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Updated at 6:57 p.m.
BRANCH CATCHES TRIGGER, VICTIM LOSES FINGER
• A 22-year-old Centralia man ended up losing about two-thirds of his right index finger from an accidental gunshot on his family’s Centralia property yesterday. It happened about 4:45 p.m. at the 1600 block of Military Road and a deputy contacted the victim last night at Providence Centralia Hospital, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. The man said he was walking near a pond, carrying a 308 rifle in case he spotted a coyote, according to the sheriff’s office. He said at one point he leaned the gun against a tree and when he went to retrieve it, his right hand was near the barrel and it appears a branch or something similar engaged the trigger, Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said.
MAN PUNCHES GIRLFRIEND
• The sheriff’s office is looking for a 37-year-old Winlock man after taking a report last night he allegedly committed second-degree assault and felony harassment. A 41-year-old woman said it occurred about 3 o’clock yesterday morning, when during an argument at the 100 block of Mines Road, her boyfriend punched her in the face numerous times, came after her with a screwdriver and then pinned her face down to the bed and said he would kill her, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. She was able to get away, Chief Deputy Dusty Breen said.
HOUSEGUEST SLAMS HOST INTO SHELF
• A 23-year-old man was arrested yesterday and charged today with second-degree assault for an incident two weeks ago in which he allegedly grabbed a woman by the back of the head and shoved her into a bookshelf, causing gashes on her forehead and eyelid that required stitches. Centralia police called the evening of Dec. 13 to the woman’s apartment at the 1400 block of Johnson Road learned he had been staying with her and when she woke him up for dinner, he got upset, saying she was talking to him like she was his mother, according to charging documents. She asked him to leave and that’s when he assaulted her, according to the documents. Officers found Anthony P. Johnson yesterday at the Hub City Mission in Centralia and he told them the woman hit him in the back of the head first, according to authorities. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail. His bail was set today at $25,000.
DAD SLAPS 2-YEAR-OLD A ‘LITTLE TOO HARD’
• A Winlock father who allegedly slapped his upset toddler in the face so hard finger marks were still visible the following day was summonsed to appear before a judge in Lewis County Superior Court today. Joseph P. Durham, 22, of Winlock, is charged with second-degree assault of a child. Prosecutors write in charging documents the injury was reported on Sept. 9. Durham reportedly told a deputy it happened at night, when the two and a half year-old boy was “throwing a fit” because he wanted some water and the father wouldn’t give him any because the boy had been wetting the bed, according to court documents. The injuries were still clearly visible two days later when additional photographs were taken, according to prosecutors. A judge this afternoon allowed Durham to remain free pending trial on a $25,000 unsecured bond. His arraignment is scheduled for Jan. 5.
CAR PROWL
• A deputy was contacted by a 42-year-old Yakima woman who reported someone broke into her vehicle while it was parked at the White Pass Ski Resort on Christmas Day. She thought it had been locked but no forced entry was found, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office. Among the nearly $1,800 worth of items stolen were ski and snowboard equipment and clothing, according to the sheriff’s office.
ON THE ROAD, OFF THE ROAD
• Traffic on U.S. Highway 12 five miles west of Oakville was reduced to a single lane this afternoon when a pickup truck wrecked near Cedar Creek. Troopers called at 3:10 p.m. noted the Ford 250 pickup was traveling westbound when it crossed the oncoming lane and left the roadway about 50 feet striking several trees. The driver, Ronnie L. Johanson, 61, from Malone, was injured and transported to Providence Centralia Hospital, according to the Washington State Patrol. The vehicle was totaled, according to the state patrol. The accident is under investigation.
AND MORE
• And, as usual, other incidents such as arrests for warrants, harassment, driving under the influence; responses for alarm, dispute, civil issue, misdemeanor assault, vehicle collision, suspicious circumstances, violation of no-contact order … and more among 135 calls for local law enforcement and / or fire-emergency medical services in the 24-hour period ending about 7 a.m. today.