Flags at half-staff today in honor of sailor

Gov. Chris Gregoire ordered flags at all Washington state buildings to be flown at half-staff today in memory of Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Jarod Newlove of Renton, who was killed last month in Afghanistan. The 25-year-old and another sailor, Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin McNeley of Arizona, were killed July 23 while driving alone nearly 60 miles from their base in dangerous territory controlled by the Taliban. U.S. authorities aren’t sure what two junior enlisted men in noncombat jobs were doing driving alone in Logar province, where much of the countryside is not under government control. The two sailors, in a four-wheel-drive armored SUV, were seen July 23 by a guard working for the Charkh district.