A Morton man faces two felony charges after he allegedly called into dispatch falsely claiming he had a shotgun and then struck two police vehicles that responded to the scene.
Aaron J. Parkerson, 34, is charged with two counts of first-degree attempted malicious mischief, each considered a Class C felony punishable by up to five years in prison and $10,000 in fines.
Parkerson made a preliminary appearance in Lewis County Superior Court on Tuesday.
During the hearing, Senior Deputy Prosecutor Scott Jackson requested a bail amount of $25,000 cash or bond, citing Parkerson’s warrant and conviction history in Arizona and Oregon.
“Obviously, the court should be concerned about the incident itself,” Jackson added.
The prosecutor requested that Parkerson be prohibited from consuming alcohol as part of his standard conditions of release.
Defense attorney Rachael Tiller argued for a $10,000 unsecured appearance bond.
“He has no history here in Washington,” Tiller said. “He does have strong ties to this area. He resides with his significant other, her children and her family in Morton.”
Tiller said Parkerson’s significant other was present in the courtroom. She added that Parkerson had no issues with transportation and worked in Winlock.
The defense attorney said Parkerson understood standard conditions of release, including no alcohol consumption.
“He also believes that this could be a medication issue,” Tiller said. According to Tiller, Parkerson has a doctor’s appointment this month to review his medication.
Judge J. Andrew Toynbee said he was less concerned with Parkerson’s potential failure to appear in court than he was with public safety.
“Based on the nature of this offense, I do think there’s a basis to find that if he’s released without some significant bail, there’s a threat to public safety.”
Toynbee settled at $15,000 cash or bond, along with standard release conditions to include “no alcohol or other mood-altering drugs.”
According to a probable cause affidavit, the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene of a caller who’d indicated “he had a shotgun and was threatening to shoot others, as well as himself.”
Deputies arrived to find Parkerson, who allegedly “appeared to be heavily intoxicated.”
According to the affidavit, deputies realized Parkerson did not have a shotgun or any other weapons and told him to stop calling dispatch.
As the deputies prepared to leave the area, Parkerson allegedly “attempted to break” one of their vehicles' windows. The deputies arrested Parkerson.
After they placed him in the back of the other vehicle, Parkerson allegedly tried to “kick out the dividing barrier,” according to the affidavit. The deputy stopped the vehicle and momentarily de-escalated the situation.
Parkerson was eventually “placed in further restraints” after he allegedly kicked the barrier a second time.
He was booked into the Lewis County Jail shortly before 3 a.m. Sept. 6.
Parkerson is scheduled for an arraignment on Thursday.
