A patient at Cascade Community Health Care in Centralia accused of punching two employees in the head, giving one employee a concussion and knocking out the other employee’s tooth, on Thursday is facing two counts of second-degree assault in Lewis County Superior Court.
Paul Timothy McCarthy, 34, allegedly walked out of his room within the facility and struck one of the employees “in an unprovoked manner” on the back of the head, according to court documents. When another employee came to assist, he allegedly struck her in the face before walking away.
Both employees briefly lost consciousness after they were struck, according to court documents.
The assault was reported to the Centralia Police Department just after 6:20 p.m. on April 25. Employees were reportedly “holding down” McCarthy when officers arrived at the facility.
McCarthy was booked into the Lewis County Jail at 7:05 p.m. on April 25, according to jail records.
“The state’s primary concern in this case is for community safety,” Deputy Prosecutor Joe Bassetti said during a preliminary hearing in Lewis County Superior Court on Friday, where he asked for bail to be set at $100,000. “The assaults in this case were captured on video, and to say they were brutal would be an understatement.
The defense asked for bail to be set no higher than $50,000 due to his financial status and mitigating factors, particularly an issue with his medication.
Commissioner Paul Strophy opted to set bail at $100,000 “based on that community safety risk,” he said Friday.
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, May 2.
