2 hospitalized after Benton City rollover

Posted: 12:00am on Oct 18, 2011; Modified: 8:33am on Oct 18, 2011

Two women were taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland on Monday morning after their car rolled on Interstate 82.

Ruby Weaver, 75, of Walla Walla, was driving east near Benton City at 10:14 a.m. and fell asleep, said the Washington State Patrol.

Her car drove off the road and she overcorrected, rolling the car, said the WSP.

She and her passenger, Bernita Mae Hickey, 75, of Pendleton, were taken to Kadlec by ambulance. Both were wearing seat belts.

Weaver was listed in satisfactory condition and Hickey was in critical condition Monday night, said a hospital spokeswoman.

West Richland 18-year-old died from fall off grain silo

A West Richland teen whose body was found Saturday morning in Benton County died after falling from a grain silo.

Benton County Coroner John Hansens said an autopsy showed Austin Everette Katayama, 18, died from injuries from the fall.

His death is not believed to be an accident but no foul play is suspected.

Hansens said he doesn't know what time Katayama fell, but said Benton County sheriff's deputies were called at 9:47 a.m. when a motorist spotted the body near the silo on South Badger Canyon Road near Sellards Road.

The autopsy was performed Monday by Dr. Carl Wigren, a forensic pathologist from the Seattle area.

Man accused of exposing self

A Kennewick man was arrested Monday for allegedly exposing himself to a 9-year-old girl while inside the Kennewick Walmart store last weekend.

Osvaldo Sinohe Orendain, 32, was booked into the Benton County jail on suspicion of lewd conduct.

The girl's mother contacted the Kennewick store's employees at 8:45 p.m. to report the inappropriate action by an unknown man. The suspect reportedly left the 2720 S. Quillan St. store after seeing the girl tell her mother about the incident.

Officers who quickly responded to the store saw a white 1991 Chevy Vandura conversion van with a design on the side leaving the area, said Mike Blatman, Kennewick police spokesman. Police reviewed store surveillance and connected the van to the suspect, who was then identified as Orendain, Blatman said.

Officers tried to contact Orendain on Saturday but he wasn't home. Benton County sheriff's deputies checked the home throughout the night, but he reportedly never returned.

On Monday, Kennewick detectives located Orendain and asked him to meet with them. He was arrested after the interview.

Walla Walla man shot after fight

WALLA WALLA -- A 59-year-old man was shot in the leg Sunday evening after a fight with another man that started inside the dog park at Fort Walla Walla Park.

Terry Eugene Bickford of Walla Walla was treated at a local hospital for a gunshot wound.

Meanwhile, Tyler B. Larson, 22, of College Place was interviewed by a detective at the Walla Walla police station, then released pending further investigation of the incident.

According to Walla Walla police Officer Tim Bennett, it started with a disagreement between the two men while inside the dog park. As it became more heated, the men left the fenced canine area and continued fighting a short distance away in the park, Bennett said.

Larson allegedly fired a semiautomatic gun a few moments later, hitting Bickford in the leg.

A 911 call was made at 6:41 p.m. Police said the shooting was not related to any gang activity.

4 arrested in drive-by shooting

WALLA WALLA -- Four reported gang members are behind bars for a July drive-by shooting in Walla Walla.

Officers from three agencies rounded up the suspects Friday night in Milton-Freewater. The first arrest was made at 10:45 p.m. with the last suspect in custody about three hours later, said Walla Walla Officer Bennett.

The shooting occurred at 5:40 p.m. July 28 at Howard and Tietan streets. Police report that gang members were chasing members of a rival gang when gunfire broke out.

No one was injured in the shooting, but a bullet struck a nearby home, Bennett said.

Daniel Ramos-Lara, 26, and Francisco Casillas Jr., 30, were booked Friday night into the Umatilla County jail each on four counts of first-degree complicity to assault, complicity to drive-by shooting and complicity to riot.

Two of the suspects are juveniles, ages 15 and 17. Those boys are being held in a juvenile detention facility on riot charges.

The roundup Friday was a culmination of a two-month long investigation with support from Milton-Freewater police and Walla Walla County sheriff's deputies, Bennett said.

Sex offender living in Kennewick

A sex offender considered highly likely to reoffend is living in Kennewick, authorities said.

David Michael Kreienbrink, 30, lives in the 900 block of South Union Street.

Kreienbrink is 6-foot-2, 223 pounds with black hair and hazel eyes.

He was convicted in 1999 of second-degree rape of a child. The case was out of Pierce County and the victim was a pre-teen girl.

He also reportedly has a history of failing to register, drugs, vehicle prowl and malicious mischief. He is no longer being supervised by the state Department of Corrections.

Kreienbrink is not wanted by police, but is required to tell them where he is living.

Inattention blamed in fatal wreck

An Ephrata truck driver's inattention is being blamed for a series of collisions Monday morning on Snoqualmie Pass that killed an elderly Idaho couple and injured five others.

Edward D. Page, 64, was driving a 2006 Peterbilt tractor truck with a trailer when it slammed into the back of a 2000 Jeep Cherokee on Interstate 90, 26 miles west of Cle Elum, according to the Washington State Patrol.

The Jeep then hit a semi, which rear-ended a sedan, which was pushed into the back of another semi, the State Patrol reported.

Page was not injured. He was wearing a seat belt in the 10:50 a.m. wreck.

However, a 68-year-old man and 73-year-old woman, both from Star, Idaho, were killed when their Jeep was smashed. Their names aren't being released until troopers notify relatives.

Eastbound traffic on I-90 is reduced to one lane for construction.

A 1999 Freightliner truck driven by Guillermo M. Calvillo, 46, of Boardman, Ore., was stopped for slowed traffic, with a 2002 Buick LeSabre behind the semi also stopped, the State Patrol reported.

A 2007 International truck was behind the sedan, and the Jeep was reportedly slowing for the traffic when it was hit by Page's truck, which had not reduced its speed, the report said.

Troopers say it was caused by "driver inattention" and are awaiting further investigation before pursuing charges against Page. The crash clogged up eastbound I-90 late into the afternoon while authorities cleared the scene.

Calvillo was not injured.

Lilian H. Skelton, 47, of Issaquah was the driver of the Buick and was taken to a Bellevue hospital for treatment. Also taken to that hospital with injuries were passengers: Lisa M. Malmin, 35, of Gilbert, Ariz.; Katherine L. Cochran, 32, of Phoenix, Ariz.; and Patricia G. Schenkel, 43, of Renton.

Ector A. Mendoza, 32, of Yakima, was behind the wheel of the International truck in the middle of the chain-reaction collision. He was being treated at an Ellensburg hospital.

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