Goldendale, Washington
WEDNESDAY, MAY 21, 2025
Memorial Day ceremonies Goldendale’s American Legion Post 116 holds its annual Memorial Day ceremonies this Monday, May 26, Memorial Day. They will take place: • Centerville Cemetery, 10 a.m. • Stonehenge, 11 a.m. • Goldendale Cemetery, 1 p.m.
Court rules on Snyder defamation case LOU MARZELES EDITOR A Superior Court ruling on Michael Snyder’s defamation suit against three Goldendale residents was rendered last week by Judge Randall Krog. Snyder claimed Darlene Williamson, Leandra Kessinger, and Amanda Derschon had defamed him by accusing him of being a pedophile and, in the case of Kessinger, claiming he had criminal convictions. (Snyder faced charges during a contentious divorce proceeding but was not convicted on any of the charges.) Snyder cited a Facebook page the three defendants were involved with that repeated the claims in an attempt to warn citizens of the danger Snyder posed. Krog ruled to dismiss Snyder’s suit with prejudice, though the ruling did not address the possibility of defamation, leaning instead on legal procedure. The defendants’ attorney, Justin Leigh, had filed a motion to dismiss the complaint for failing to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. His defense centered on a law that protects people from frivolous lawsuits when their comments are expressions of free speech on a matter of public concern. According to the court, Snyder failed to demonstrate that exceptions should apply to that law in this situation. The judge ruled that since no exception applied, the court had to dismiss the case if Snyder failed to show he had
a strong enough case for each of his claims. To prove defamation, according to the court, Snyder needed to show the statements were false, not privileged, made with fault, and caused damages. On the matter of the Facebook page with accusatory comments against Snyder, the court ruled that there was no admissible evidence that Williamson and Derschon were administrators of the page and that even if they were, Williamson and Kessinger were simply service providers and content providers who were immune under the Federal Communications Decency Act because they merely hosted or displayed the content, and there was no evidence they created or developed the defamatory content. Their policies for the group were found to be neutral, not designed to create or encourage defamation. The ruling also awarded the defendants court costs, reasonable attorney fees, and reasonable litigation expenses. Leigh offered this comment on the court ruling: “My clients and I are pleased with the Court’s ruling. I think I speak not just for myself and my clients but for the Goldendale community at large in saying we are all ready to move on from this matter.” Synder has indicated he will continue to pursue the matter. His comment follows: “While I am not pleased with the ruling, I expected that this could be the result. I want to emphasize that
See Court page A8
Sheriff defends defunding statement LOU MARZELES EDITOR Klickitat County Sheriff Bob Songer last week refuted statements that county commissioners did not defund his office. “The idea that funds cut from the Sheriff’s Department were just funds that went to new county Department of Corrections is nonsense,” Songer said. “The commissioners definitely cut our budget, beyond any funds that went to the jail. They defunded
us.” Songer said his department’s budget was cut by $382,000. He pointed out the county jail’s budget is now $2.5 million. “It’s costing the county $700,000 more now to run the jail than it did when it was under my department,” he added. “Those cuts make it so I can’t add deputies. That affects public safety. What the commissioners did was just wrong, and it needs to be corrected.”
Woman ODs, is resuscitated Not long ago an intriguing and Following the overdose, Amanda miraculous incident occurred at lost consciousness and then her a residential home on West Main pulse. Signs indicated that she Street. Certain details of the inci- had died. Nevertheless, although dent have varied with different technically dead, Amanda was sources; however, brought back to it is not hard to life. With a few OWN AKE see what likely doses of Narcan happened based and after receiving on the source narCPR, she regained ratives provided. consciousness. The depth of the Overjoyed at the story lies in the ceroutcome, Amantainties, being the facts confirmed da’s mother Joella Ruiz expressed from all sources. These facts are her gratitude for Sgt. Lucatero’s what make the following story help by stating that a parade powerful, frightening, and real. should be held in his honor. JoelResponding to an urgent call, la further explained that Sgt. LuSgt. Lucatero of the Goldendale catero saved her daughter’s life Police Department arrived at a and therefore should be rewarded West Main Street address to assist for it, as she considers him a hero. a woman named Amanda Edge Interestingly however, this who had overdosed on fentanyl. See OD page A8
T T Matthew Todd
For The Sentinel
Vol. 146 No. 21
What a Goldendale writer learned from her cat JORDAN MAYBERRY FOR THE SENTINEL “From the time I was a little girl, I liked to write,” says Monica Lawson, a Goldendale writer of private domain, who, at the age of 85, will see her work released to the public for the first time. On May 20, 2025, Lawson’s story will be published in Chicken Soup for the Soul: What I Learned from My Cat. Her milestone achievement came not through an agent or a formal query but from a simple Facebook ad. The opportunity arrived unexpectedly. While scrolling online, Lawson stumbled upon a call for submissions from Chicken Soup for the Soul, the popular anthology series known for sharing personal essays from everyday
