3A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, MAY 2, 2018
Long Beach go-kart case ends in guilty pleas
return to us, since making
the payment could cripple us
financially,” Robert Merrill
said.
The fugitive Merrill told
them he was trying to get
clean, and promised to return.
He didn’t. To make the pay-
ment to the court, the couple
had to liquidate all of their
stocks and borrow money
from their youngest daughter,
the owner of a small hotel in
Oregon. They worked closely
with the bail bond company
and did their best to persuade
their son to come home, know-
ing that if he stayed gone for
more than 12 months, they’d
lose every penny.
In the fall, he told his par-
ents he was soon going to
return to Washington state
and turn himself in. They
believed him, but he was still
in Cabo on Oct. 24, when the
federales apprehended him
while picking up money at a
Western Union outlet.
When he was back in
Pacific County Jail, Mer-
rill had a second bond hear-
ing. Citing clear evidence that
Merrill was a flight risk, pros-
ecutors asked for a steep bail.
The judge set it at $800,000.
And though Tony Merrill’s
attorney said his parents
weren’t going to bail him out
again, they did.
“I believe in my son so
very much that despite the
horrible dilemma my son has
placed us in, we posted the
new bond in the amount of
$800,000. Now we are cash-
poor,” Robert Merrill said.
The couple took out a loan
to pay the $80,000 premium,
using a Long Beach property
as collateral, and had a lien
put on their Vancouver home
Bail-jump
financially
crippled parents
By NATALIE ST. JOHN
Chinook Observer
SOUTH BEND, Wash. —
Former go-kart operator Tony
Merrill has pleaded guilty to
10 felonies in Pacific County
Superior Court.
When he is sentenced in
August, he is likely to spend a
minimum of six years in state
prison for selling drugs at his
downtown Long Beach enter-
tainment complex, and for
purchasing guns stolen from
an Ocean Park home.
His conviction brings
to a close an investigation
into a drug-dealing amuse-
ment park that ended up
involving a fugitive-hunt in
Mexico and the discovery of a
local gun-fencing ring.
“We are proud to see this
case end up with 10 peo-
ple going to prison and out
of our community and to see
the changes that have already
taken place, specifically the
new ownership and reopening
of the (Long Beach Go-Kart
track),” County Prosecutor
Mark McClain said.
After months of mak-
ing undercover drug buys,
Long Beach police officers
and Pacific County deputies
raided Merrill’s go-kart busi-
ness and home last April, with
help from other local agen-
cies. Merrill, his girlfriend,
Doreen Morris, and a room-
mate were arrested on drug-re-
lated charges.
A new volley of charges in
a separate criminal case fol-
Chinook Observer
Robert ‘Tony’ Merrill pleaded guilty to 10 felonies.
lowed several weeks later,
when investigators learned
Merrill had also purchased
numerous stolen guns. That
led to the discovery of still
more suspects, who were
using a local storage facility
to hide the stolen firearms.
“This was bad,” McClain
said. “It was certainly making
the criminal wheel go round
and round.”
The matter became more
complicated still when Merrill
fled to Cabo San Lucas after
making bail. He hid there
until Mexican federal police
caught him in late Octo-
ber and returned him to the
United States.
Recently-filed court doc-
uments reveal that Merrill’s
May 2017 escape to Mexico
was financially and emotion-
ally devastating for his par-
ents. In affidavits, the couple
said they did not understand
the extent of their son’s drug
addiction until he ran away,
leaving them owing $250,000
for his forfeited bond to A-Af-
fordable Bail Bonds. Merrill’s
stint as a fugitive also put his
terminally ill brother in dan-
ger of losing the specialized
care he requires.
Financially drained
The elder Merrills retired
from running several tour-
ism-oriented businesses 11
years ago. They did so believ-
ing they would be financially
secure and able to help pay for
their eldest son’s care.
Merrill’s
addiction
changed all that.
After his April 2017 arrest,
the couple paid the bail bond
company a $25,000 premium,
plus about $2,000 in fees,
using their home as collateral.
According to the documents,
they quickly realized their
son was “ravaged” by addic-
tion, and began to regret their
decision.
“As soon as I fully under-
stood I could not assure my
son’s appearance in court, it
was too late,” Robert Merrill
said. “My son was gone.”
Tony Merrill fled to Mex-
ico. He called his mother every
other week, always from a dif-
ferent phone, and refused to
tell her where he was hiding.
“We implored him to
Details emerge in Ilwaco stabbing
Man had
frequent
interactions
with police
Guilty plea
Merrill agreed to plead
guilty to residential burglary,
first-degree trafficking in sto-
len property, rendering crim-
inal assistance, second-de-
gree unlawful possession of a
firearm, bail-jumping, use of
a building for drug purposes
and four counts of delivery of
heroin. The plea resolves both
criminal cases.
Initially, he was charged
with 48 separate counts of sto-
len gun possession. Had his
cases gone to trial, it might
have taken as long as a month
to try both, Deputy Prosecu-
tor Don Richter said on Fri-
day. Prosecutors would have
had to prove each gun charge
separately. The case would
have likely involved numer-
ous witnesses, some of whom
might have been difficult to
track down, police officers
from several agencies and a
visiting judge from another
county. Making a plea deal
likely saved the county signif-
icant time and expense, while
guaranteeing Merrill spends
several years in jail, Richter
and McClain said.
