In brief: Fight over car ends in stabbing

A Spokane man is accused of stabbing a friend in the neck and chest during a fight over a car, and Spokane police are asking for help finding him.

Terry Cleaver, 45, is wanted on a first-degree assault charge after his friend drove himself to Holy Family Hospital on Tuesday evening with stab wounds.

The victim, whose name has not been released, was in stable condition Wednesday at Deaconess Medical Center, police said.

Others may be involved in the incident, and police are asking anyone with information to call Crime Check at (509) 463-2233.

Sex offenders living in area

Two level 3 sex offenders have moved to the Spokane area, police said Wednesday.

Randy Lake, 28, was released from prison Feb. 12 after serving a year and a half on two counts of third-degree child molestation. His victims were boys ages 4, 6 and 8, according to Spokane police. Police said he is suspected of molesting other children, including a young girl.

Lake found his victims by befriending adults with young children, police said. He’ll be living in the downtown area, according to a news release.

Trevor L. Franklin, 18, is a transient convicted of third-degree assault with sexual motivation.

His victim was a 20-year-old developmentally delayed woman whom he threatened to kill if she didn’t allow the sexual assault, police said. He is suspected of sexually assaulting five other victims between the ages of 9 and 15 but was not charged, police said.

Level 3 sex offenders are considered most likely to reoffend.

Neither Lake nor Franklin is wanted by authorities, but police want citizens to be aware of their presence.

Kootenai county

Athol man’s car hits pregnant wife

A fight over income tax returns ended in an Athol man backing his car into his pregnant wife Wednesday, according to the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Department.

Jerry Booker, 25, was jailed on an aggravated battery charge after he knocked his estranged wife to the ground with his car in the parking lot of Wells Fargo bank, 204 W. Hayden Avenue in Hayden. Kimberly Booker, 24, is eight months pregnant.

The couple had been arguing about taxes when Jerry Booker tried to drive away and Kimberly Booker stood behind his car and tried to call police, a news release said.

Jerry Booker’s past criminal charges include accessory to a felony, two probation violations, grand theft and three counts of forgery, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

Kempthorne’s talk open to public

Former Interior Secretary and Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne will speak at a public luncheon next month, reflecting on the career that took him from Boise mayor to Cabinet secretary.

The luncheon will be held at the Coeur d’Alene Resort Convention Center from 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. on March 5. It costs $20 and pre-registration is required.

Kempthorne will discuss and analyze the advantages and challenges of four top policymaking positions he has held – mayor, senator, governor and Cabinet secretary. He will also take questions from the audience in the luncheon sponsored by the Coeur d’Alene Chamber of Commerce and the Coeur d’Alene Resort.

Registration can be done online at www.kempthorne luncheon.eventbrite.com, or call (208) 415-0115 for more information.

FORT LEWIS, Wash.

Drugs might have led to girl’s death

The case of a 16-year-old civilian girl who died at a Fort Lewis barracks might have been drug-related, Army investigators say.

Chris Grey, a spokesman at the Criminal Investigation Command headquarters at Fort Belvoir, Va., wouldn’t specify Wednesday what drugs may have been involved. Toxicology results are not expected for at least a week.

Grey said the dead teen and another 16-year-old girl who was found passed out at 3:30 a.m. Sunday were acquainted with a soldier in the barracks.

The surviving girl was in stable condition Wednesday at Madigan Army Medical Center, said Joseph J. Piek, a Fort Lewis spokesman.

“Once she is in a state that she can be interviewed by the Criminal Investigation Division, I’m sure the investigators will do so to gather the facts about what the girls were doing on post,” Piek said.

The dead girl was identified by her family on her MySpace page as Leah King.

“Just so everyone knows, we have very few details about what happened to Leah,” the statement said. “But what we know, we are not supposed to share just yet.”

Both girls are from the south Puget Sound area and are not military dependents.