ZILLAH — The State Patrol says a trooper returning home after his shift found a drunken-driving suspect in the driveway of his own home near Zillah.
Trooper Trevor Downey first noticed the car Tuesday going 30 mph in a 50 mph zone. As Downey approached, the driver pulled into Downey’s driveway and parked in the trooper’s garage.
Downey followed and asked what he was doing. The driver replied he lived there.
Downey told him it was his home, then arrested the 31-year-old Yakima County man for investigation of drunken driving. He has three prior DUI convictions.
Spokane: Payday loan company must pay
Four Spokane residents have won a legal victory against Pacific Financial Holdings Inc., a loan chain based in Federal Way. Pacific Financial agreed to pay a $2.5 million settlement to more than 10,000 people who were harassed by the company after they were late repaying loans. The company, which does business as Loan Ex, Fast Cash Loans and Fast Cash — did not admit guilt as part of the settlement.
Sumner: Charges in stabbing mother to death during fight
A Sumner woman has been charged with stabbing her mother to death, apparently after her mother tried to evict her and her child. An innocent plea was entered Tuesday in Pierce County Superior Court on behalf of 20-year-old Laura Jennette Jonston. She’s charged with first-and second-degree murder in the death of her mother, 60-year-old Shirley Miluk, early Monday in the apartment they shared. Police say Jonston told them a fight arose after Miluk decided to kick her and her 13-month-old child out of the apartment. She reportedly said she stabbed Miluk after the older woman attacked her with a lamp, a jar and a decorative rooster.
Tacoma: Guilty in killing
A 60-year-old man who killed his wife in Alaska in 1978 has been convicted of killing a man near Puyallup less than a week later. A Pierce County Superior Court jury convicted Nicholas Louis Notaro of first-degree murder Tuesday in the shooting of of 53-year-old Joseph Tarricone. His remains were discovered by workers clearing a lot for a strip mall outside Puyallup last March. The jury was told Tarricone formerly dated Notaro’s sister, Renee Ray Curtiss, and continued to shower her with unwanted attention. Curtiss, now 55, is accused of having Notaro shoot Tarricone, helping him cut up the body with a chainsaw and burying the remains.
Boyfriend charged in death
Police say a Tacoma man has admitted killing and burying his girlfriend shortly after bailing her out of jail in 2007. An innocent plea was entered Tuesday on behalf of 39-year-old Glenn D. Riccio. He’s charged with first-degree murder in the shooting of 30-year-old Jessica Louise Armstrong and is being held on $1 million bail. Prosecutors write that Riccio says Armstrong was mentally ill and asked to be put to death.
Vancouver, Wash.: Stabber ruled insane
A Vancouver man who stabbed a neighbor to death because he believed she had cast a spell on him was acquitted of a murder charge due to his insanity. Clark County Superior Court Judge Roger Bennett signed the order Tuesday acquitting Shane Cole and ordering him to remain indefinitely at Western State Hospital. Psychiatrists testified Cole had an irrational fear of 59-year-old Hazel Stephens and believed she was controlling his mind and plotting to steal his DNA.
Tumwater: Flu season milder
The state Health Department says the number of flu cases in Washington is slightly below normal for this time of year but still rising week to week. Spokesman Gordon MacCracken in Tumwater says the flu season started a bit late. It typically peaks in February.
Yakima: Youth curfew planned
Fed up with gangs and graffiti, Yakima City Council members say they’ll try to pass a juvenile curfew that will meet constitutional guidelines. The council voted 7-0 Tuesday night to have the staff draw up a curfew. Yakima stopped enforcing a previous curfew after the state Supreme Court struck down a similar law in another city.
Alaska: Washington man faces child sex charges
A 19-year-old Washington state man faces felony charges related to an alleged sexual relationship with a 13-year-old Anchorage girl. Taylor Marcus Podkranic of Chelan is awaiting extradition to Alaska after being charged in federal court with traveling with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct. Authorities claim Podkranic maintained a relationship with the girl over the Internet, but told her mother he was simply mentoring her in religion. Court papers say he traveled to Anchorage and sexually abused the child in October, taking photos police eventually discovered.
From Herald news services
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