Bail is set at $100,000 for a man accused of raping a girl under the age of 10 between 2013 and 2014.
The Centralia Police Department arrested the suspect, identified as James Earl Winchester, 61, of Onalaska, on Oct. 11 following an investigation that began when the victim’s mother reported the sexual abuse in June 2020.
At the time, the victim’s mother reported the victim told her Winchester had raped her in Centralia five years prior, according to court documents.
Winchester reportedly left the state for several years and wasn’t interviewed by Centralia detectives until a detective located him in Onalaska on Tuesday, according to court documents. Winchester and a witness reportedly agreed to be interviewed by detectives at the Centralia Police Department on Wednesday, Oct. 11.
During the interview, Winchester reportedly “denied doing anything wrong” and allegedly said “‘I’m sorry that something may have happened’ but continued to deny any specific acts,” according to court documents.
The witness reportedly confirmed details consistent with the victim’s report of one of the incidents and confronted Winchester, with a detective present, after her own interview, according to court documents.
After he was confronted by the witness, Winchester allegedly said “I’m sorry that something happened. I’m sorry that I did it … I’m already convicted. I’m sorry that I did what I did. I just don’t know what else to say.”
Jail records indicate Winchester was booked into the Lewis County Jail just after 11:40 a.m. on Oct. 11. The Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office charged him with two counts of first-degree rape of a child on Thursday, Oct. 12.
The charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.
While the state prosecution asked for bail to be set at $200,000 due to community safety risk, the defense asked for bail to be set no higher than $50,000 due to Winchester’s financial status and lack of criminal history. Judge J. Andrew Toynbee set Winchester’s bail at $100,000 on Thursday.
“I acknowledge that this is extremely serious … however, (the alleged offenses) are fairly remote in time and there is no intervening criminal history,” Toynbee said of his bail decision.
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 19.
