Northwest briefly

KENT – Nearly $20,000 in cash and personal checks donated Sunday by parishioners at Lake Sawyer Christian Church has been stolen.

The money, which was left in a bank bag beneath a desk in a church office, was stolen Monday afternoon.

“We just had the deposit from Sunday’s offering prepared to be made, and someone came and took it,” pastor Lee Giermann said.

“We have no clue who took it,” Giermann said. “We have no way of knowing.”

According to a King County Sheriff’s Office report, there are no suspects in this case.

King County Journal

Longview: Teen says 2 others attacked him

Two Longview teenagers were arrested Monday for attacking a 15-year-old boy with a knife and a hammer, according to a Longview police report. A 16-year-old suspect who initiated the confrontation admitted to police that he punched the victim, but he denied using a knife. He said he started the fight because the victim had made sexual advances on the suspect’s 13-year-old sister, the report said. His 17-year-old alleged accomplice denied assaulting anyone.

The Daily News

Seattle: Supreme Court suspends lawyer

The state Supreme Court has suspended Theresa Olson, a lawyer caught having jailhouse sexual relations with a triple-murder defendant she was representing. The suspension, announced Thursday, takes effect today and follows the revised recommendation of the state Bar Association’s disciplinary board. In 2003, the Supreme Court rejected the bar’s recommendation for a one-year suspension. In addition, Olson must undergo a psychological evaluation before she can be reinstated.

Associated Press

Airway Heights: Two inmates on the loose

Law enforcement officers were looking for two inmates from the Geiger Corrections Center. One was mistakenly released Tuesday, and the other escaped Wednesday. Steven J. Siversten, 34, escaped out of a van Wednesday afternoon when he was being transported from Spokane County Superior Court to the Airway Heights facility, Geiger custody manager Brett Sobosky said. He was being returned to Geiger after he failed to post bond on charges of possession and delivery of controlled substances. Eric D. Peterson, 32, was mistakenly released Tuesday from the correctional center. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison Monday after pleading guilty to two counts of possession of a controlled substance, methamphetamine.

Associated Press

Puyallup: Teen suspect hit and killed by train

A teenager reportedly stabbed his father in an argument, tried to stab himself, then ran out of the house and soon afterward was struck and killed by a train, police said. Adam Tschannen, 18, of Puyallup apparently was sitting on the tracks when he was hit by the train early Wednesday. Officers said he had gotten into an argument with his father Tuesday night, stabbed him in his head, neck, sides and hand, then tried to stab himself. His mother was cut when she tried to stop him, and both parents were taken to hospitals for treatment of non-life threatening injuries, investigators said.

Associated Press

Olympia: Jail’s female population is surging

Inmate crowding is nothing new at Thurston County Jail. But the latest challenge facing county corrections officers is finding room for a sudden influx of female inmates. By Wednesday, the number of women inside the jail had grown to 65, which is 20 more than the number of beds available. The women’s population usually hovers around 35 or 40.

The Olympian

Grand Mound: Liquor store hit by burglars

Burglars stole thousands of dollars worth of alcohol and cigarettes early Wednesday from Grand Mound Video and Beverage, the sheriff’s office reported. They broke into the liquor store at 19947 Old Highway 99 S.W., disabled the alarm system and video surveillance equipment, and demolished an ATM inside, according to the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office. The total loss created by the theft and damage was estimated at about $20,000.

The Olympian

Alaska: Ex-musher convicted of cruelty

ANCHORAGE – A three-time musher in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race has been found guilty of animal cruelty for failing to care for his dogs. Matanuska-Susitna Borough animal control officers seized 28 of David Straub’s 32 dogs in October after citizens complained. Officers described the animals as dehydrated and emaciated.

Associated Press