News Releases - August 2010
8/27/2010 4:55:00 PMAugust 27, 2010
Joseph Thomas Camporeale, age 19, of Issaquah, Washington, was convicted by bench trial (judge without a jury) on 08-27, 2010, in Lewis County Superior Court for Criminal Trespass in the First Degree. Joseph Thomas Camporeale was charged by Information on 06-07-2010, with Burglary, Second Degree, and Malicious Mischief, Second Degree. Judge Richard Brosey found, after a bench trial, that Mr. Camporeale did not intend to commit any crime when he broke into the Shell Station located at 1349 NW State Avenue, Chehalis, during the early morning hours of 06-06-2010. Camporeale was severely intoxicated at the time.
The Defendant is facing up to a year in the county jail. A Sentencing date has not yet been set.
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August 26, 2010On August 26, 2010, a jury convicted Vernon Wayne Bennett, 50 of Centralia, of Delivery of a Controlled Substance to Person under Eighteen Years of Age, Delivery of a Controlled Substance, Possession of a Controlled Substance, and Furnishing Liquor to a Minor in Lewis County Superior Court. Bennett was charged by Information on August 26, 2009. Bennett faces a standard range sentence of 92 to 124 months in prison, including sentencing enhancements. Bennett will be sentenced on September 30, 2010, at 9:00 a.m. by Judge Richard Brosey.
August 24, 2010
Richard Ray Viers, 20 years old of Toledo, originally charged by Information on 06-24-10 with Robbery in the First Degree, was found not guilty by a jury following a one day trial in Lewis County Superior Court, Judge Nelson Hunt presiding.
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August 23, 2010
Jeremiah James O’Brien, 24 years old of Longview, pleaded guilty to two counts of Theft of a Motor Vehicle. O’Brien was charged by Information on 06-29-10 with two counts of Theft of a Motor Vehicle. O’Brien was sentenced to a 25 month commitment in the Department of Corrections.
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August 20, 2010
Michael Anthony Monk, age 43, of Salem, Oregon, was convicted by bench trial (judge without a jury) on 08-20-2010, in Lewis County Superior Court for Burglary in the Second Degree. Michael Anthony Monk was charged by Information on 06-20-2010, with Attempted Robbery, Second Degree (a class C felony), but the charge was later increased to Burglary, Second Degree (a class B felony), after plea negotiations failed.
Due to the Defendant’s extensive criminal history, the Defendant is facing 43-57 months in the Department of Corrections. A Sentencing date has not yet been set.
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August 19, 2010
Florence Kae Montes, 53, of Centralia, was convicted by Judge Richard Brosey on August 19, 2010 in Lewis County Superior Court for Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Oxycodone, Possession of Diazepam, Possession of Alprazolam and Possession of Over 40 Grams of Marijuana. Montes was charged by Information on July 14, 2010 with Possession of Methamphetamine with the Intent to Deliver, Possession of Oxycodone with the Intent to Deliver, Possession of Diazepam , with the Intent to Deliver, Possession of Alprazolam with the Intent to Deliver and Possession of Over 40 Grams of Marijuana with the Intent to Deliver. The Defendant is facing standard range sentence of 6+ to 18 months. Sentencing will be set on September 2, 2010.
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August 18, 2010
James Ray Vanreselaar, age 45, of Morton, Washington, was found guilty of the crimes of Trafficking in Stolen Property in the First Degree; a lesser included crime of Theft in the Second Degree; and two counts of Driving While License Suspended or Revoked in the Third Degree following a jury trial in Lewis County Superior Court on August 18, 2010.
According to law enforcement reports, in March of 2008, officers of the United States Forest Service on patrol on a US Forest Service Road in the Baker/Snoqualmie National Forest observed an unoccupied vehicle containing a piece of cedar cut to the length of a shake bolt. The officers observed footprints leading from the vehicle approximately 200 feet down the road, where the footprints veered off the road and up a steep incline into heavy growth forest. An officer followed the footprints into the forest and observed Vanrenselaar throwing chunks of cedar down the incline towards the road.
Upon further inspection, the officer located a chain saw belonging to Vanrenselaar, along with the remnants of the tree the chunks had been removed from. The tree in question was determined to be old growth cedar. Subsequent investigation revealed that two days earlier Vanrenselaar had sold cedar shake bolts to a local mill.
Vanrenselaar was charged with Trafficking in Stolen Property in the First Degree and Theft in the First Degree as a result of the investigation. Vanrenselaar was also charged with two counts of Driving While License Suspended or Revoked as a result of two other incidents where he was observed driving a vehicle by law enforcement officers after his license had been suspended or revoked.
