[1]Michael A. Hedges appears in Lewis County Superior Court this afternoon for a bail hearing.
By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CHEHALIS – Bail was set at $50,000 today for a man believed to be the nighttime intruder a 66-year-old Centralia woman woke up to find standing over her bed early yesterday morning.
The victim told police she heard him unzip his pants, then he grabbed her hand and placed it on his private parts.
She got him to leave and following the approximately 2 a.m. call to 911, officers located a bald and shirtless man hiding in a shed at an adjacent trailer park, according to court documents.
Michael A. Hedges, 43, of Chehalis, was brought before a judge today in Lewis County Superior Court, charged with three offenses.
Lewis County Deputy Prosecutor Kevin Nelson asked for the bail given the nature of the allegations. Judge Richard Brosey agreed.
Hedges sported a bandage on the right side of his forehead. Centralia police said he fell head first onto the ground; he told a doctor the police hit him with a flashlight, according to charging documents.
The events yesterday took place at a home on the 600 block of Nick Road,according to the Centralia Police Department.
Responding officers found the victim shaking and “almost tearful”, according to court documents.
Charging documents give the following account of what police learned and what took place:
The woman told police she immediately yanked her hand back and demanded to know who he was and what he was doing.
“She told him he had the wrong house and had to leave,” and she followed him to the front door.
An officer found a hat and hoodie lying on the front porch, and later a neighbor found a nylon bag behind her carport, which contained male clothes, toiletry items and a pill bottle with the suspect’s name on it.
The victim identified the arrested suspect as her intruder.
While being escorted to a patrol car, Hedges allegedly bolted from one officer, toward another, who reached out and grabbed him. Police reported this caused him to lose his balance and fall, causing a bump to his forehead.
Hedges was taken to Providence Centralia Hospital, and when the doctor asked if he had been drinking, tried to spit in the doctor’s face. His mouth was too dry and no spit came out.
Hedges was charged today with first-degree burglary with sexual motivation, as well as indecent liberties-forcible compulsion. Both have a maximum penalty of life in prison.
He was also charged with third-degree assault.
His court file shows a residential address on Nix Lane. He was most recently released from prison in July 2010.
Hedge’s prior convictions include first-degree theft, forgery and theft of rental property in 2008, drug possession in 2003 and numerous property crimes going back to 1996, according to court documents. In 2014, he was convicted of fourth-degree domestic violence assault.
Centralia lawyer David Arcuri was appointed to represent Hedges.
Deputy Prosecutor Nelson also asked the judge to order the defendant have no contact with and stay at least 500 feet from the 66-year-old woman and her home.
His arraignment is scheduled for Thursday in Lewis County Superior Court.