence for a sex crime.

Hawkins was convicted in 1993 of attempted rape.

In 2006, after the trial court found probable cause to believe Hawkins was a sexually violent predator but before a jury had been asked to determine the issue beyond a reasonable doubt, he was taken into custody for an evaluation, according to the ruling.

Then-Lewis County Superior Court Judge H. John Hall ordered the polygraph. Hawkins refused and appealed the order.

Hawkins remains locked up at the McNeil Island Special Commitment Center where he has been waiting the involuntary commitment trial, according to Jodi Backlund, one of the two Olympia attorneys who took the question to the Supreme Court.

The Community Protection Act of 1990 allows the state to civilly commit some sex offenders after they have completed their criminal sentences. They remain there until a court determines they are ready to be released to a less restrictive living arrangement.

In yesterday’s decision, the justices noted the difficulties of polygraph examinations, which courts have consistently recognized as unreliable and are inadmissible unless stipulated to by all parties, they wrote.

In addition, they are invasive of one’s private affairs, and this inquiry is into one of the most private affairs of a person, the court noted.

Six of the nine Supreme Court justices agreed on yesterday’s ruling.

The majority author, Justice Susan Owens, wrote the law does not prohibit the use by an evaluator of voluntary or previously existing polygraph examinations, and even without one, an expert is still capable of reaching an opinion as to whether an individual is a sexually violent predator.

Backlund said yesterday’s decision doesn’t mean Hawkins gets to go free.

The decision vacates the order compelling Hawkins to under the polygraph and the commitment trial in Lewis County Superior Court can go forward.
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Read the Washington State Supreme Court opinion here. Read the dissenting opinion here.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – The lawyer representing one of the two men accused in last month’s triple-homicide told a judge yesterday he didn’t see enough evidence to warrant his client being charged.

Olympia attorney Rick Cordes suggested after a brief hearing in Lewis County Superior Court that Ryan J. McCarthy shouldn’t be involved in the case.

Ryan J. McCarthy

“I don’t think there’s enough in the probable cause statement to charge my client,” Cordes said. “Mere presence at a crime isn’t enough.”

The lawyer’s argument had been cut short in the Chehalis courtroom moments earlier as Judge James Lawler proceeded with the reason for the hearing.

McCarthy and John Allen Booth Jr. pleaded not guilty in separate appearances late yesterday in the packed courtroom.

They are charged with first-degree murder and extortion in connection with the deaths of David J. West Jr., 16, his father David J. West Sr. 52, and Tony E. Williams, 50, of Randle. Additionally, Booth is charged with attempted murder of 51-year-old Denise Salts.

All four were found shot in the head early on Aug. 21 inside the West’s Salkum-Onalaska area home.

John Allen Booth Jr.

Both men were shackled and appeared to listen attentively as Judge Lawler asked for their pleas.

Extra jail guards and several sheriff’s deputies were on hand as the audience included both family members of the accused and of the victims.

Olympia attorney James Dixon represented Booth during the arraignment.

Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher told the judge he’d like to wait until Sept. 23 to select a trial date.

He asked for the delay because prosecutors are still considering increasing the charges, he said.

They need time to conduct what Meagher called a “proportionality conversation.” Before prosecutors can charge an individual with first-degree aggravated murder, the elected prosecutor must consult with other elected prosecutors around the state, according to Meagher.

With an aggravated murder charge comes a decision about whether to seek the death penalty.

The two men, described in a court document as former prison cell mates and best friends, remain in the Lewis County Jail.

Booth, 31, originally from Onalaska is held on $10 million bail. McCarthy, 28, is held on $2 million.
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Read story from McCarthy’s first appearance in court here. Read about Booth’s first appearance in court here.

By Sharyn  L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter

CHEHALIS – Lewis County Prosecutor Michael Golden wants the public to know that as he is preparing to prosecute last month’s triple homicide, he hasn’t forgotten about three other homicide cases from the past year that he has yet to make charging decisions on.

And he’s pointing to the sheriff’s office as the reason for the delays.

The cases include the Onalaska teenager who died from alcohol poisoning in Sept. 2009, a 58-year-old man who died following an assault in Randle in March and a Morton man who was shot dead by an Onalaska homeowner who said he was being burglarized.

“I have received several inquires about the Nickolas Barnes case in particular and the public has a right to know that this office is not sitting on any of these cases,” Golden said in an email message about the reason for a news release he distributed last week.

In his Thursday news release, Golden said he’s still waiting for further information in each of the cases from sheriff’s detectives.

“Allocation of resources is something every agency grapples with, and each department seeks to do the best job it can,” Golden wrote in his news release. “However, there is a real danger when a number of complex and resource-intensive cases backlog in an agency.

“Age will generally not improve the strength of a case and typically the passage of time can be expected to make a case more difficult to prove.”

The elected prosecutor is currently handling the Salkum-Onalaska area shooting deaths of a father, son and a Randle man, in what is the first triple slaying in Lewis County in probably at least three decades. He’s also contemplating, with two defendants, increasing the charges to aggravated first-degree murder, a charge that hasn’t been seen in Lewis County for perhaps more than the same number of years.

Golden also is facing an election in two months and the prospect he could be replaced after December 31.

He said he’s concerned about the cases hitting all at once and stretching his resources too thin.

“Justice delayed is justice denied,” Golden wrote in his news release. “To complete a prosecution in a timely fashion, the investigation must be received in a timely fashion. This community deserves to have these cases resolved, guilt or innocence established.”

Here are the cases:

• Nickolas Barnes, 15, died Sept. 21, 2009 of alcohol poisoning after he was found passed out in the front yard at an Onalaska home where detectives concluded the adult resident had provided alcohol during a party, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.

The Onalaska High School student was found to have a blood alcohol level of .38, which is more than four times the legal limit for an adult while driving under the influence.

The resident, James W. Taylor, 28, was arrested Oct. 1 at his Lacey workplace and booked for second-degree manslaughter. He is not charged with a crime.

• Guy LaFontaine, 58, of Federal Way, died from injuries following an assault the evening of March 13 at the 11,000 block of U.S. Highway 12 in Randle, according to the sheriff’s office.

Sheriff’s deputies arrested a relative, Erik R. Massa, 42, of Randle, and booked him into jail for second-degree murder. He is not charged with a crime.

• Thomas McKenzie, 56, of Morton, died the night of April 19 when he was shot by the owner of a house under-construction on the 2100 block of state Route 508, according to the sheriff’s office.

The 59-year-old owner of the home, Ronald Brady had reported a burglary earlier in the day and stayed at the house in case burglars returned.

Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield said in mid-July he concluded Brady’s actions were a reasonable use of force and would not arrest Brady, but would let the prosecutor decide.

Golden in July said he received the case materials and hoped to make a preliminary decision within a few days. But, Golden said at the time, a final determination might not be made until after he received the results of an examination of Brady’s computer.
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Read Lewis County Sirens July 14, 2010 news story about the Onalaska shooting case here.