Last modified: Sunday, June 10, 2007 12:46 AM PDT Teens charged in baseball bat assault By Andy Gates - Argus Observer ONTARIO - Two 18-year-old men were arraigned Friday in Malheur County Circuit Court on charges including assault, robbery and kidnapping in connection to an attack Tuesday involving a baseball bat that sent an Ontario man to the hospital. The teenagers, Francisco Chavez and Stephen Reyes Garcia, who are both from Ontario, were charged by the Malheur County District Attorney’s Office Friday with Measure 11 crimes and face substantial prison time if convicted. They were each charged with two counts of first degree robbery, first degree assault and second degree kidnapping. Police also identified a 16-year-old as a suspect in the case, and he was arrested Thursday, but he was released from jail in a move that the state did not oppose. He had not been charged Friday with a crime in Malheur County Circuit Court, according to the clerk’s office. Police said the victim was beaten Tuesday at a residence that belongs to the 16-year-old and his mother along the 700 block of Northwest Sixth Street in Ontario. A wooden baseball bat was recovered from the home Wednesday afternoon, Ontario Police Department Capt. Mark Alexander said. “There was substantial injury to that victim,” Alexander said. Police were initially notified about the incident by Holy Rosary Medical Center staff Wednesday at about 6:30 a.m. Police said the victim was beaten on his head and back with a baseball bat, robbed of cash, and sustained further injuries from being dragged on the ground to Beck Kiwanis park, where he was left. “He ultimately ended up at Beck Kiwanis park, unconscious for several hours and got himself to the hospital later in the morning, and then we were called,” Alexander said. “There’s a gap between the time we were sent to the hospital and when the incident occurred.” The 31-year-old victim was “acquainted” with the suspects, and the incident does not appear to have been gang-related but may have been drug-related, Alexander said Thursday. However, Ontario Police Department Chief Mike Kee said Friday police are still investigating motive. “We do have a theory of why it happened, but we’re still investigating it,” Kee said. Chavez was identified Wednesday as a suspect in the case but he was not located until later, Ontario police said. Garcia was arrested Wednesday morning. Chavez was picked up Thursday by the Oregon State Police at about 10:40 a.m. at his residence, situated at 4777 Highline Rd., Oregon State Police Lt. Rich Pileggi said. Pileggi said Chavez voluntarily came out of the residence and left with state police. He was taken to the Ontario Police Department for questioning. OSP officers did not place Chavez under arrest; however, OPD did arrest Chavez. Police will not release further details in the case. Chavez and Garcia are being held in the Malheur County Jail on bonds of $200,000, or $20,000 cash. Prosecutors recommended the men be held on $250,000 each. The court appointed two attorneys to represent the men. Chavez’s attorney, David Carlson, said he thought $250,000 was too high. He said Chavez graduated high school only two weeks ago. A prosecutor for Malheur County, Jason Munn, said the crimes were violent and premeditated. Malheur County Circuit Court Judge Patricia Sullivan said information from a search warrant involved in the case depicted a serious crime. Carlson requested there be a preliminary hearing on the case as soon as possible. Garcia’s court-appointed attorney, Gary Kiyuna, was not present at the hearing Friday. However, Garcia held his own and astutely corrected the judge Friday, after she misspoke and said he was charged with first degree kidnapping. “This says kidnapping in the second degree,” Garcia said. The case could go to a grand jury Thursday, and the teenagers could be arraigned again Friday. Chavez played varsity basketball in 2006 through 2007 for Ontario High School. Convictions of first degree robbery and assault each carry mandatory minimum sentences of 90 months prison, and kidnapping carries a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 70 months.