March 15, 1973 Shelton Mason County Journal | ![]() |
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Thursday, March 15, 1973 Eighty-seventh Year, Number 1 | 34 Pages - 5 Sections l0 Cents Per Copy
TWO MASSIVE PIECES of the overpass which crosses the Shelton bypass
freeway on the road to the city dump were put in place last week. The
freeway is scheduled for completion in September 1974.
School Board at
night voted
~nt Louis
tree-year contract
year. The
an increase of
Present salary of
The board voted to advertise
for bids for seating for the
fieldhouse and classatorium for
the new high school complex.
Assistant Superintendent
Bruce Jaros told the board he had
investigated various types of
seating which are available and
as spee
City Commission is for the area from the PUD
sday received a equipment building to about
49 persons one-fourth of a mile past
limit on an Kneeland Center or to the city
of Highway limits.
of Kneeland Since part of the highway is in
from 60 to 35 the City of Shelton, the city must
Petition States the request
Rae Jr.,
General
after a
pass an ordinance even though the
road is a state highway.
The city action is then sent to
the state which approves of the
new speed limit.
The petition said:
"Our request is an urgent one
as we have witnessed numerous
bad accidents in the last two years
at the Kneeland Center and the
situation is deteriorating with the
in his increased flow of traffic, not only
d.
,fled after the
hospital by
the boy had
a 22-caliber
him in his
his mother
on Highway 101, but by
employees working at Kneeland
Center and visitor traffic. There
have been many near misses in
attempting to get on the highway
from Kneeland Center and it is
further complicated by logging
trucks and transport trucks with
had prepared specifications which
he believes would bring bids on
equipment the quality desired.
Bruce Moorehead, head of the
music department, outlined the
music program to the board. He
stated the biggest need was for a
music coordinator in the
lira"
useable.
The street department was.
given approval to advertise for a
new four- to five-yard dump
truck.
elementary schools to provide a
more equal program between
schools.
He stated the new uniforms
for the high school band have
been ordered and about half of
the necessary $10,000 had been
raised.
The board voted to set its
April meeting one week early,
April 3, because some of the
board members will not be in
town on the regular meeting date
of April 10.
Grinnell reported enrollment
was 3,124, or 23 less than last year
at this time and down three from
February 1.
in the
were
laid the
trailers parking in front of Ted's
Steak House, completely
obscuring oncoming traffic from
both directions. This should be a
A hiker and a scuba diver
were taken to hospitals after
incidents in Mason County over
the weekend, the Mason County
Sheriff's office reported.
Glen R. Grace, 34, was hiking
on Mount Stone about 500 feet
abOVe the timberline, officers
reported-
As he was walking along the
face of a ridge, an avalanche
carried him about 500 feet down
the side of the mountain into the
timber.
He suffered injuries to his
lung, rib and shoulder as well as
internal injuries.
He was taken to Mason
General Hospital by a fellow
hiker, officers said.
Vicki Vanderdeen, 30,
Lakebay, was taken to Virginia
Mason Hospital in Seattle after
suffering bends while scuba diving
in Hood Canal, officers reported.
The "Dust Off" helicopter
from McChord Field answered a
call from a Washington State
Patrol Trooper here and
transported the woman to the
Seattle hospital.
CausingStruck it with no-parking zone and posted aS pof the ental vai b
it to such. is not part I .o_ene
oosted
restaurant parking lot.
-~ard the noise, City Engineer Howard Godat tn program at ptoneer
tter discoveringtold the commission he and Police
d took the boy Chief Frank Rains had studied the By CATHYCOcKRELL more than removing food
treatment, problem, and that he would .... . . particles, is now believed to bethe
N Mrs. recommend a speed limit of 45., ~ent.al_hyg~ene was promotea aim;a thorough cleanin~ once a
enm, miles an hour in the area. == ,,,-¢er ~ichool during ~u~ day is sufficient to destro~ la ue
The commission approved the annual presentation by the Y P q
that has formed on u ceof
purchase of a small tractor for use Washington State Health the teeth, the s rfa
t~epartment on March 8. . .
id f~lr by the park department.
