Joseph Whearty makes an appearance in Lewis County Superior Court on Wednesday afternoon at the Lewis County Law and Justice Center in Chehalis.
Joseph Whearty waits to make an appearance in Lewis County Superior Court on Wednesday afternoon at the Lewis County Law and Justice Center in Chehalis.
A Lewis County Superior Court judge set bail at $100,000 for a 33-year-old Chehalis man accused of assaulting a 29-year-old woman Wednesday.
Both the victim and the suspect, Joseph R. Whearty, are mixed martial arts fighters, Lewis County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Stacy Brown said.
Whearty faces one count of second-degree assault and one count of unlawful imprisonment.
Deputy Prosecutor Paul Masiello requested bail be set at $500,000. Defense attorney Joely O’Rourke argued for $10,000 bail.
Deputies responded to the 100 block of Carlisle Avenue in Onalaska on Tuesday to investigate the assault. The victim reported that she and Whearty were arguing at their home in the 1200 block of Koontz Road in Chehalis.
The victim told deputies she had asked Whearty to move out of the home, and she left to give him time to pack.
When she returned at about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, she found Whearty intoxicated at the Chehalis residence. She told deputies he put her in a choke hold and she feared for her life. He allegedly threw her on a bed and punched her. The victim tried to escape through a window, but it would not break, Brown said.
Brown said children were at the home during the assault and the woman tried to get herself and the kids outside and into a car. Whearty followed them outside and put the victim in a choke hold again, trying to get her keys and purse. She screamed and Whearty ran into the house, Brown said.
The victim and children got into the car, but before she could drive away, Whearty got down behind the car. The woman maneuvered around him, but then he jumped on the car. He then allegedly punched the windshield and cracked it. He jumped off, and the woman drove to Onalaska and called 911.
Whearty was arrested and booked into the Lewis County Jail for second-degree assault, domestic violence.
Second-degree assault carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in jail and a $20,000 fine. Unlawful imprisonment carries a maximum sentence of five years and a $10,000 fine.
Arraignment and trial setting is scheduled for today.
