The circumstances of what appears to be a severe beating of a developmentally disabled person who is a client of Community Cornerstone Inc. are still under investigation by the Humboldt County Sheriff's Department. In the meantime, a $500 reward has been offered by the Veterans For Peace for information leading to the arrest and conviction of any person or persons who are proven to be involved in the alleged beating. Additional money has been added to the reward fund by other individuals and it now stands at $800. Though the victim has not yet been willing to discuss the events that led up to his being found, the sheriff's office has pieced together a few tentative details. Ron Main, 22, of Redway, who is a client at CCI, wandered from his home at the Shady Grove Trailer Park some time between the evening of September 7 and the morning of September 8. He was discovered at about 7 a.m. on September 8, injured and huddled in a pickup owned by Redway Community Services District and parked on it's property off Orchard Lane. It appears to investigators that Main found his way to the truck and crawled inside some time after he was injured, perhaps for protection. Main was suffering from extensive facial trauma that was described by people who have seen him as appearing to have come from a beating, perhaps with some kind of blunt object. Main was transported to Mad River Hospital because of the extent of his injuries, and because of that hospital's extensive on-duty trauma facilities. Main was released from the hospital the following week (last week) and returned to the care of his parents. His condition has been described as painful, with his jaw having been broken one or more times. His mouth is wired shut. He also received severe lacerations to the head and face. Veterans for peace representitive Stephen Greel, in announcing the reward, expressed the group's opposition to all acts of violence and his concern for public safety. Bob Burns, manager of Shop Smart in Garberville* and president of the board of directors of Comunity Cornerstone, Inc., said Main had recently become an employee of the store, that Main was a gentle person, and that everyone seemed to like him. He indicated his concern that such a thing could happen to a person of diminished capacities. Burns added $100 to the reward amount, as did Harold Mendes, upon hearing about it. Mendes opened Mendes Market 42 years ago in the location that was formerly Murrish's and is now Shop Smart. The "Life & Times" is also contributing $100 to the reward. If you or anyone you know has any information regarding events events that might pertain to this incident on or about the night of September 7 and the morning of September 8, please call the Humboldt County Substation in Garberville, 923-2761. By Bill Roddy
*Shop Smart is actually in Redway -noel