Third th aders, Using a thera eutlc aste ard
A hearing was held on " rough sixth gr .... p p
including Euclid AvenUe from with parents' permission, were a brush wlm straight, softbristpS
Second to Seventh streets in the instructed in the proper, provided by the health
toothbrushin b Mrs department, the studen
.26, 303 South • ram There was, _ g method Y. . • . .
six-year street prog - . ,,..
being held in no one present to object to ut~ tvlary lrimble, dental hYg1ernst practlcea brushing with a
from the s artment,v br.atmg mot o
t charge of proposal. . ~ tare health dep . " " "on, as opposed
;hicle. A letter was received irom by. Colleen. MarilleV~, a Seattle the up-and-down, roll previousY
Umvers]t and by prescribed
'Y SheltonSimpson Timber Company stating . Y student nurse,
md~ , in a its wells seven and eight would be Mrs Job a arent
volunteei n Raymond, ' P As 40 per cent of the tooh
~as laterturned over to the city for . surface cannot be reached bya
as stolen development. The city engineer Research has created a new
was asked to~ do testing and theory as to why and how teeth brush, dental floss is the secod
continuing their studies on the 'wells to see what should be brushed, according to part of the once-a-day thorouh
would be needed to make them Mrs. Trimble. Destroying plaque, cleaning now recommended.
The Kerr case did not go to
the jury Wednesday evening as
planned when the state was
unable to get its rebuttal
witnesses in. The trial will resume
Thursday morning with Georgie
Layman, the first rebuttal witness
for the prosecution, being
cross-examined by defense
attorney Clay Nixon.
The jury which has been
hearing evidence for eight days in
the second-degree nmrder trial of
Harry E. Kerr, Grapeview, was
expected to begin deliberating
after getting the case Wednesday
evening. Kerr is charged in the
shotgun slaying of George
Davidson, a brush picker,
December 22, 1971.
Defense testimony, which
started Monday morning, was
concluding Wednesday afternoon.
Prosecuting Attorney Byron
McClanahan completed his case
Friday afternoon.
Defense witnesses began
testifying Monday. Motions by
defense attorney Clay Nixon for a
change of venue and for dismissal
of the charge for lack of evidence
were overruled by Judge Robert
Doran.
Nixon, in his opening
statement, said the defense would
prove that brush thieves were a
problem in the area and that Kerr
had had trouble with brush
thieves and was told when he
contacted the Mason County
Sheriff's Office that he should try
to hold the thieves on his
property and then call the
sheriff's office.
Nixon said this was what Kerr
intended to do the day Davidson
was shot when Kerr went into the
wooded area with a 12-gauge
shotgun after hearing a dog bark
and believed someone was back
on the property.
The defense attorney said
Kerr carried the gun to bluff
anyone whom he might meet and
also to signal his wife if he should
have problems in the woods.
He stated that Kerr saw a man
picking brush on his property and
was attempting to apprehend him
when the man lunged at him and
Kerr fell backwards and the
shotgun went off, killing
Davidson.
Kerr took the witness stand to
lead off for the defense. He stated
he was 62 years old and in poor
health because of a health
problem.
He stated the 20 acres of
property on which he and his
wife, Ann, live is on the Thomas
Road in the Grapeview area. The
property, he said, belonged to his
wife when they were married 18
years ago. She inherited it from
her late husband, Robert E.
Young.
Kerr said he was retired on a
disability from his job as a sheet
metal worker at the navy shipyard
in Bremerton and that he had
served in the U.S. Navy in World
War I1.
He said he and his wife had
thought of picking brush on the
property to earn a little extra
money, but brush thieves took so
much of it that it was not
worthwhile.
Kerr stated after he had
become ill in 1965, the doctor
had advised him to get light
exercise and he had started
walking m the woods. Twice
when he first started walking
there he had encountered brush
pickers, one of whom threatened
to beat his head off when he
ordered the man off his property
and another who had chased him
back to his home.
He stated after that be started
carrying a gun for protection
when he walked in the woods.
After giving the preliminary
testimony, Kerr was off,the stand
while several other witnesses
testified briefly. He resumed the
witness stand Tuesday morning to
describe the events which led up
to the fatal shooting of Davidson.
