Did you miss your news last week? Here’s a selection of the week’s top news items from across Snohomish County as they appeared in The Herald. For the full stories, go to www.heraldnet.com.

Sunday, April 15

Copyrighting culture: Tulalips assert rights to stories: Tribal leaders are drafting laws they hope will protect knowledge unique to the Tulalip Tribes in ways current copyright laws don’t.

If they don’t act quickly to preserve what the elders remember of traditional life, Tulalip culture will die, some tribal leaders say.

Tribal culture – sacred things such as stories and songs – is diluted when used inappropriately.

Federal and international trademark and copyright laws don’t account for the knowledge of tribal culture.

Krista J. Kapralos

Monday, April 16

Can cityhood save a former socialist haven? When Freeland was founded in 1900, its socialist settlers envisioned a utopia where “equality, justice and love” prevailed. They gave away five-acre plots of land for $10 and debated the merits of Karl Marx, spiritualism and Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

A century later, the small Whidbey Island community is poised for a rebirth its forefathers probably wouldn’t be keen on. Espousing the benefits of planning grids, sewers and a city council, a group of Freelanders wants to incorporate the town.

Kaitlin Manry

Tuesday, April 17

Are our schools ready for a crisis? The shooting massacre at a Virginia college Monday was a sobering reminder to Snohomish County police and school authorities of their daunting task to protect students and staff in the face of unspeakable violence.

Police and school officials have taken numerous measures to improve security and their responses to emergencies at schools, Snohomish County Sheriff Rick Bart said.

Diana Hefley, Eric Stevick and Krista J. Kapralos

Wednesday, April 18

U.S. 2 on brink of getting first fixes in years: The state would make its first major safety improvement in years on deadly and congested U.S. 2 under versions of the state budget lawmakers are considering this week.

More than $730,000 is set aside to install center line rumble strips – divots that cause vibrations when a car’s tires roll over them – on a 41-mile stretch of the highway from Monroe to Stevens Pass.

Yoshiaki Nohara

Thursday, April 19

Teen dies in car crash: On Wednesday, 16-year-old Josh Crolley, an Arlington High School junior, died when the car he was driving smashed into a tree.

Jackson Holtz and Eric Stevick

Friday, April 20

Why there’s no road home: In early March, all but a few feet of a portion of the Suiattle River Road near Darrington crumbled into the river during a landslide and washout. The Forest Service deemed the road impassable and closed it – cutting off access to two campgrounds, popular hiking trails, the Sauk-Suiattle tribe’s only two burial grounds and more than a dozen privately owned cabins. Some people are now taking a risky shortcut to reach their properties.

Kaitlin Manry and Lukas Velush

Saturday, April 21

UW branch on its way: The University of Washington will establish a branch campus for Snohomish County college students and the state will put up $4 million to launch the effort, lawmakers learned Friday night.

Details of the agreement are spelled out in the capital budget proposal released just after 9 p.m. Friday by members of the House and Senate. The money is included in the budget, too.

Jerry Cornfield