COLFAX — The Whitman County Sheriff’s Office says a man who told Pullman police he was wounded in a road rage incident made up the story.
The investigation determined Gerald Edmond Fry Jr., 46, of Spokane accidentally shot himself in the groin Tuesday night while holding a revolver. Investigators say Fry lied when police were called to Pullman Regional Hospital because he is a felon and can’t possess a gun.
KRPL-AM reports Fry was treated and released for the wound. Now the Whitman County prosecutor is deciding whether to charge him.
Tumwater: Glass factory fined for fatal accident
The Department of Labor and Industries has fined the Cardinal Coated Glass Co. in Tumwater $3,500 for safety violations linked to a fatal accident.
A worker tripped on the plant floor last August and hit his neck on the edge of a pane of glass. It severed an artery, and 23-year-old Christopher Benson of Lacey died at the scene.
The Olympian said the company may appeal the fine.
Olympia: Businessman plans sex emporium
The owner of an adult video store says he still plans to expand it into a sex emporium unless officials approve a grocery store on the site.
The owner of Desire Video, Levi Bussanich, met Wednesday with city officials to review plans for adult entertainment, strippers and simulated sex shows.
He told The Olympian he’s prepared to follow through if a hearing examiner does not approve a reduction in a wetland buffer needed for the grocery store development.
Spokane: Recount gives state House win to Democrat
Democratic challenger John Driscoll has defeated Republican incumbent John Ahern for a Spokane-area state House seat after a recount.
The hand recount of nearly 76,000 ballots ended Thursday, with Driscoll winning by just 72 votes for the 6th District state House of Representatives seat.
Spokane County to cut 58 jobs to fix budget
Spokane County will cut 58 jobs to balance its $146 million budget for 2009.
The sharpest debate at Wednesday’s county commission meeting was over whether to spend $225,000 to Greater Spokane Inc., an agency designed to create jobs.
Seattle: Former City Council candidate cleared of DUI charge
A jury found former Seattle City Council candidate Venus Velazquez not guilty of a drunken driving charge.
She was stopped for speeding in October of 2007 while driving home from a campaign event.
After Wednesday’s verdict, Velazquez told The Seattle Post-Intelligencer she’s pleased jurors agreed she was not impaired.
Velazquez says the arrest cost her the election.
Seattle school asked to move because of gangs
King County has asked an alternative high school to move out of an old hangar at Boeing Field where it has operated the past nine years.
The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports the principal of Opportunity Skyway, Cindy Ortega, says the 170 students are no longer welcome because of gang violence. One student was killed and three others wounded in the past month.
The county official who oversees the airport, Harold Taniguchi, says employees are concerned about their security.
The alternative school handles students who have been kicked out of other schools or have juvenile records. Last year 96 students graduated from the program, and all passed the reading and writing portions of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning.
Seattle adds two more schools to closure list
As the Seattle School District looks to save money it may close Rainier Beach High School and an elementary school.
Added to an earlier suggestion, that would raise the list of school closures to nine. District officials discussed the plan at Wednesday’s school board meeting.
The district’s chief operating officer, Don Kennedy, says it’s facing a $37 million budget shortfall. That’s $13 million higher than earlier projections. As a result, he says, the district has put a freeze on hiring.
Seattle has the largest school district in the state with about 44,000 students and 100 buildings. The district has been squeezed by rising costs and falling enrollment.
U.S. foundation giving reaches record levels
U.S. charitable foundations gave money away to international causes at record levels in 2007, and a new report says their contributions are likely to go up again this year.
The report released Thursday by the New York-based Foundation Center says the 2007 giving totaled about $5.4 billion.
It says The Bill &Melinda Gates Foundation accounted for more than half the increase in foundation giving to international causes between 2002 and 2006. International giving by all foundations rose by more than 50 percent in that period.
The Foundation Center produced the report in cooperation with the Washington, D.C.-based Council on Foundations.
Moses Lake: Sparks force Horizon Air flight to land
A Horizon Air passenger plane safely made an emergency landing at Grant County International Airport.
Airport officials say the turboprop plane was en route from Seattle to Wenatchee when a generator failed, and the plane was diverted to the Moses Lake airport because it has a longer runway. There were no injuries among the 51 passengers and five crew members in the Tuesday night incident.
Passenger Mike Bradshaw of Wenatchee told the Columbia Basin Herald that sparks and some flames shot out of the engine for several feet.
Port of Moses Lake fire officials say there was no fire when the plane landed. Airport officials say the passengers were taken to Wenatchee by bus.
Tacoma: Online schools may have to repay state
State auditors say three school districts may have to repay Washington more than $5 million for improperly documenting enrollment in Internet programs.
The Tacoma News Tribune reported the Legislature requested the audit of three districts with the largest online programs in the 2006-07 school year: Steilacoom, Federal Way and Quillayute Valley.
School officials say it’s largely a paperwork problem new to online study. They’ll meet next week with the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.
The virtual academies are popular for home-schooling. They are free to Washington students and funded with state and levy dollars.
There were 49 online programs last year with more than 6,500 students.
Port Townsend: Intoxicated man found inside courthouse gets a return visit
Jefferson County employees caught an intoxicated man early Wednesday inside the courthouse in Port Townsend.
He told police he had been drinking at a bar and overheard a couple talking about plans to destroy court documents. He says he went to the courthouse to protect the town.
The Peninsula Daily News said prosecutors didn’t buy the story, and the 26-year-old man was back in the courthouse the same day on a burglary charge.
Bellingham: School district wins EPA award
The Bellingham School District has been honored by the Environmental Protection Agency for its sustained efforts to improve indoor air quality in its schools.
Bellingham was one of three districts nationwide that received the EPA’s 2008 Model of Sustained Excellence award.
The award was being presented to school officials Thursday in Washington, D.C.
It recognizes schools that show a commitment to improving student and staff health by promoting indoor air quality.
Oregon: Woman gets probation for igniting tow truck
A 20-year-old woman has received two years probation for setting a tow truck on fire as it was rolling away from a Portland apartment complex with a car.
A Multnomah County judge also ordered Elizabeth Allen to complete alcohol treatment, 80 hours of community service and a mental health evaluation.
Allen was arrested Sept. 16, and has spent 30 days in jail. She pleaded no contest to arson Thursday.
Authorities say Allen threw a flaming fast-food bag at the truck because it was towing away a car that was parked without a permit.
Allen says she does not remember the incident.
Associated Press
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