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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Huckleberries Online

Media Swarm Hammer Attack Scene

Herb Huseland of Bay Views reports that all 3 Spokane TV stations and the Coeur d'Alene Press are swarming his 'hood to report on the hammer attack that left 3 neighbors seriously to critically injured and a fourth slightly injured. The injured are (according to KCSD reports):

  • Michael Heath, 40:  His injuries were minor and he refused medical attention.
  • Patricia Heath, 43:  Her injuries were CRITICAL and she was transported to Kootenai Medical Center in Coeur d’Alene where she was listed in CRITICAL condition.
  • Lorraine Wallis, 58:  Her injuries were SERIOUS and she was transported to Kootenai Medical Center in Coeur d’Alene where she was listed in serious condition.
  • Jedidiah Heath, 21:  His injuries were serious and he was transported to Kootenai Medical Center in Coeur d’Alene where he was listed in stable condition.
  • Kootenai County sheriff's report below:

Deputies responded to a mobile home at 34553 N. Limekiln Road about 1:30 p.m. to a report that a man had entered a home and struck the four occupants multiple times with a hammer.  The man then fled the scene on foot.  When emergency personnel arrived, they found four victims who had all been bludgeoned with varying degrees of injury.  The victims were able to identify their assailant as a neighbor, Larry Cragun, 31, of Bayview.  Deputies were able to locate Cragun at a local business and take him into custody without incident.  Cragun has been booked into the Kootenai County jail on one count of Burglary and four counts of Aggravated Battery.

Initial investigation indicates that Cragun just walked into the home occupied by the four victims where they were seated in the living room watching television.  Cragun yelled a profanity at them and began swinging the hammer at them, striking all of them multiple times.  After injuring all of them, Cragun left the residence.



D.F. Oliveria
D.F. (Dave) Oliveria joined The Spokesman-Review in 1984. He currently is a columnist and compiles the Huckleberries Online blog and writes about North Idaho in his Huckleberries column.

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