Document text
60 °F Forecast | Road Cams Tuesday, April 19, 2005 Today's News | Shop Our Valley | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery | Contact Us SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Menu Guide How To Guide Health Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Real Estate Guide Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Passport to the Rogue Valley SHOP OUR VALLEY AutoFinder HomeFinder JobFinder Classified Place an ad TOP JOBS EXTRA Ashland News NIE Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People Volunteer Moving here? eSouthernOregon CUSTOMER SERVICE FAQ's Advertise with us Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend April 19, 2005 Homeless man in fair condition at OHSU after Cave Junction attack By MARK FREEMAN Mail Tribune A homeless man from Cave Junction remained in fair condition in a Portland hospital Monday after he was severely beaten late Thursday, and a Cave Junction teenager faces a felony assault charge in connection with the beating. James Guy Bennett, 46, allegedly was hit and repeatedly kicked in the face by 18-year-old Teo Rasmussen about 8:30 p.m. at the intersection of Watkins and Junction avenues near Jubilee Park, according to the Josephine County Sheriff’s Department. Bennett, whose blood-alcohol content that night measured .33 percent — more than four times the legal limit for intoxicated driving — did not fight back, sheriff’s Sgt. Ken Selig said. "Bennett didn’t have a mark on his body from the neck on down," Selig said. "He just curled in the fetal position." Bennett suffered three broken vertebrae, a deep cut near his right eye and swelling of his brain, Selig said. Advertisement He was moved out of the intensive-care unit at Oregon Health & Science University Hospital in Portland, where his condition was upgraded Monday to fair, a hospital spokesman said. Rasmussen, who gave police an address in the 300 block of West Lister Road, was later taken into custody on a charge of first-degree assault. Rasmussen later told police he attacked Bennett because of an unspecified threat a week earlier, Selig said. Rasmussen’s case was scheduled to go to the Josephine County Grand Jury on Thursday, Selig said. Rasmussen remained in the Josephine County Jail, where he was being held in lieu of $50,000 bail, a jail spokeswoman said. Bennett is well-known to police and others in the Cave Junction community, where he has been arrested numerous times for public intoxication and other charges, Selig said. Bennett had just purchased two cans of beer, 10 cheese sticks and other snacks from a nearby market and was walking to Jubilee Park — a favorite homeless hang out in Cave Junction — when he crossed paths with Rasmussen, who was leaving the park, Selig said. Witnesses said Rasmussen appeared angry and "had a chip on his shoulder" when he came up to Bennett and "sucker-punched" him, Selig said. An anonymous witness telephoned police to report the assault, Selig said. Deputies found Bennett unconscious and bleeding heavily from his head. The Josephine County Sheriff’s Major Crime Unit was called to the scene, and they later learned that Rasmussen was seen running from the scene just before police arrived. Detectives found Rasmussen at the home he shares with his mother and arrested him after an interview, Selig said. Bennett was initially transported to Three Rivers Community Hospital in Grants Pass before he was air-lifted to OHSU, police said. Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2005 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback Free Music Downloads Conference Calls - $50/Month Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker, Trunk, Footlockers home equity loans helzberg Distance Education Diamonds Online Poker Slippers Student Loans tcg student loan consolidation teleconferencing Memory Foam Mattress w2 forms Tatoo Tatoos Advertisement s