By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – A trial date was finally set for murder suspect Ryan McCarthy.
McCarthy, 29, is charged is charged with John Allen Booth Jr. in August’s triple homicide in the Salkum-Onalaska area. Both men have pleaded not guilty and remain in the Lewis County Jail.
Ryan J. McCarthy
The defendant, his lawyer Olympia defense attorney Rick Cordes and Deputy Prosecutor Brad Meagher met briefly before a judge this afternoon in Lewis County Superior Court in Chehalis.
McCarthy’s trial was scheduled for the week of April 18.
The two men are charged with murder and extortion in connection with the gunshot deaths on Aug. 21 of David J. West Sr. 52, his son David J. West Jr., 16, and Tony E. Williams, 50, of Randle, at the West’s Onalaska area home. Booth is also charged with attempted murder of 51-year-old Denise Salts who lived in the home.
Two of the counts against Booth are for aggravated first-degree murder, potentially putting the death penalty on the table. A trial date has not yet been set for him.
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Read most recent news story about Booth here
Read most recent story about McCarthy here
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter