April 19, 2012 Shelton Mason County Journal | ![]() |
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Thursday, April 19, 2012
16 -- The Voice of Mason County since 1886 -- Published for Mason County and June Hove of Shelton -- $1
Man dmits killi ife; h i sarily-itwasaprelimina re-shotandkilledVanessawhileshe orsonmadehisfirstappear-
a to ngW e s port," he said. was laying on the couch in the liv- ance in Mason County Superior
Deputies continued to question ing room. Christopher said that he Court last Friday afternoon.
b h e ld on $1 m illion ba ilThorson, Byrd said. then took the shotgun back to the The court found probable cause
e-~O "They got to the scene and he was master bedroom and took it apart to charge Thorson with first-degree
cooperative with law enforcement," again and put it back into the hope murder with a domestic violence
By NATALIE JOHNSON shooting his wife of 37 years, Van- he said. "Then the story changed to chest," the report states. "Chris- enhancement.
~atalie.@masoncounty.com essa M. Thorson, 55. that they had been arguing." topher said that he then went out A lawyer was appointed to rep-
The Thorsons recently moved to The couple had been drinking to the back porch and sat down to resent Thorson with Mason County
the Lake Cushman area from Stei- and got into an argument Thursday smoke and drink some wine." Superior Court Judge Toni Shel-
Mason County experienced its lacoom, afternoon, according to the sheriffs After a "short time," the report don presiding.
second murder in less than a month Chief Deputy Dean Byrd of theoffice. Byrd saMThorson told depu- states, Thorson called 911. Med- Thorson is being held on $1 mil-
last Thursday, when authorities Mason County Sheriffs Depart-ties that Mrs. Thorson said to him, ics arrived at the scene and pro- lion bail. His arraignment is sched-
say Lake Cushman resident Chris- ment said Mr. Thorson called the "Why don't you just shoot me?" nounced Mrs. Thorson des& uled for 11 a.m on Monday.
topher D. Thorson murdered his department Thursday afternoon to "Christopher said he knew he The report concludes by saying Two weeks ago, sheriffs depu-
wife with a shotgun, report that he had killed his wife, had his son's guns located in Van- that deputies consider Thorson to ties say Shawn Morrow was at-
Thorson was charged with mur-who he said had dementia, in an essa's hope chest in their master be a danger to himself and his com- tacked with a baseball bat while
der last friday, and is being held on assisted suicide, bedroom," the deputies' probable munity, trying to purchase heroin in a pub-
$1 million bail after admitting to Deputies arrived at the scenecause report stated. "Christopher has shot hiswifelic fishing area on State Route 3.
killing his wife last Thursday. and began questioning Thorson. Thorson then retrieved the 12Of 37 years with a shotgun and is a Morrow died of his injuries, ~md
The Mason County Sheriffs of-Byrd said they were skeptical of gauge Remington 870 shotgun and danger to himself and others as he Travis Carl Baze and Stephen R.C.
rice arrested Thorson, 64, of Hood- Thorson's account of the incident shot Mrs. Thorson at about 3:30 has also stated that he Should have Churchill have been charged with
sport 'on Thursday for investiga- as an assisted suicide, p.m., the report states, shot himself or even his neighbors," murder.
tion of murder after he admitted to "We weren't believing it neces- "Christopher said that he then the report states.
Mental
health tax
money
coming in
County looks
at forming an
advisory board
....... I
By NATALIE JOHNSON
na talie@masoncou nty,com,
Next time you make a
purchase in Mason County,
you'll be helping fund men-
tal health and substance
abuse programs.
In November 2011, the
Mason County Board of
Commissioners approved a
one-tenth of 1 percent sales
tax increase for the pur-
pose of funding new mental
health and substance abuse
programs.
This month, the county
began collecting that mon-
ey, said Vicki Kirkpatrick,
director of public health and
human services for Mason
County.
"It's about $500,000 a
year," she said.
The county's first step,
Kirkpatrick said, is to form
an advisory committee to
screen requests for funding.
Eleven residents, rep-
resenting both north and
south ends of the county,
have applied to be a part of
the committee.
Kirkpatrick plans to ask
the county commission to
vote to appoint members to
the committee at its next
meeting on May 1.
"The first order of busi-
ness will be establishing by-
laws for the advisory com-
mittee," she said.
Once the committee takes
care of its "infrastructure,"
as Kirkpatrick called it, in-
cluding meeting times and
the election of a chair, they
can discuss their responsi-
bilities as far as the admin-
istration of the tax money.
The county commission
will have the final say on
what organizations get to
use money from the mental
health fund, but the adviso-
ry committee will make rec-
ommendations to the board.
See Tax on page A-5
81111U!!I!}II!!!!IJII112
Journal Di~OtO O~ Natahe Johnson
Michelle Loza hopes to raise enough money for her, her brother, Edwin, and mother, Claudia, to seek citizenship.
Edwin and Claudia were deported to Guatemala five years ago. Friends and family of the Loza's have scheduled a
fundraiser on April 28.
Organizers aim to raise
funds to bring back
deported mother, son
By NATALIE JOHNSON
nagc~[,ie@ntasoncounty.com
In January 2007, Edwin Loza was
working hard to graduate from Shelton
High School when his academic dreams
were put on hold.
Edwin. who was born in Guatemala,
was detained, along with his mother,
by U.S. Immigrations and Customs En-
forcement (ICE) agents in 2007 after he
turned 18.
This month, Edwin's friends and fam-
ily in Shelton are holding a fundraiser on
his behalf to help raise the $4,500 needed
to purchase 10-year visas and bring Ed-
win and his mother back to Shelton while
they seek citizenship.
The fundraiser to benefit the Loza
Family Fund is scheduled for 6 p.m. to
9 p.m. on April 28 at the Mason Transit
Community Center at the Youth Em-
powerment Strategies Office at 601 W.
Franklin St. in Shelton.
Edwin's younger sister, Claudia, "Mi-
chelle" Loza said her mother, also named
Courtesy onolo
Edwin Loza spent much of his
life in Shelton before being
deported to Guatemala five years
ago.
Claudia, were detained by ICE agents in
2007.
"It was a day I went to school like nor-
mal," said Michelle. 19. Her uncle was de-
tained on the same day.
Three days later, her brother Edwin
was detained as he left his family's house
to pick up his younger brother, Kevin.
from school. Michelle said.
Edwin was kept for three months at a
detainment facility in Tacoma, Michelle
said. Immigration officials allowed him to
return to Shelton long enough to obtain
his high school diploma from CHOICE
high school.
"I watched Edwin graduate. That was
my first year here," said Miles Nowlin,
family support liaison for the Shelton
School District
While studying at CHOICE. Edwin
wore a monitoring bracelet on his ankle.
Nowlin said
Nowlin has assisted the Loza family
since that day to navigate the citizenship
process and stay together through trying
times.
Since their deportation, Edwin and his
mother have been living in Guatemala,
a country Edwin barely knew, having
left with his mother, sister and younger
brother as a young child.
"Edwin was 7 years old when they
crossed the border," Nowlin said. "In talk-
ing to Edwin. returning to a country he'd
never known was a frightening thing."
After coming to this country with her
three small children, Claudia married
See Family on page A-5