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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Man gets 62 years for two murders

A Spokane man has been sentenced to serve more than 62 years in prison after he was convicted earlier this fall of killing two people in 2009. Superior Court Judge Tari Eitzen on Friday sentenced 28-year-old Merle W. Harvey to 753 months in prison after a jury convicted him of first-degree murder in connection with the Sept. 26, 2009, killing of Jack T. Lamere. The jury also convicted Harvey of second-degree murder for killing 45-year-old Jacob J. Potter, who was with Lamere on the day of the shooting. Harvey killed Lamere after a running dispute over a car swap. The jury found Harvey used a gun in the commission of the killings, which added a decade to the murder sentences.