The Court is scheduled to set a sentencing hearing on August 26, 2010.
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August 13, 2010
Michael James Eplett, age 24, of Tumwater, Washington, was convicted as charged following a jury trial on Friday, August 13, 2010, in Lewis County Superior Court for Attempted Rape of a Child in the Second Degree.
Mr. Eplett was charged by Information on May 5, 2010, after being caught in an internet sting operation conducted by the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Believing that he was to meet a mother and her 13 year old daughter to purchase a sexual encounter with both, the defendant traveled to a Lewis County motel, only to be arrested by waiting detectives.
The State was represented by Deputy Prosecutor Cailen Wevodau. The defendant was represented by Mr. Jonathan Meyers. The jury returned a guilty verdict in nine minutes.
The Defendant is facing 78-102 months in prison. Sentencing has been set for September 28, 2010 at 9:00 a.m. in Department 3.
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August 13, 2010
Terrence Moore, age 39 of Tacoma, was found guilty as charged by Citation of the crime Recreational Fishing in the Second Degree following a Bench Trial in Lewis County District Court on August 13, 2010.
Mr. Moore was cited on April 5, 2010, for fishing in closed waters past the posted fishing boundary sign at the Barrier Dam. Judge R.W. Buzzard sentenced the defendant to no jail, a $200 fine, court costs and assessments.
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August 12, 2010
Lewis County Prosecutor Michael Golden announced today that because of information received this week, his office will not be proceeding with the drug charge against Rodney Wayne Allison.
Mr. Allison was arrested by Vader police on November 27, 2009 for driving while his license was suspended. The Vader Police officer’s report details his receipt of a small plastic bag containing a white crystalline substance found during the search of Mr. Allison’s clothing during the booking process at the Lewis County Jail. The baggie and its contents were sent to the Washington State Crime Lab for analysis, and on February 2, 2010, the Crime Lab issued a report identifying the contents of the baggie as methamphetamine.
In April of 2010 the matter was referred to the Prosecutor’s Office, and on April 14, 2010, Mr. Allison was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance – Methamphetamine. Trial was subsequently set for August 9, 2010.
On July 20th, Mr. Allison’s defense lawyer came forward with a claim that the drugs had been found on the floor rather than in his clothing. This directly contradicted the information in the police report, which indicates the drugs were found in Mr. Allison’s clothing. The police officer was contacted and he indicated that he did not actually witness the search. There was no report filed by the corrections officer. The trial was rescheduled to August 23, 2010, to allow an interview of the corrections officer. When the corrections officer was interviewed, he stated that he did not recall the specifics of the search, and there was no report to refresh his recollection. The Jail was then asked if there was any evidence or information supporting the claim that the drugs were found in Mr. Allison’s clothing. None was provided.
Yesterday, August 11, 2010, one day before trial confirmation, the Lewis County Jail produced a copy of an internal document not mentioned in the arresting officer’s report. The document is a property log which lists the items recovered from Mr. Allison during the booking process. The property log does not reference any plastic bag containing white crystalline substance. Given the absence of any reference to contraband in the property log, the Corrections Officer’s lack of memory of the search and the failure of the Corrections Officer to write a report about the incident, there is no admissible evidence with which to prove the crime of possession of a controlled substance.
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August 12, 2010
Richard Leland Harrington, Jr., 38 years old of Toledo, was convicted by a jury on August 12, 2010, in Lewis County Superior Court for Felony Driving Under the Influence. Harrington was charged by Information on July 13, 2010, and is facing a commitment in the Department of Corrections of between 51-68 months. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
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August 10, 2010
On August 10, 2010, after a jury trial in Lewis County District Court, a jury found the defendant John Nance, age 40 of Eugene, Oregon, not guilty of the crime of Assault in the 4th Degree, Domestic Violence.
The defendant was originally charged by citation with the crime Assault in the 4th Degree on July 11, 2009 for an incident that occurred on that same day at the Mayfield Lake Marina. Lewis County Sheriff’s deputies responded when multiple witnesses complained of a man beating and yelling at a young girl.
The jury found in this case that parental discipline was a factor and could not be overcome.
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August 6, 2010
Today, District Two of the Court of Appeals issued decisions affirming convictions in two separate Lewis County cases. In the first case, State v. Nickols, Mr. Joseph Nickols of Chehalis, was convicted of assaulting Thomas Marth in Centralia. In the appeal, Mr. Nickols challenged both his conviction and the requirement that he repay the State for his court-appointed attorney. The Court of Appeals denied both of Nickol’s challenges and affirmed the conviction.
