Lawsuit dismissed against Extendicare

A federal lawsuit alleging consumer fraud against a national company operating homes for the elderly in Washington has been dismissed.

Extendicare Homes Inc. operates 16 nursing homes in the state, including one in Spokane.

The class-action lawsuit filed last summer in King County was moved to federal court, where the complaint was dismissed in March.

“The court found that the undisputed evidence demonstrated that the plaintiffs could not prove their supposed claims,” Douglas J. Harris, the company’s senior vice president and chief financial officer, said in a press release.

The lawsuit claimed that the company’s admissions policy is designed to fill beds. The suit said the severity of patients’ conditions and the facility’s ability to care for them were often disregarded, leading to deficiencies in care.

Read documents related to the case at spokesman.com.

Sara Leaming

Olympia

Figure skating event won’t get state help

A $600,000 appropriation to help stage the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Spokane next year was killed by the state Legislature, but the event will go on as planned.

Promoters had been counting on the state money to help stage the event, which will serve as the U.S. trials for the Vancouver, B.C., Olympics.

Promoter Barb Beddor, of Spokane, said nearly 100,000 tickets have been sold, and the lack of help from the state won’t make a major difference.

Promoters promised to pay U.S. Figure Skating $1.2 million to bring the event to Spokane for the second time. Local governments and groups put up half that amount, and were counting on the state for the other half.

The Spokane Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau is working to make up the difference.

Associated Press

Coeur d’Alene

Angry driver rammed parked car, police say

A stolen parking spot was enough to send a 50-year-old Coeur d’Alene man into a rage Thursday, causing him to ram another vehicle with his own car, landing him in jail, police said.

Richard Lloyd Vivian was waiting to pull into a handicapped parking spot at Kootenai Medical Center as another vehicle was leaving. As the car pulled out, another car pulled in to the spot before Vivian was able to, Coeur d’Alene police Sgt. Christie Wood said.

After the driver got out and walked into the hospital, Vivian rammed the man’s vehicle with his Jeep SUV, Wood said. The force caused the parked car to hit another vehicle in the lot.

Witnesses said Vivian quickly backed his car up, nearly hitting a pedestrian, Wood said. No injuries were reported.

Vivian was waiting near his car when officers arrived. He was arrested and taken to jail on charges of aggravated assault, Wood said.

Sara Leaming