Yates court files on execution remain sealed

TACOMA – Documents to be used by Pierce County prosecutors in determining whether to seek the death penalty against serial killer Robert Yates will not be publicly released, a Tacoma appellate court has ruled.

The court said there could be a “chilling effect” on the free flow of information if the material is released. The documents are in a “mitigation package” submitted by Yates’ attorneys in their bid to persuade prosecutors not to seek the death penalty if Yates is convicted of aggravated first-degree murder in two Pierce County slayings.

The appeals court ruling, released Friday, also said that Yates’ family has a right to privacy that outweighs the public’s right to know what is in the records – 91 pages of documents including biographical sketches, letters and family photos.

Kent

Plaintiff seeks Letourneau’s testimony in court: Attorneys for Vili Fualaau and the Des Moines Police Department want convicted child rapist Mary Kay Letourneau to testify in person in the civil trial against the police department and the Highline School District. But attorneys for the school district where Letourneau was Fualaau’s sixth-grade teacher want her to testify via satellite, citing concerns about security and Letourneau’s safety. Fualaau’s attorney, Cyrus Vance Jr., scoffed at the idea. Fualaau, now 18, fathered two children with his former sixth-grade teacher at Shorewood Elementary School in Burien, once when he was 13 and again at age 15.

Spokane

Man hangs himself in jail: A Spokane man hanged himself in the Spokane County Jail, marking the first suicide at the jail this year, according to jail commander Capt. Dick Collins. Troy Gene Radan, 33, was being held without bail on a Spokane County District Court warrant for driving under the influence and domestic-violence assault.

Snoqualmie Pass

Dead skier identified: A 59-year-old skier who died after plunging more than 250 feet from a cliff in a closed portion of the Alpental ski area was identified Sunday as Dennis Wight of Tacoma. An autopsy was scheduled for today, a King County Medical Examiner’s Office spokesman said.

Oregon

Lost hikers found: Two Sweet Home girls were found early Sunday morning after being lost for more than 13 hours in rugged mountains near Rooster Rock, about 19 miles east of Sweet Home. Sara Rosa, 12, and Holly Richards, 11, became separated from their hiking companions while on the Rooster Rock trail around noon Saturday.

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