Hearing for Lewis County Sheriff’s Office deputy facing domestic violence charges delayed due to recusal of judge 

By Emily Fitzgerald / emily@chronline.com 
Posted 1/15/25

Lewis County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jeffrey S. Humphrey had his first appearance in Lewis County District Court on Wednesday, though his arraignment hearing has been delayed one week due to …

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Hearing for Lewis County Sheriff’s Office deputy facing domestic violence charges delayed due to recusal of judge 

Posted

Lewis County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Jeffrey S. Humphrey had his first appearance in Lewis County District Court on Wednesday, though his arraignment hearing has been delayed one week due to the recusal of a judge. 

“It would be inappropriate for me to take any action in this case,” Lewis County District Court Pro-tem Judge David Arcuri said of Humphrey’s case on Wednesday, referencing a longtime friendship with Humphrey. 

Lewis County District Court Judge Wade Samuelson has also been disqualified from hearing Humphrey’s case, according to court documents. The disqualification notice dated Jan. 6 did not indicate a reason for the disqualification. 

Humphrey’s arraignment is now scheduled for 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 22, with Judge R.W. Buzzard, who is now the only Lewis County District Court judge eligible to take action on Humphrey’s case. 

Humphrey, 51, of Chehalis, was charged Jan. 6 after the Mason County Sheriff’s Office completed a third-party investigation into allegations that Humphrey broke into his estranged wife’s home twice on Nov. 12. 

Humphrey is currently on paid administrative leave pending an internal investigation into the allegations, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.  

“No further comments will be made until that investigation is completed,” the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office stated in a news release on Jan. 10. 

Humphrey has worked for the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office for at least 20 years, according to previous Chronicle reporting.

The sheriff’s office received a complaint regarding Humphrey, which was forwarded to the Mason County Sheriff’s Office, on Dec. 19, according to a news release from the sheriff's office. 

Humphrey’s wife spoke with Mason County Sheriff’s Office detectives on Dec. 20, according to charging documents filed in Lewis County District Court on Jan. 6. 

According to the victim, she and Humphrey had been legally married for the last seven to eight years, but are now legally separated and have been living apart for the past couple of years. 



The victim reported that Humphrey called her on Nov. 12 “and asked her if she wanted to come to a friend’s house to drink,” an invitation the victim declined. 

At approximately 10:30 p.m. that night, the victim reported being “awoken by the defendant stumbling around in her bedroom, wanting to talk about their relationship,” according to charging documents. The victim told detectives she “became instantly upset, as the pair had spoken about boundaries and that she had told him he couldn’t just stop by or come into the house without speaking to her first,” according to charging documents.

Humphrey and the victim reportedly argued for about an hour, with the victim repeatedly telling Humphrey to leave, before Humphrey left the residence in his vehicle. 

The victim reported that she fell back to sleep, but was reawakened around midnight to find “the defendant standing next to her bed,” according to charging documents. 

Humphrey and the victim reportedly argued for another hour, at which point the victim “finally told him that if he didn’t leave, she would call 911.” 

Humphrey then reportedly left the residence. 

Humphrey was reportedly “quite intoxicated, slurring his words and smelled strongly of intoxicants” at the time of the incident, according to the victim. 

The Mason County Sheriff’s Office completed its investigation and forwarded the case to the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office, which filed charges against Humphrey on Jan. 6, according to court documents. 

Blair previously represented Humphrey in a 2013 DUI case. In that case, Humphrey was convicted for driving through a road closure on Labree Road and Interstate 5 in Chehalis with a blood alcohol content between .143 and .159, according to previous Chronicle reporting. Humphrey was off duty at the time of the incident. 

Humphrey ultimately received a deferred sentence in Lewis County District Court and was put on a two-week, unpaid suspension from the sheriff’s office, according to previous Chronicle reporting.