Local briefing for Dec. 28

• Published December 28, 2008

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Washington

State sued over ex-inmate's crash that killed woman

Washington is being sued over a fatal crash in which an ex-convict admitted driving drunk the same day he was released from jail.

The case was brought by James Kenneth Simpson, the husband of Carol Simpson, and their two children, Laura Jean Bridgham and Gregory James Simpson.

Carol Simpson, a 53-year-old assistant librarian at Eatonville High School, died in a rush-hour collision in Puyallup on Oct. 20, 2005.

The other driver, Michael Joshua Dyer, pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide and is serving more than six years in prison. Authorities wrote that he had gotten drunk within six hours after he got out of jail, where he was being held for violating probation, and was driving without a license.

The lawsuit accuses the state Corrections Department of improperly supervising Dyer.

Thurston County

Help 4 Hard Times benefit is Wednesday

Help 4 Hard Times will have a benefit auction Wednesday night at Tumwater Valley Lodge, 4015 Tumwater Valley Drive S.E.

The gala and auction will be from 7 p.m. to 1 a.m. on New Year's Eve and includes food, dancing and beverages. Tickets cost $35 in advance and $50 at the door, and all proceeds go toward flood recovery and support for local at-risk youths.

Help 4 Hard Times is a charity, and portions of tickets are tax-deductible. To buy tickets online, call 360-349-5415 or go to www.help4hardtimes.org.

Grays Harbor

Man allegedly broke girlfriend's bones

A 43-year-old man was arrested early Christmas Day for allegedly beating his girlfriend, breaking several of her bones, at the home where they were staying in Brady.

Grays Harbor Undersheriff Rick Scott said deputies responded about 5:30 a.m. Thursday to find a woman, 48, suffering multiple injuries to her face and arm.

Scott said deputies arrested the man on suspicion of second-degree assault based on the severity of the woman's injuries. The man also has a felony warrant from Thurston County.

The woman was taken to Grays Harbor Community Hospital, where she was treated and released, Scott said.

The woman serves as a caretaker for an elderly man in Brady, Scott said. The couple were staying in his home at the time.

Tumwater

Chamber of commerce to have networking day

The Thurston County Chamber of Commerce has scheduled a business networking event from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. Jan. 6 at H&R Block, 855 Trosper Road S.W., Suite 105.

The business networking events are scheduled the first Tuesday of every month at a different location. It costs $5 for chamber members and $10 for nonmembers.

For more information, call chamber president and chief executive David Schaffert at 360-357-3362 or e-mail him at dschaffert@thurston chamber.com.

The Olympian, news services