No abuse record on infant who died

The Washington Department of Social and Health Services said Monday there are no records regarding abuse or neglect of 6-month-old Nevaeh Alana Miller, who died Saturday of injuries that a doctor said resulted from abuse.

Jereme Bassett, the 22-year-old boyfriend of the baby’s mother, was expected to be charged with second-degree murder before noon today, said Spokane police Lt. Dave McGovern.

Bassett was baby-sitting in a room at the West Wynn Motel along the Sunset Highway west of downtown Spokane while the mother, Jennifer Wilcox, worked.

The room is now vacant and Wilcox has agreed to let her 8-year-old son live with relatives, according to DSHS spokeswoman Kathy Spears.

– Staff reports

Two get sick from cantaloupes

Two Spokane residents, and possibly a third, have fallen ill with salmonella linked to tainted cantaloupes.

Julie Graham, spokeswoman for the Spokane Regional Health District, said one man had been hospitalized and has recovered. Mike Ruff, food safety director for Charlie’s Produce, said Monday the recall involved packages containing cut cantaloupe as well as whole fruit. The packages have a use-by date of March 7 through March 29.

Charlie’s Produce operates distribution centers in Spokane, Seattle, Portland and Anchorage, but only fruit sold in Spokane was subject to the recall, he said. Ruff said he didn’t know which stores or institutions may have received the fruit, but he noted some was shipped into Idaho and Montana. Customers will receive refunds for returned fruit.

The Food and Drug Administration said Saturday that melons from Honduran company Agropecuaria Montelibano could be linked to the salmonella outbreak.

At least 50 people in 16 states have become ill from eating the cantaloupes, and 14 were hospitalized. No deaths have been linked to the outbreak, the FDA said.

– Staff and wire reports

Soap Lake, Wash.

Police question shooting suspect

The Grant County Sheriff’s Office is waiting for an arrest warrant before charging a man for a shooting Sunday in Soap Lake.

Adel M. Cariveau, 28, of Soap Lake, told investigators that she was sitting in her 1990 Honda Accord with 27-year-old Arturo H. Mendoza.

Cariveau said she got a call from the suspect, who was angry with her. The suspect arrived in the area and began arguing with Mendoza and Cariveau.

During the altercation, the suspect fired a shot that struck Mendoza in the abdomen. Mendoza drove himself to Columbia Basin Hospital in Ephrata. Emergency crews then airlifted him to a Spokane hospital, according to a department press release.

Mendoza was listed in stable condition.

The suspect, who was not identified, has been questioned but not detained while detectives wait for an arrest warrant and search warrants.

– Thomas Clouse