Firefighter and School Bus Driver Accused of Child Rape

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An Onalaska volunteer firefighter and school bus driver faces multiple counts of rape of a child for the alleged sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl.

Richard L. Crumbliss was charged with three counts of alleged sexual abuse Monday afternoon in Lewis County Superior Court. His bail was set at $100,000.

The victim is a relative of Crumbliss. Court documents state that Crumbliss denied the sexual assault, and told deputies that the victim “has a history of being a huge fibber.”

Court documents state Crumbliss also told the investigating deputy: “There is no way I can have this spreading around town. I’m a fireman, EMT, and an officer for the fire department.”

He also told deputies that two months prior he had been accused of being involved in an unrelated sexual assault, court documents state.



The alleged rape occurred on April 9, court documents state. The girl also told police that a few years prior Crumbliss had previously given her alcohol and sexually assaulted her.

Crumbliss admitted to deputies that when the girl was younger, about age 12, he had supplied her with alcohol, but denied inappropriately touching the girl, according to court documents.

Bob Schroeter, the public defender who represented Crumbliss during his preliminary court appearance Thursday, told the judge that Crumbliss had been working part-time as a school bus driver for the Onalaska School District.

Police served a search warrant on his house on the 400 block of Second Street West in Onalaska last week.