people. Chicken “Chicken Soup for the Soul has been around f o r many years,” s h e says. “It’s a book completely written by hundreds, maybe even thousands, of individual authors over time.” Lawson had long written short stories privately for her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, often inspired by family life and the animals that passed through it. When she saw the call for sto-
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ries about beloved cats, one particular tale came to mind, that of her cat, Snickers. “This began for me around October or November when I submitted my story,” Lawson recalls. “Each of the 101 stories in the edition is about personal experiences with a cat, limited to 1,200 words or less. Some are humorous, some are sensitive, some are touching, some are sad.” Although she had written for decades, Lawson had never b e f o r e submitted her work to a publisher. Encouraged by positive feedback from friends and family, she decided to take the leap. “I went to their website, saw the call for pet stories, and just submitted it. It was accepted and published. I was just overjoyed,” she states. Her sub-
See Cat page A8
Mysterious ‘broadcaster’ interfering with emergency channels RODGER NICHOLS FOR THE SENTINEL
Klickitat County citizens have a few weeks to take care of any burning before a countywide burn ban this summer. Commissioner Todd Andrews made the motion to begin the ban covering the unincorporated areas of the county “on Monday, June 2, until rescinded.” Andrews said a number of fire chiefs had contacted him in favor of a full closure starting on that date. And who’s playing DJ in the back country? Emergency management director Jeff King said that their Kaiser radio site, located 15-20 miles northwest of Goldendale, has had some problems.
“We have identified that it is interference that’s causing that, but we haven’t identified where it’s coming from or who the offender is yet,” he told commissioners. “One of the hardest things to try and troubleshoot is that it’s intermittent. It was actually keying up our system and everybody using it, so we had to turn that channel off at that one site to get this resolved.” He said that if they don’t solve it soon, they might have to call in the FCC, which has special detection equipment to track down violaters and pirate stations. Commissioners also discussed fireworks. One of the unique aspects of Washington State fireworks laws is that local governments, if adding restrictions
on use of fireworks, must delay implementation for a year. Any ban that is passed now wouldn’t take effect until May 2026. The rationale is that a number of nonprofit groups use fireworks sales as fundraisers. If there is a last-minute ban, those groups would be stuck with fireworks they have paid for but wouldn’t be able to sell. There was some discussion about setting a body that could make emergency declarations in the event of high fire danger. Jeff King told commissioners local fire chiefs were opposed to any complete ban. “It pushes those people that are going to do it anyway out into the remoter areas,” he said,
See County page A8
Jr. Posse Scouts seek new recruits MELISSA UHLES FOR THE SENTINEL
In August of 2023, the Klickitat County Sheriff’s Department developed an educational opportunity for youth in the community. The program is now seeking new recruits. The Jr. Posse Scouts program is about building relationships and engaging the youth of Klickitat County through training and experience. People between the ages of 10 and 18 are welcome to join. It’s completely free for participants. The goal is to teach and mentor members who may be interested in law enforcement as a career or simply want to learn something and make some new friends. Sergeant Angie Moore, KCSO program director, and Brian Paul, Posse lieutenant with the Sheriff’s office, volunteer their time as co-leaders to the Jr. Posse Scouts. Paul said, “The beauty and benefit of the program is that it is run by volunteers and does not cost the county or the Sheriff’s department any money. Life skills are taught that may not otherwise be learned at school or at home. There are multiple benefits to the program that help our youth be of service within our community.” So far this year the program has held an open house on the courthouse lawn, a Stop the Bleed program, an abduction prevention program, a fire safe-
CONTRIBUTED: SHANE CAGLE
JR. POSSE IN ACTION: The Jr. Posse Scouts program recently held a water safety program. ty training, and a water safety event at the Goldendale swimming pool. This was a partnership opportunity made possible by the donation of energy and time from Lori Anderson, Anna Gallant, and Harley Kotlarz. Scout members learned water safety techniques and had a fun morning working as a team to rescue each other. Scouts were able to have free swim time after the safety presentation. One of the teen participants, Henry Duyck, said, “I think the program has done a good job of teaching important life skills such as how to escape a fire or rescue someone who’s drowning. I also don’t mind the fact that we get our own custom uniforms for free. Those are some of the reasons I personally like the program. But the main reason I think someone should join is
just as simple as if you have an interest in law enforcement, then the scouts are probably for you!” Looking forward, leaders are planning a summer camp-out for scout members this summer. There is also the possibility of participating in a ride-along with a law enforcement officer in the near future. For now, the group only meets once per month, but they may eventually meet twice monthly if the group grows. It is preferred that parents stay and participate. The reason for that is so they have an opportunity to see what the youth are being trained in and taught. During some of the meetings, breakfast is provided for participants. When asked about the Sheriff’s part in the program, Paul said that Sheriff Songer attends meetings in a support role and
See Scout page A8