Updated at 8:48 p.m.
By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – Prison is waiting for a rural Chehalis man after a judge sentenced him for an assault at a Centralia party that left the victim with a broken jaw.
The victim lost 40 pounds because he couldn’t eat and lost a college baseball scholarship, Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Mark McClain said. The 19-year-old from Nevada was among about the top 10 prospects in the country before the incident, he said.
Cole T. Rife was given 19 and one half months today for his earlier convictions by a Lewis County jury of second-degree assault and attempted first-degree burglary. He was found not guilty of witness tampering, McClain said.
Following his release, he will be under the supervision of the state Department of Corrections for three years.
He also was ordered to undergo evaluations for anger management and alcohol, and follow the recommendations, McClain said. His lawyer filed a notice of appeal and the judge authorized a $250,000 appeal bond.
Rife, 18, and Tyler L. Burk, 19, from Rochester, were arrested in April for the March 16 assault at the 500 block of East Maple Street.
Burk testified in Rife’s trial and has pleaded guilty already to lesser charges, according to McClain.
Rife has been out of jail on an unsecured bond since his arrest, and was taken into custody following this morning’s sentencing hearing, McClain said.
Before the day ended, $25,000 was posted with the county clerk’s office on Rife’s behalf, and he was released.
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“Sharyn’s Sirens: Daily police and fire roundup – FIGHT AT PARTY BRINGS FELONY CHARGES” from Saturday April 19, 2014, here [1]