December 16, 2008 in City, News County leaders are one signature away from an agreement that will allow them to complete the purchase of a new raceway without dipping into tax revenue.

December 16, 2008 in City Toys and food vouchers given to more than 10,000 needy families through the Christmas Bureau represent thousands of gifts from the community to its poor. Donations to The Spokesman-Review Christmas …

December 16, 2008 in City Most of the 200 Christmas Bureau volunteers are veterans of the holiday charity. A few, such as Monsignor Frank Bach and Marilee Roloff, have been with the Christmas Bureau for …

December 16, 2008 in City, News Police are investigating death threats made against a Spokane Superior Court judge.

December 16, 2008 in News Spokane County will pay the owners of a restaurant and market in Colbert $750,000 to settle a lawsuit.

December 16, 2008 in Business, City C. Paul Sandifur, the former chief executive officer of bankrupt Metropolitan Mortgage & Securities Co., will pay $150,000 to refund investors and settle allegations that he improperly paid himself dividends … 2

December 16, 2008 in Business, City A class action lawsuit involving more than 6,000 Metropolitan Mortgage & Securities Co. investors is moving toward trial in 15 months.

December 16, 2008 in News, Outdoors More than 50 people were evacuated from about 30 ski gondolas after a tower supporting the cables partially collapsed Tuesday at Canada’s Whistler resort.

December 16, 2008 in Business, City The worsening global economy has done a number on Liberty Lake high-tech company Agilent Technologies. The number: 120 to 150 workers will be laid off over the next year, company … 5

  December 16, 2008 in City OLYMPIA – After months of bad news for the state treasury, Gov. Chris Gregoire and her budget advisors will on Thursday unveil their proposals for dealing with a two-year budget …

December 16, 2008 in Nation/World HOLLYWOOD, Fla. — A serial killer who died more than a decade ago is the person who decapitated the 6-year-old son of “America’s Most Wanted” host John Walsh in 1981, …

  December 16, 2008 in City Robert Wayne Webb was sentenced to a year in prison for improperly storing hazardous waste from meth labs in Rathdrum, Idaho, and a Spokane home.

December 16, 2008 in Business An influx of jobless workers from nearby areas pushed Spokane County’s unemployment rate up slightly to 6.4 percent in November, according to state jobless numbers. The month before, Spokane County’s …

December 16, 2008 in Business, Nation/World WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve has cut its target for a key interest rate to the lowest level on record and pledged to use “all available tools” to combat a …

December 16, 2008 in City Three Spokane families are homeless after fire damaged their homes this morning and Monday. A family and dog were burned out of its south Spokane home early this morning after …

  December 16, 2008 in City A winter storm watch was upgraded to a winter storm warning this afternoon for far Eastern Washington and North Idaho as well as locations closer to the Cascades as an …

December 16, 2008 in City on Page A1 With arctic temperatures expected through the week, Christmas Bureau organizers have arranged to rent and heat a second building at the Spokane fairgrounds to shelter people waiting in line. “We’ve …

  December 16, 2008 in City on Page A1 The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by Hanford Nuclear Reservation contractors in the massive downwinders lawsuit, raising hopes for a legal settlement for as many as 2,000 radiation-exposed …

December 16, 2008 in Nation/World on Page A2 WASHINGTON – More than 40 higher-education leaders from across the country asked Congress today to commit 5 percent of any economic stimulus program to the nation’s colleges and universities. The … 1

December 16, 2008 in Nation/World on Page A3 Caroline Kennedy told New York’s governor on Monday that she’s interested in the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton, making her the highest-profile candidate to express a …