They praised the cooper-
ative effort between police
agencies, saying their work
shut down a significant drug
dealing operation and kept
stolen guns out of the wrong
hands. McClain said sheriff’s
deputy Ryan Tully’s “dogged
pursuit” led to the discovery
of the drug-fencing operation.
“The tenacity of Deputy
Tully in this case can’t be
understated,” McClain said.
Consult a
PROFESSIONAL
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JEFFREY M. LEINASSAR
DMD, FAGD
503/325-0310
1414 MARINE DRIVE,
ASTORIA
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By NATALIE ST. JOHN
Chinook Observer
ILWACO, Wash. — Two
men were stabbed during an
altercation with an allegedly
mentally ill man on Monday.
The incident occurred
shortly before 7 p.m. at an
apartment complex in the 100
block of Second Avenue SW
in Ilwaco, according to Long
Beach Police Chief Flint
Wright.
Investigators are still try-
ing to piece together exactly
what happened, Wright said,
but they believe the alterca-
tion started when an apart-
ment resident, Joseph Hohl,
28, stepped out of his apart-
ment to speak with his son.
Hohl told investigators that
as soon as he went outside, he
saw smoke coming from the
driver’s side of his car. As
he headed toward his car, his
former neighbor, Mitchell E.
Marteeny, 51, allegedly began
threatening to kill him, mak-
ing unfounded accusations
and waving a knife.
The agitated man allegedly
rushed at him. Hohl, who said
he feared for his life, pulled
out his pocket knife in self-de-
fense and began backing away
from Marteeny.
Steven Wright, 52, who
lives across the street from
the apartments, saw what was
happening. He tried to inter-
vene on Hohl’s behalf by
grabbing Marteeny in a bear
hug. A struggle ensued, and
Marteeny allegedly stabbed
Wright, causing two puncture
wounds to his chest.
Hohl ran inside to get his
gun. Meanwhile, a fourth
neighborhood resident, Tyler
Custer, 47, joined the fray,
hoping to save Wright. He,
too, was stabbed several
times.
Hohl returned with his gun,
but couldn’t get a clear shot.
“They were all intertwined
and (Hohl) couldn’t shoot the
suspect safely,” Chief Wright
explained. So, he allegedly
fired a couple of rounds into
the air, hoping that might
break up the fight.
“It didn’t do anything, so
he whacked the suspect on the
head (with his pistol),” Chief
Wright said. Striking Mar-
to cover the rest of the cost.
“This experience has
drained our retirement funds
and diminished our ability
to care for our eldest,” Mer-
rill said. He asked the court
to return all but the money
needed to cover the costs of
extraditing his son from Mex-
ico — an estimated $25,000.
So far, Merrill is sticking
around. While waiting for his
August sentencing hearing,
he is staying with his parents,
and wearing an electronic
monitoring bracelet that will
immediately notify author-
ities if he decides to make
another run for the border.
His parents say he’s doing
everything he can to make it
right.
A: We have third-party
financial groups that we work
with, including Care Credit,
Springstone, or your personal
bank may offer low-interest
loans. Dentistry itself is not
necessarily expensive, but
neglect and abuse are. Call
to consult with us on your
options.
Q: I need a good
anti-virus
program.
LEO FINZI
Luke Whittaker/Chinook Observer
Onlookers watched as a man was loaded into an ambulance after an altercation Monday
evening in Ilwaco.
teeny several times with the
butt of the pistol didn’t work
either, but Hohl was eventu-
ally able to pin down Mar-
teeny’s wrist and hit his hand
with the gun until Marteeny
dropped his knife.
The stabbing victims and
other bystanders subdued
Marteeny and restrained him
until police arrived. Hohl
gave first aid to Custer, who
had “severe knife wounds to
his right arm.”
Police officers found Mar-
teeny on the ground, bleeding.
He was handcuffed and put
in a squad car without further
incident.
The victims were taken
by ambulance to Colum-
ond-degree arson and mali-
cious harassment.
According to McClain,
Marteeny has a lengthy crim-
inal history.
Police incident logs show
that Marteeny appears to have
a mental illness that causes
him to believe crimes are being
committed that only he can see.
Over the past several months,
his calls to police and appeals
to hospital employees have
become increasingly frequent.
bia Memorial Hospital in
Astoria. One underwent sur-
gery, according to Chief
Wright. Their injuries were
not life-threatening and the
men are expected to make full
recoveries.
Marteeny was taken to
Ocean Beach Hospital, where
he was treated before being
booked into Pacific County
Jail around 11 p.m. on suspi-
cion of first-degree assault,
second-degree assault, sec-
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Q: Muscle spasms
can be a thing of
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Graduation
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A: Charlie
and back spasms are all deficiency
To honor and congratulate the Class of 2018
The Daily Astorian is creating a graduation publication for our local high schools that will
publish on Wednesday, May 30th. This full-color publication will include biographies and
pictures of each valedictorian and salutatorian,
The graduation schedule is as follows:
name and photo of each 2018 graduate and
JEWELL
special congratulation ads from local businesses,
Saturday, June 2 @ 2pm
family and friends.
WARRENTON
Friday, June 8 @ 7pm
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your sales representative today
Saturday, June 9 @ 4pm
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Saturday, June 9 @ 7pm
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503-325-3311
2935 Marine Drive
Astoria, Oregon
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