In brief: High winds due Monday, sparing Bloomies’ times
Looks like Bloomsday’s going to be run just in the nick of time.
The National Weather Service has issued a high wind watch for the Inland Northwest beginning late Monday morning, said meteorologist Steven Van Horn.
“We have a pretty strong jet (stream) coming over us,” he said.
The fast-moving system is expected to bring winds from 20 to 30 mph in the late morning and 25 to 40 mph in the afternoon. “And that’s sustained,” Van Horn said. Gusts, particularly in places like the West Plains, could be as strong as 55 or 60 mph.
The storm also will bring some precipitation, he said, but the heaviest rainfall will be in the northeastern mountains and the Idaho Panhandle.
Alaska man accused of threat with shotgun
A 22-year-old Alaska resident was arrested after pointing a shotgun at several people walking near downtown Coeur d’Alene on Saturday.
As a Coeur d’Alene police officer conducted a traffic stop for a wrong-way driver in the 300 block of North Third Street about 2:30 a.m., several people ran up and told him that a man in the vehicle had threatened them with a shotgun.
The victims said they were walking past the suspects on the sidewalk when the two groups exchanged words, and a man opened the trunk of the car and pulled out a double-barreled 12-gauge shotgun and pointed it at them.
The weapon was found in the vehicle, police said. Jason Fennimore was arrested and booked into the Kootenai County Jail on suspicion of aggravated assault.
TV debates set for Idaho election candidates
Candidates facing off in Idaho’s May 25 election for the Idaho Supreme Court and in primary races for Congress and governor will debate on live statewide television as part of the “Idaho Debates,” starting Tuesday with incumbent Supreme Court Justice Roger Burdick and challenger Judge John Bradbury facing off.
The series of debates is sponsored by the Idaho Press Club, the Idaho League of Women Voters and an array of partners and will be aired on Idaho Public Television.
The debate between Burdick and Bradbury will air live Tuesday at 7 p.m. Pacific time.
1st District GOP congressional candidates Raul Labrador and Vaughn Ward will debate May 11 at 7 p.m.; and GOP candidates for governor Rex Rammell and Sharon Ullman will debate May 18 at 7 p.m. Incumbent Gov. Butch Otter declined to debate his primary election opponents.
Papa John’s robber gets four-year prison term
A Spokane man who robbed a pizza place and waited outside as a friend robbed a convenience store the next night was sentenced Friday to about four years in prison.
But Justin J. Ellery, 24, might not have to repay one of his victims – prosecutors can’t find the former owner of Papa John’s, 900 E. Indiana Ave., which Ellery robbed of about $160 on Sept. 28. No restitution will be imposed in that case, said Deputy Prosecutor Larry Steinmetz.
Investigators said Ellery planned to rob the Zip Trip at 3030 E. Euclid Ave. on Sept. 29 but instead waited in the car as Christopher R. Walinski completed the holdup.
Walinski, 25, was sentenced last week to 90 months in prison for first-degree robbery and second-degree assault with a firearm enhancement.
Ellery was sentenced Friday to 51 months in prison in a plea deal approved by Judge Maryann Moreno. Police said Ellery used money from the robberies to buy heroin.