In State v. Blatt, the Court of Appeals affirmed Edwin Blatt’s conviction for Malicious Mischief in the First Degree for intentionally ramming his father’s car, then returning and causing more damage to the vehicle by hitting and kicking it. Referring to the two cases, Lewis County Prosecutor Michael Golden stated: “While we can expect anyone convicted of a felony to explore the appeal process, I’m glad to see that these convictions have been upheld – as are the vast majority of convictions secured by my office.”
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August 5, 2010
Daniel James Miller, 49, of Centralia pled guilty and was sentenced on August 4, 2010, by Superior Court Judge Nelson Hunt. Miller entered guilty pleas on four separate cases encompassing criminal conduct occurring from June 1, 2010 to July 1, 2010. Miller pled guilty to Burglary in the Second Degree, Possession of Methamphetamine, Possession of Methamphetamine with the Intent to Deliver, Possession of Stolen Property in the First Degree and Burglary in the First Degree. As part of a plea agreement Miller entered into with the State, he stipulated to an exceptional sentence above the standard range. Under the exceptional sentence, the sentence for Possession of Stolen Property in the First Degree will consecutive with the sentence for Burglary in the First Degree. Judge Hunt accepted the pleas and sentenced Miller to a total of 150 months in prison in accordance with the plea agreement.
The Burglary in the First Degree charge stemmed from a burglary at the Centralia Police Department’s vehicle impound yard. In that case Miller and his accomplice, Makia Adams, broke into a building housing a car Miller had been driving that had been impounded pending a search warrant. When officers arrived on the scene they found the door of the building appeared to have been kicked in and the car doors and trunk were open. Sgt. Warren and his K9 partner, Kayo, tracked Miller across a creek where Miller was hiding. When apprehended officers discovered Miller was carrying a knife. Adams was found hiding in a different location within the impound yard. Adams pled guilty to Burglary in the Second Degree on July 30, 2010, for his role in the crime and was sentence by Judge Hunt to 33 months in prison.
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August 4, 2010
Donald Scott Crow, 24 years old of Raymond, was convicted by a jury on August 3, 2010 in Lewis County Superior Court for Burglary in the Second Degree. Crow was charged by Information on May 14, 2010 and was convicted as charged. Mr. Crow is facing up to three months of confinement. Sentencing is set for August18, 2010, at 1:00pm.
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August 2, 2010
Dwight James Elkins, age 39, was found guilty of amended charges of two counts of Attempted Residential Burglary, Theft in the First Degree and Theft in the Second Degree, following a plea on August 2, 2010 in Lewis County Superior Court.
According to law enforcement reports, Elkins burglarized two Glenoma homes in December of 2008 while the residents were away for the holidays. He was subsequently arrested on other charges in Cowlitz County and was ultimately sentenced to 240 months in prison for those offenses.
Elkins was originally charged in Lewis County on January 8, 2010, with two counts of Residential Burglary, Theft in the First Degree and Theft in the Second, and faced a standard sentencing range of 63 to 84 months. Because Elkins has an extensive criminal history, comprised of 21 prior felony convictions which include eight prior burglary offenses, the State filed a notice of intent to seek an exceptional sentence beyond the standard sentencing range for the charges.
Under a plea agreement entered into by Elkins and the Lewis County Prosecutor, Elkins agreed to plead to the amended charges with a recommendation that he be sentenced to 48 months. The plea agreement, however, required that Elkins agree to serve the 48 months consecutively to the 240 months imposed in Cowlitz County.
Lewis County Superior Court Judge Richard Brosey followed the agreed sentencing recommendation, and imposed a sentence of 48 months on the Lewis County charges, and ordered that the sentence be served consecutively to the Cowlitz County sentence, effectively causing Elkins to serve a total of 288 months in prison.
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August 2, 2010
Clayton Troy Robinson, 49 of Winlock, was sentenced by Judge James Lawler on August 2, 2010, in Lewis County Superior Court for two counts of Child Molestation in the First Degree and one count of Attempted Child Molestation in the First Degree. Robinson was convicted by a jury on June 30, 2010. Robinson was charged by Information on April 6, 2009. Judge Lawler imposed an exceptional sentence of a minimum of 252 months and a maximum of life in prison to be determined by the Indeterminate Sentencing Review Board of the Department of Corrections. Judge Lawler also imposed standard fines and probation conditions.
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