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Kevin Keating

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News >  Idaho

Embezzlement Charged Against Ex-Bookkeeper

A former Bonner County employee faces grand theft charges for allegedly embezzling about $48,000 from the road department. An arrest warrant was issued Thursday for Pat Achziger, who worked as a secretary and bookkeeper in the department. She quit her post last year before the alleged embezzlement was discovered and has moved away from the area.
News >  Idaho

Would-Be Promoter Now A Bust Hayfield Impresario Lands In Jail For Battery

Les Kuty's push for a concert series in his Cocolalla hayfield helped land him in jail Thursday. Kuty, who is at odds with Bonner County officials over permits for the concerts, was arrested for trespassing and battery. Authorities said Kuty ran his car into resident Robert Bailey, who has questioned Kuty's credentials as a concert promoter.
News >  Idaho

No Answer On Opening Kootenai Trustees Say Bonner County District Lacks Money To Run New School

A brand new elementary school may be vacant next year because the financially strapped Bonner County School District can't afford to run it. School trustees met Wednesday hoping to find a way to open Kootenai Elementary, a $1.5 million school that will be completed next week. Residents passed a levy in 1987 to build the school along with five others. Inflation stalled the project. Now it's four years behind schedule and several classrooms short of what was promised to patrons.
News >  Idaho

No Dough, No Go, Says ‘The Soul Man’ Moore

A Cocolalla man planning a series of concerts in his hayfield has not only hit a sour note with Bonner County officials but with one of his would-be performers. Rhythm and blues legend Sam "the Soul Man" Moore, of Sam & Dave, canceled his appearance at Les Kuty's ranch for July 26, saying Kuty has failed to make promised payments to him and his band.
News >  Spokane

Bonner County Plans To Stop Cocolalla Concerts Rancher Fails To Get Bonner Permit; Officials Wonder If Advertised Performers Will Show Up

Bonner County officials are losing patience with a would-be concert promoter who is touting a music festival at his 100-acre Cocolalla ranch. Les Kuty has advertised and is selling tickets for three weekends of shows in his hayfield off U.S. Highway 95 south of Sandpoint. The acts are supposed to include Ricky Skaggs, Doug Kershaw and possibly Willie Nelson, according to Kuty's advertisement on fliers.
News >  Nation/World

State Panel Spanks School Administrators Report Assails Bonner County District For Finances, No Communication

The troubled Bonner County School District flunked budgeting 101, has a poorly run special education department and a superintendent who should be out in the schools instead of cloistered in his office, a state report said. A Department of Education advisory team spent more than a month scrutinizing the district. It arrived after residents, lawmakers and school officials requested a review of how the district is run and spends its money.
News >  Idaho

Thurman Should Die, Judge Told Prosecutor Says Murder Of Youth Showed ‘Utter Disregard’ For Life

Convicted killer Wayne Thurman has no regard for human life and should be put to death for shooting a 15-year-old boy, said Boundary County Prosecutor Denise Woodbury. She formally asked a judge this week to impose the death sentence on Thurman, 19. A jury took only three hours to find Thurman guilty of murdering Cedar Pfenning. He shot the teen four times last August and left his body on a remote hillside in Boundary County.
News >  Nation/World

Priest Lake Pondering City Status Association Of Year-Round Residents Would Like More Say In Development Of Their Community

Idaho's remote, pristine Priest Lake long has been a favorite getaway for city dwellers. But now some who live around this crown jewel are contemplating getting a little "citified" themselves. An idea being bantered about is to incorporate resort communities scattered around the 24-mile-long lake, making Priest Lake an official city. It would be one way to give the year-round residents a political voice and a chance to control the inevitable growth, said resident Loel Fenwick.
News >  Nation/World

Bonner Schools Seek Office Head $50,000 Post For Cash-Strapped District Attacked

Despite a deficit, a hiring freeze and advice from state officials to cut spending, Superintendent Max Harrell asked Bonner County School District trustees to hire a central office administrator Tuesday. The new area director, who would be paid at least $50,000 a year, would replace a part-time employee and join two other area directors, including one who earns more than $65,000.
News >  Nation/World

Rough Sailing In Flood’s Wake Floating Debris, No Wake Zones Leave Lakes, Marinas Empty

1. High and dry. Last month's floodwaters created problems with access and floating debris, keeping boaters away leaving John High, owner of the Bottle Bay Resort, feeling low. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review 2. High water on Lake Pend Oreille created the illusion that there is a small island for sale at Bottle Bay. Photo by Craig Buck/The Spokesman-Review
News >  Idaho

Bonner County Schools Flunk Department Of Education Report Card ‘Horrendous’; 15 Schools Face Loss Of Accreditation

A state report card on the Bonner County School District gave schools here near failing grades for not meeting standard educational requirements. The Department of Education says the district has only one school that met accreditation standards without any problems noted. Nearly half of the district's 15 schools are on advised status, meaning they have a year to correct problems or move one step closer to losing their accreditation.
News >  Nation/World

Union President Claims Harassment Sandpoint Middle School Librarian Angry After District Allows Private Investigator Into Her Office

The president of the Bonner County teachers' union says she is being harassed after the district let a private investigator into her office and the locked library at Sandpoint Middle School where she teaches. Librarian Joan Head never was told about the investigator, why he was in her office, who hired him or what he was looking for.
News >  Nation/World

Brothers Face Charges In Shootout Prosecutor Says His Predecessor Made Mistake In Not Filing Charges

Bonner County Prosecutor Phil Robinson said his predecessor made a mistake when he let two men go free after they shot at police officers and wounded one deputy. The shootout happened nearly two years ago, but Robinson is re-filing charges in the case. He will ask a judge to have Ian and Reyhan Higgins arrested on four counts of aggravated battery, making good on a promise he made to law enforcement officers before he was elected.
News >  Nation/World

Bonner Trustees Whittle School Budget New Plan Freezes Salaries, Cuts Administrative Staff, Leaves No Money To Open New School

After patrons objected for nearly an hour to a proposed budget - one the state said was $1 million in debt and illegal - Bonner County school trustees agreed to trash the plan. Instead they adopted a budget drafted at the last minute that freezes all salaries, cuts administrative staff and leaves the district with no money to open or operate a newly built elementary school.
News >  Nation/World

Winter Made Roads Slip, Slide Away Officials Say Many Forest Service Roads Will Remain Closed All Summer

Heavy snow and soaking rains have taken a toll on U.S. Forest Service roads in Boundary County, causing landslides and washouts that will keep some roads closed all summer. "It's really bad. We got hammered this year," said Terry Roth, the road manager for the Bonners Ferry Ranger District. "It seems like every day we go out we find something else. We have a multitude of roads with slips, slides and blown out culverts."
News >  Nation/World

State Panel Calls Bonner School Budget Illegal Districts Can’t Spend More Than They Receive

A proposed budget that puts the Bonner County School District $1 million in debt next year was called illegal by the state Department of Education. A state team was called in to review district operations and go over its budget last month. Patrons were concerned about where district officials were spending money after the district announced it would be $544,000 in the red this year.