FORT LEWIS — A soldier was struck and killed by a car while attempting to cross I-5 near the Fort Lewis main gate.
A State Patrol news release said troopers received a report of the accident just before 1 a.m. Wednesday. The soldier was pronounced dead at the scene.
The news release says the soldier ran from the west side of the northbound lanes, attempting to cross, when he was hit by a car driven by 68-year-old James Kinsley of Seattle. Kinsley was uninjured.
The name of the soldier has not been released.
Seattle: Nordstrom recalls girls shoes
Nordstrom is recalling 31,000 girls shoes that were made in China and have excessive levels of lead used in paint on the outer soles.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission says the Nordstrom brand shoes were offered between September 2006 and February 2009 and sold for $35 to $45.
Consumers should take the shoes away from children and return them to a Nordstrom store.
Vancouver, Wash.: Homeless man found dead in bin
Workers sorting recyclables at a Vancouver, Wash., transfer station found the body of a 50-year-old apparent homeless man.
The workers reported the man’s head and legs were sticking out from a bin containing cardboard, paper, bottles and aluminum cans. They were separating recycling from a commercial business load Tuesday afternoon when they discovered the body.
Police didn’t suspect foul play in the man’s death.
Pullman: WSU vets deliver bull triplets
A Red Angus cow has given birth to rare triplet bull calves at Washington State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.
Statistically, the odds of living cattle triplets of the same sex being born are about one in 700,000 births.
All three calves were in a breach position and three WSU veterinarians and five students were needed for the delivery on Tuesday. The calves weighed between 36 and 41 pounds apiece. The mother and calves are doing fine.
Bellingham: Kids in stolen car chase
A 5-year-old boy and his 7-year-old sister were unhurt after a stolen car chase that began when two female transients jumped into the car their mother had left running outside a Bellingham grocery.
Police say a state trooper spotted the stolen car driving erratically on I-5 on Tuesday night, and the driver tried to flee northbound at up to 90 mph. The car was slowed by border traffic and struck a Jersey barrier before coming to a stop.
The driver and a passenger were arrested by a Whatcom County sheriff’s deputy and Blaine police officer.
The driver, 40-year-old Chandra S. Dibley, and passenger, 50-year-old Debra R. Montez, were jailed for investigation of kidnapping and theft. Bellingham police say alcohol was involved.
Olympia: Office betting pools illegal
The state says those office betting pools on the NCAA basketball tournament are illegal.
Gambling Commission spokeswoman Amy Hunter says the only legal pools are the grids used in football. She told The Olympian that when the Gambling Commission gets complaints about NCAA pools, it issues warnings.
The paper says betting in an office betting pool can be a misdemeanor or a felony depending on the size of the pool.
State workers sign an ethics agreement the specifically bans taking part in betting pools.
Suit filed in cannon explosion death
The parents of a boy who was killed by an exploding cannon at a 2007 Fourth of July celebration have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Thurston County.
The parents of the 8-year-old, Devan Vyborny, accuse medical responders of being poorly trained and wrongly canceling a medical airlift.
The Olympian reports a county spokesman declined to comment on the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Thurston County Superior Court. Littlerock Deputy Fire Chief Gary Kerker previously said the crew responded in minutes and did everything it could.
Tacoma: Hydraulic oil spilled in water
The Coast Guard says it’s investigating the cause of a hydraulic oil spill in the Blair Waterway at Tacoma.
As much as 158 gallons of the fluid spilled Tuesday from a ship, the Hyundai Republic, leaving a large, patchy sheen.
A cleanup response vessel recovered any oil it could.
Spokane: Suspect who shot dog killed
Police killed a fleeing suspect who shot a police dog in Spokane.
The Spokane sheriff’s office says the chase began Tuesday night when an officer attempted to pull over a car for reckless driving. The driver sped away, high-centered on a lane divider and then ran.
A police dog and his handler tracked the suspect to an alley, near Lacrosse and Division.
The sheriff’s office says the suspect pulled a pistol and shot the dog. The handler then shot the suspect, who died early Wednesday at a hospital. He is identified as Johnnie L. Longest, who has a record including vehicle theft and drug possession.
The car Longest was driving had been stolen.
The police dog is reported in stable condition at a pet emergency clinic.
Moses Lake: Baby drowns in bath
The Grant County Sheriff’s Office says it’s investigating the death of a 9-month-old Moses Lake boy who apparently drowned in the bath.
Undersheriff John Turley says 18-year-old Brandi A. Smith said her son was not breathing and had possibly ingested water during a daily bath.
Mount Vernon: Burglar pleads guilty to murder
A burglar who fatally injured an elderly Burlington woman has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder.
The Skagit Valley Herald reports prosecutors will ask for the maximum 34-year term for the 24-year-old, Ricardo Mejia-Cruz, when he is sentenced June 3 in Mount Vernon. The defense lawyer will ask for a 25-year sentence.
Mejia-Cruz knocked down 84-year-old Clara Thorp during a September break-in at her home. She suffered a broken hip and later had a heart attack and died in January of pneumonia related to the hip injury.
He also pleaded guilty Wednesday to six other burglary and weapons charges. He was originally charged with a total of 14 felonies in a burglary spree that included Thorp’s home.
Stevenson: Two men sought in skier attack
Arrest warrants have been issued for a Vancouver man and his son accused of attacking a cross-country skier, taking his car and leaving him for dead.
The Skamania County sheriff’s office says the warrants want Michael Collins and his son Teven Collins held for investigation of attempted murder and robbery.
Detectives believe the two fled after the Feb. 9 attack and traveled from southwest Washington through Oregon and California.
The sheriff’s office says the case will be shown Saturday on a segment of “America’s Most Wanted.”
Associated Press
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