Kerr said he had first observed
Davidson in the area two days
earlier, on December 20,when he
had gone to the back of his
property and observed a man
wearing an aluminum hardhat and
a yellow rain jacket on the Butler
property which is behind the Kerr
property. He said he watched the
man as he came over onto the
Kerr property picking brush. Kerr
said he returned to the house and
after his wife had talked to the
sheriff's office, he had gone back
into the woods with his shotgun
with the intention of holding the
man on the property until a
sheriff's deputy arrived.
Kerr stated when he got back
to the area where he had seen the
man the man was gone. He stated
he believed the man he saw that
day was the same man who had
been shot two days later.
He stated he carried the gun
with the intention of bluffing or
intimidating the man, and had no
intention of shooting anyone.
He stated another reason he
carried the gun was to signal his
wife in case he had problems in
the woods because of his poor
health.
He stated the morning of
December 22 he had gone back
into the woods to check how
much brush had been taken and
had taken his shotgun with him.
He stated he had first followed a
trail to the south property line
and was on his way back north
when he observed a man he
thought was the same man he had
seen two days earlier.
He said at the time he saw the
man the man was on his property
and was picking brush. He stated
he had gone around by a different
trail and gotten to a point where
he could observe the man.
Kerr stated he had called to
the man "Hold it right there, this
is private property." He said the
man dropped the brush and
started running up the trail and
that he started in pursuit and
called "Halt, or I'll shoot." He
said he then pumped a shell into
the chamber of the shotgun and
fired a warning shot, pointing the
gun away from the direction he
saw the man going.
Kerr said the man kept on
running and that he went in
pursuit, reloading the gun as he
went. He said the man got part
way up the hill on the trail and
stopped. He said the man stated
he wanted to get to his car which
he indicated was parked up above.
Kerr said he told the man
"No. you don't, you are going to
the house and 1 am going to call
the sheriff. I have already talked
to him about you and my wife
and I have seen you picking our
brush. The sheriff wants to see
you."
He stated the man said,"Like
hell I'll go to see the sheriff." He
said the man appeared to be
winded from the run up the hill,
and after pausing, the man started
to walk slowly down the hill
toward him.
Kerr said the man appeared
larger than he and that he was
afraid of him.
Kerr said the man continued
to walk down the trail toward
him and that he (Kerr) stepped
off the trail to allow the man to
pass so the man would be ahead
of him and he could direct him to
the trail to the Kerr home.
He said that as the man
walked toward him that all of a
sudden the man whirled and
lunged at him with his fists
clinched.
Kerr stated when the man
lunged, he jumped back and
tripped over some brush and fell
back against a tree and the gun
discharged.
He stated after he got himself
disentangled from the brush he had
stood up and looked at the man,
but did not go near him, believing
the man might be playing possum
and would grab him if he got
close enough.
He stated he did not see any
blood on the man and did not
know how badly he was injured.
He stated he returned to the
house, meeting his wife on the
trail where she was coming up to
see what was the matter because
of the shots which had been fired.
He stated he had waited at his
home until Deputy Marvin Synder
arrived and then had gone with
Snyder to a road on the Hofert
property which led down toward
where the body of the man was
found.
Kerr testified the map which
was being used in the courtroom
by the prosecution was accurate
to a point, but that the boundary
line between his and the Nicklaus
property was not accurate.
He stated that his wife had
been shown four iron pipes driven
into the ground when she and her
former husband had bought the
property and that she had shown
him the pipes after they were
married.
Kerr stated one of the
property corner marker pipes was
moved to a different location
during a survey which had been
conducted for Nicklaus. He stated
he had pulled up that pipe
because it was in the wrong place.
He also stated that the
location shown on the
prosecutor's map which indicated
where he had said he had first
seen l>avidson was not correct. He
stated he did not deliberately fire
the shot which killed Davidson
and that he had not intended to
kill anyone.
Under cross-examination by
McClanahan, Kerr said he had not
told Deupty John Hays he had
not actually seen anyone and
could give no description of
anyone. He also stated he had not
told Chief Criminal Deputy Tom
Creekpaum December 24 that he
had never seen the man who was
killed before the day of the
shooting;
!
STUDENT NURSE Colleen Marilley helps Robert Meacham, Pioneer School
sixth grader, brush up on dental skills.
i!,