In brief: Repeat rapist gets life in McNeil Island facility

A jury took under an hour, excluding lunch, Tuesday to confine a repeat rapist in Washington state custody likely for the rest of his life.

Albert A. Brooks, 67, showed no emotion as the jury confirmed that the state provided enough evidence to show that Brooks is a sexually violent predator who is likely to reoffend if released into the community. He’ll be held at a state facility on McNeil Island under the state’s civil commitment law.

Brooks was convicted in 1978 for rape of a 15-year-old girl in Kootenai County and then committed a series of rapes in Spokane that resulted in convictions in 1989 for first-degree kidnapping and first-degree rape of a child. He’d been in state custody for the past 24 years.

“He admitted he was out stalking young girls as young as 10,” Assistant Attorney General Malcolm Ross said. “He said he did it over 100 times.”

Rogers High School gets early start today

Rogers High School students are returning earlier than the rest of Spokane Public Schools for the second year in a row.

Today is their first day.

The reason: The school won a $4 million federal grant to improve its graduation rate and academics, which required the school to add 100 hours to its schedule. The administration decided to start the year three school days earlier and add 30 minutes to each day.

The rest of the schools will resume next Tuesday.

Burned bear cub needs daily medical care

BOISE – State wildlife officials say a black bear cub rescued from a wildfire burning the backcountry in eastern Idaho will need daily medical care for burns on all four paws.

The 25-pound bear nicknamed Boo Boo was discovered Sunday night, all alone and clinging to a tree in an area recently scorched by the Mustang Complex fire. Efforts to find the mother were unsuccessful.

A veterinarian with the Idaho Department of Fish and Game said Tuesday that Boo Boo, who has second-degree burns on each paw, needs daily bandage changes and six weeks to heal.

Taylor Bridge fire now fully contained

CLE ELUM, Wash. – Firefighting officials say a stubborn wildfire that destroyed dozens of homes in Central Washington has been contained after a two-week fight.

Spokesmen for the Taylor Bridge fire announced full containment Tuesday evening. The blaze that started Aug. 13 east of Cle Elum has burned more than 36 square miles, or 23,500 acres, about 75 miles east of Seattle.

Authorities have confirmed 61 homes and 35 outbuildings were destroyed and about seven other properties were damaged.

The exact cause remains under investigation.

McKenna: Releasing tax returns a ‘phony issue’

OLYMPIA – Washington gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna said Tuesday he will not release any of his tax returns, dismissing the matter as a distraction from important policy discussions.

McKenna, the state’s attorney general, said he has disclosed enough information in the personal financial forms that candidates file with the state. He called the tax-return debate a “phony issue.”

McKenna, a Republican, said his political rivals are attempting “to change the subject away from the real issues of the state.”

Democratic rival Jay Inslee, a former congressman, released five years of tax returns last week, and his campaign called on McKenna to do the same.