Whitman County Gazette - Serving Whitman County since 1877

ROSALIA – A Moscow man was booked into the Whitman County Jail after allegedly taking a pickup truck and motorcycle before seeking warmth in the women's restroom at the Horn School Rest Area south of Rosalia.

WSP Trooper Jim Retzer responded July 7 at approximately 5:30 a.m. to a report of a person sleeping in a bathroom stall. According to the police report, upon arrival at the rest area, he noticed an orange motocross style motorcycle leaned against the large rock in the parking area. He first checked the men's, then the women's bathrooms and received a response in a deep male voice from one of the stalls in the women's side. When asked if he knew he was in the women's stall, the man replied "I guess I can't read," according to the report.

Trooper Retzer reported he could smell a strong odor of intoxicants coming from the man who allegedly admitted to drinking. The man was identified as Brice Downey of Moscow.

According to the report, Downey had allegedly taken a Chevrolet S-10 pickup without permission from Moscow. He then allegedly drove to Oakesdale where the truck became stuck in a ditch. According to the report, two men in Oakesdale had contacted law enforcement stating a drunk man gave them the pickup if they could get it out of the ditch, wrote a bill of sale for $250 and sped off on a small motocross style motorcycle.

According to the report, Downey told Trooper Retzer he rode to the rest area and was trying to stay warm in the stall.

Downey, 20, was booked for criminal trespass, possession of a stolen vehicle and taking a motor vehicle without permission.