The suspect arrested for his alleged connection to the death of a 43-year-old man in Pe Ell on Dec. 14 is facing manslaughter and assault charges in Lewis County Superior Court.
Lewis County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested the suspect, identified as Jonathan Ray Selle, 46, of Pe Ell, on Friday, Dec. 15. He was booked into the Lewis County Jail for suspected second-degree murder and remained in custody on $2 million bail over the weekend.
A Lewis County Superior Court judge lowered that bail amount to $1 million on Monday, Dec. 18, after the Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office formally charged Selle with one count each of first-degree manslaughter and first-degree assault.
The victim, who is identified by the initials C.A.W. in charging documents filed in Lewis County Superior Court, and another man were reportedly drinking at the Pe Ell Pub when Selle allegedly invited the two men to his residence after the bar closed at approximately 9:15 p.m. on Dec. 14.
The three men reportedly stopped by a market to get food before going to Selle’s house in the 400 block of South Third Street, where they continued drinking, according to charging documents filed in Lewis County Superior Court on Monday.
The third man later told investigators he went outside to smoke a cigarette near a Chevy Tahoe parked in a driveway on the property. While he was outside, he reportedly heard yelling from inside the residence and “then heard a loud bang, which sounded like a door slamming,” according to court documents. He then reportedly “went back inside the house and saw (the victim) laying on the floor of the kitchen.”
The man told investigators “he attempted to move C.A.W. out of the house to take him to get aid, but saw that he was already deceased,” according to court documents. He then reportedly “panicked,” went into the Tahoe and eventually fled on foot “running toward the woods.”
Deputies were dispatched to the residential property in the 400 block of South Third Street in Pe Ell at about 10:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 14, for a report of “a suspicious circumstance,” according to a Friday news release from the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
Charging documents filed in Lewis County Superior Court on Monday state that deputies got a report from a Pe Ell resident “advising that she thought someone at the neighboring house was dead” at approximately 10:40 p.m. on Dec. 14.
The neighbor reported going to the neighboring house “and observing puddles of blood and seeing a ‘distorted person’ on the front steps of the residence,” according to court documents.
She told law enforcement personnel “she could hear a party going on” at the residence earlier that evening and said she “observed a person going into the residence, then Jonathan (Selle) came over and was banging on her door saying ‘he attacked me’ numerous times,” according to court documents. The neighbor also said she “observed a male inside a Chevy (Tahoe) parked in front of the residence who appeared to be panicking,” according to court documents.
While responding deputies were en route to the scene, dispatch received additional calls from other neighboring residences in the area. One caller “referred to a male punching vehicles and swearing” and another caller “said there had been a drunken male yelling” in the area.
When deputies arrived at the residence on Third Avenue in Pe Ell, they located the unresponsive 43-year-old man lying face-down in the doorway of the residence, according to court documents.
Responding deputies noted “a large amount of coagulated blood” around the man, “as well as drag marks coming from the kitchen area to where C.A.W. was lying on the porch,” according to court documents.
Medical personnel attempted to provide treatment to C.A.W., who was “eventually transported” to Providence Centralia Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The Lewis County Coroner’s Office has since determined C.A.W’s manner of death as homicide, according to court documents. An autopsy reportedly revealed “a small hole in the front of (the man’s) neck, slightly above the sternum” and a wound track leading from the hole in C.A.W’s neck towards his lungs, which severed his subclavian vein, according to court documents.
Investigators reportedly found “numerous firearms” at the residence, but noted “they were too high-powered to have caused the observed injuries.” Near the firearms, investigators noted, “was a pellet rifle that was capable of firing an object of similar size to the observed injuries,” according to court documents.
Deputies did not locate anyone inside the residence when they arrived at the scene, but someone soon called 911 to report “a male was currently caught in a clothesline in the backyard of a nearby residence and he was cursing/yelling,” according to court documents.
That man, who was later identified as Selle, was reportedly “not cooperative with law enforcement commands” and “smelled of intoxicants.”
Investigators noted that “When asked what was going on, Jonathan (Selle) would only respond with ‘f—k you,’” according to court documents.
Investigators soon identified and located the man who was reportedly panicking inside the Chevy Tahoe, according to court documents. The man was reportedly cooperative with investigators and gave his account of the evening’s events.
While prosecutors asked for Selle’s bail to remain at $2 million on Monday, defense attorney Rachael Tiller asked the court to lower bail to no more than $500,000. Selle had asked for bail to be set no higher than $100,000, Tiller said Monday.
In her argument for lower bail, Tiller said Selle has “strong ties to the area. He resides in a town where he’s lived for over two decades.”
She advised Selle could follow all conditions of release and asked the court to consider making a SCRAM device, an ankle bracelet that monitors alcohol consumption, a condition of release in exchange for a lower bail amount.
“I think that in itself will alleviate any safety concerns,” Tiller said of the SCRAM device.
Judge James Lawler ultimately lowered Selle’s bail to $1 million on Monday, citing community safety concerns as his reason for not lowering bail further.
Arraignment is scheduled for Thursday, Dec. 28.
