SEATTLE – The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle and an abbey in Kansas have settled seven decades-old sex abuse claims against the late Rev. John Forrester for $2.6 million.
Forrester, a priest of St. Benedict’s Abbey in Atchison, Kan., who died in 2002, served in the Seattle archdiocese at Holy Rosary Church in Seattle in 1974-75 and All Saints Church in Puyallup from 1975-78.
The sex abuse claims against him date back to the 1970s.
In a statement released Friday, the Seattle Archdiocese said the Benedictine Order has agreed to pay $1 million of the settlement, and the remaining $1.6 million will be paid through the archdiocese’s insurance policy.
Associated Press
Aberdeen: Vehicle blaze burns man
A 38-year-old Aberdeen man caught fire Thursday afternoon after the car engine he was working on backfired and suddenly engulfed him in flames.
David Stout, 38, was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he was listed in satisfactory condition Friday morning.
When Aberdeen firefighters arrived on the scene, he was lying in the front yard and was no longer on fire, Aberdeen Fire Chief Dave Carlberg said.
Stout was working on a car in a basement garage with a friend, Marco Stokes.
They were pouring gasoline into the carburetor to try and get the car started when the fire broke out. The two ran out of the garage. Then they went back in to try to fight the flames with a garden hose, Stokes said. That’s when Stout caught fire.
Damage was estimated at $12,000 to the home and $10,000 to the contents.
The Daily World
Leavenworth: 9,800 pot plants are seized
It’s harvest time for drug investigators, who have seized 9,800 marijuana plants in Chelan and Yakima counties in recent days.
The biggest haul was 8,300 pot plants found Wednesday near U.S. 2 about eight miles east of Stevens Pass. The 4- to 6-foot-tall plants were growing among evergreen and broadleaf trees beneath a ridge on Rock Mountain, Chelan County Sheriff Michael Harum said.
Investigators have identified six people they believe are connected with the plants – the fifth big outdoor growing operation to be raided in the county this year, Harum said.
In Yakima County, authorities seized a total of 1,500 marijuana plants from seven growing operations.
No arrests were reported in any of the seizures.
Associated Press
Spokane: Radio host is injured in crash
Nationally syndicated radio talk-show host Laurie Roth was seriously injured while riding a motorcycle that hit a deer, the Washington State Patrol reports.
Roth was in serious condition Friday at Sacred Heart Medical Center, where she was airlifted after the crash Thursday near the entrance to Mount Spokane State Park about 15 miles northeast of Spokane. She suffered head injuries, trooper Jeff Sevigney said.
The conservative Roth, 45, is host of “The Laurie Roth Show,” which is produced in Spokane and heard on about 40 stations nationwide.
Rick Still, the show’s producer, said a mix of substitute hosts and reruns will be used until Roth returns.
Associated Press
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