Suspect cleared in transient’s death
A medical examiner’s ruling has cleared a Spokane man of murder charges in the death of a transient.
Wayne Walksnice Jr., who had been charged with second-degree murder in the June 10 death of Ernest “Sonny” Hamlin, has been issued a municipal citation for assault, said Spokane Police Department spokesman Cpl. Tom Lee.
Medical Examiner Sally Aiken last week found that hemorrhaging inside Hamlin’s skull from a prior illness or injury caused his death, Lee said.
Walksnice allegedly slammed Hamlin to the ground under an Interstate 90 overpass at Fourth and Division in an attempt to get beer from him, according to a police affidavit filed in Spokane County District Court.
Hamlin died after being taken to Sacred Heart Medical Center.
– Parker Howell
Man charged in knife throwing
Spokane police on Monday identified the man charged with throwing a knife at another man during a fight Friday night in Riverfront Park.
Charleston D. Harper, 24, has been charged with second-degree assault, police spokesman Cpl. Tom Lee said in a news release.
Spokane police responded at 9:20 p.m. Friday to the blue bridge in Riverfront Park to a report of a fight. Witnesses said Harper pulled a knife and threw it at the victim and the knife stuck in the man’s side.
The victim was taken to a hospital where he was in stable condition.
– Thomas Clouse
Spokane Valley
Prints could help ID carjacking suspect
Police are awaiting fingerprint results after a carjacked SUV was found early Saturday.
The white Chevrolet Blazer was found abandoned in the 8000 block of East Mansfield in Spokane Valley last weekend, said Liberty Lake Police Chief Brian Asmus. The vehicle was stolen from a Newman Lake family at a Liberty Lake convenience store Thursday night, police said. A short, thin white man waved a handgun at a mother and daughter and told them to get out of the vehicle, which he sped away in, according to police.
The SUV was taken to the Washington State Patrol crime lab, where investigators found prints. They’ll be checked against a database and may identify a suspect, Asmus said.
Liberty Lake police received a tip Monday identifying a potential suspect, but police will wait until the fingerprint results are returned before making any arrests, Asmus said.
The Blazer was left in good shape, Asmus said. The license plates were in the car, the interior was intact, and the 7-year-old daughter’s car seat and school supplies were still in the vehicle, he said.
– Christopher Rodkey
Post Falls
Marina construction gets under way
Work started Monday on the construction of the 142-slip Post Falls Landing Marina, just 900 feet upstream from Avista Utilities Post Falls dam.
The marina is part of a downtown-style development on a 33-acre former mill site on the Spokane River.
The Idaho Department of Lands issued a permit for the marina in December 2003 even though Avista objected because of safety concerns. Avista decided not to appeal the decision.
The marina is the key component of Spokane developer Harry Green’s plan to create a town center for Post Falls on the former Louisiana-Pacific mill site.
The development includes plans for townhouses, condos, shops and a town square in addition to a boardwalk. The marina will include a 1,000-foot dock, convenience store and full-service gas station.
Leasing priority is given to people who buy waterfront condominiums, according to Green. The first phase of the project, a 20-unit condo building, is nearly complete.
– Erica Curless