On May 27, 2010, 21-year-old Kelso resident Tomas Marco Keen was sentenced to 20 years in prison on charges of assault in the first degree with a firearm enhancement, unlawful possession of a firearm in the first degree and possession of two stolen vehicles   The charges arose from a February car chase and shooting incident in Kelso. 

At around 4:00 p.m. on February 17, Erica Ouellette reported her Mitsubishi Eclipse stolen from near the corner of Maple Street and Pacific Avenue South.   A friend of Ouellette’s, Eric Koski chased after the stolen car in his Ford Explorer to Grimm Road.   When Koski turned a corner, he came upon Keen standing in the road next to the stolen car while holding a gun.   Keen began shooting at Koski.   Koski ducked behind the dashboard and drove off in the opposite direction.  

Investigators determined that Keen fired 12 shots at Koski.   Three bullets hit Koski’s windshield and two hit his bumper.  

Kelso Police Officer Aaron Marthaller arrived at the scene and found the stolen car in a ravine off Grimm Road.   Marthaller found Keen hiding in a ravine on the opposite side of the road.   Keen was captured at gunpoint.   In a culvert at the bottom of the ravine, the officer found the gun Keen had fired, which had been reported stolen two days earlier in a burglary of a home in Kalama.   When searched, Keen also had in his possession keys to a Toyota Scion stolen during the Kalama burglary.  The Scion was later recovered at Keen’s residence during the execution of a search warrant by Cowlitz County Sheriff’s deputies.

Kelso Police Detective David Voelker was the lead investigator on the case.  Chief Criminal Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Michelle Shaffer represented the State.  Joshua Baldwin from the Office of Public Defense represented Keen.   The sentencing judge was the Honorable James Warme.

Keen’s criminal history included domestic violence assault in the third degree, theft in the first degree and burglary in the second degree in 2007 and possession of a stolen firearm in 2008.   His current sentence includes a five-year enhancement for being armed with a firearm during the commission of his crimes.

        For additional information please contact Michelle Shaffer, Chief Criminal Deputy, or Sue Baur, Elected Prosecuting Attorney, at (360) 577-3080.