Liberty Lake: Cause of man’s death was suicide

Investigators have determined that a man found dead Dec. 31 off Henry Road committed suicide, said Liberty Lake police Chief Brian Asmus. The skeletal remains of Christopher R. Milam, who was reported missing in April, were found next to a gun. A bullet was recovered and a second search turned up the shell casing as well, Asmus said.

Police talked to several family members before making the determination of suicide, Asmus said, and Milam was found in an area he was known to frequent. “We wanted to make sure,” he said. “He used to go for walks up there.”

During the week of Jan. 2 through Monday, Liberty Lake officers made several arrests. An officer was alerted to activity at a construction site in the 25000 block of East Hawkstone Loop at 3:30 a.m. on Jan. 4. He found a man standing beside a truck; the man said he was picking up scrap metal, Asmus said. The officer noticed that the nearby fencing around the construction site had been pried open and found a second man trying to hide in the grass, Asmus said. It appeared that the two were removing metal from the site and loading it into the truck.

Newman Lake residents Terry L. Olson, 45, and John R. Miller, 36, were both arrested on charges of felony second-degree burglary. “That was a good find,” Asmus said.

An officer was sitting in traffic on westbound Appleway near Signal Road at 6:50 a.m. on Jan. 3 when he saw a driver use the center turn lane to pass a row of cars while driving more than 50 mph, Asmus said. It was a day when the roads were icy. The 27-year-old Liberty Lake resident was pulled over and reportedly told the officer that he was driving that way because he was late for work. He was cited for reckless driving. “He was still late for work,” Asmus said.

A Liberty Lake officer was called at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 4 to assist the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office with a residential burglary in the 23800 block of Clearwater Lane. The homeowner had confronted a man in his home and was able to provide police with a description. A Liberty Lake officer spotted a man matching the description sitting between apartment buildings in the 23300 block of Inlet Drive. He was turned over to deputies, Asmus said.

A resident called police at 3 p.m. on Sunday to report that people were shooting shotguns in the area. An officer contacted the group. “It was fairly close to the gun range,” Asmus said. “They didn’t realize they were in the city limits.”

During the week there were five arrests for driving with a suspended license and two investigations of credit card fraud. Officers handed out four citations for failure to show proof of liability insurance, two for defective mufflers, two for failure to stop at a stop sign, six for speeding and two for failure to wear a safety belt. Additional citations were given for license and plates required and driving without lights when required.