In brief: Alleged stabber held on bond
A man arrested for allegedly stabbing another man in the neck during an altercation Sunday is being held on bond in Spokane County Jail.
Judge Annette Plese set bond at $25,000 for 40-year-old Ian B. Bennington, who is charged with first-degree assault.
His attorney, Jeffrey Compton, argued to have Bennington released on his own recognizance or to have the bond reduced because police records indicate that he only used the knife after the victim punched him in the head during the confrontation at Eighth Avenue and Freya Street.
Even the “victim claimed Mr. Bennington acted in self-defense,” Compton said.
Plese noted Bennington had several failures to appear and two felony convictions on his record, and she kept the bond at $25,000.
She set the arraignment for Sept. 11.
Northwest streets to be closed today
A number of residential streets in northwest Spokane will be closed today.
The following streets south of Wellesley Avenue and west of Assembly Street will be closed for up to two hours between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.: Northwest Boulevard, Princeton Place, Windsor Drive, Hartley Street, King Court, Royal Court, Hoffman Place and Manor Crest Street.
The city is applying a fog seal, an additional process that is applied to chip-sealed streets to help set the chips and extend the life of the seal, according to a city news release. The city recently added chip sealing as a street-preservation method.
Accused robber pleads not guilty
A man police say provided the weapons used in an armed robbery at a Spokane McDonald’s restaurant pleaded not guilty in Spokane County Superior Court.
Avery L. Loring, 26, faces several counts in the May 25 robbery of the restaurant at 4647 S. Regal St.
A trial is set for Oct. 29. He’s being held on $500,000 bond.
Four men wearing black clothing, masks and gloves entered the McDonald’s armed with handguns and shotguns and robbed four employees and six customers of cash, phones and other valuables. McDonald’s reported a $1,400 loss.
One of Loring’s suspected accomplices told police that Loring was the “keeper of all the items utilized in the robbery,” court documents say.
Author Bach still in serious condition
SEATTLE – Author Richard Bach remained in serious condition at a Seattle hospital Tuesday with injuries suffered when his small plane crashed on San Juan Island.
Harborview Medical Center spokeswoman Liz Hunter said there’s been no change in his condition.
His son James Bach said Sunday his father was lucid and had improved since the accident Friday left him with a head injury and broken shoulder.
Richard Bach, 76, had a New York Times No. 1 best-seller in 1970 with “Jonathan Livingston Seagull.” About 20 years ago he moved to Orcas Island.
Idaho teen charged in grandma’s death
BOISE – Authorities in southwestern Idaho have charged a teen with second-degree murder in connection to his grandmother’s death over the weekend.
The Payette County sheriff’s office says 18-year-old Tyler Naughton was arrested late Sunday on suspicion of theft for driving his grandmother’s pickup, which had been reported stolen. The body of 60-year-old Sherryl Kenney was found early that morning in a home south of Fruitland, Idaho.
Sheriff Chad Huff said autopsy results are pending, but an initial investigation found Kenney died from a gunshot wound.
A preliminary hearing for Naughton has been scheduled for this afternoon. The teen, who was being held in Adams County following his arrest on a felony grand theft charge, was being transferred to Payette County.
Oregon ranked fourth in drug use
PORTLAND – A new report says Oregon ranks fourth in the nation for illegal drug use by people 12 and older.
The findings are based on a national survey that asked about drug use in the past 30 days. They were included in a report released Tuesday by the state Department of Justice through a federal program that combats illegal drugs in areas with heavy trafficking.
The report says state and federal restrictions on the sale of cold medications that are a key ingredient in methamphetamine have contributed to a sharp decline in the number of meth labs discovered. But it says Mexican drug cartels have picked up the slack and are importing methamphetamine from other states and from south of the border.
Analysts also say marijuana use and cultivation are on the rise in Oregon.
Man arrested after yacht joyride
BELLINGHAM – Police in Bellingham say a man accused of taking a $500,000 yacht on a four-hour joyride has been arrested.
The owner of the 52-foot Nordic Tug got a call from a friend Monday afternoon wondering why the man’s boat was moving so fast off Lummi Island. The boat owner went down to the dock and found his boat missing. He called police.
When the boat returned Monday evening, police arrested 37-year-old Jason Edward Nollmeyer for investigation of first-degree theft and methamphetamine possession.
Human remains found in Oregon
SALEM – Marion County officials say skeletal remains were found over the weekend in a remote area of the Santiam Canyon in the Cascade Range, and law enforcement officers said their thoughts immediately turned to a Bend woman whose husband was convicted of killing her.
The remains of 48-year-old Lori Blaylock, who disappeared in 2010, haven’t been found.
After being arrested, her husband, Steven Blaylock, led officers to a spot along the North Santiam River, upstream of the site where hunters reported finding the remains Saturday, and said he had dumped her body there. He helped them find pieces of clothing hidden on the bank.
Several searches of the river and Detroit Lake turned up no remains. Kayakers told authorities in late 2010 they had seen a body tangled in a fallen tree, but by the time officers arrived, it was gone.
The lake, the reservoir of a dam on the river, is about 80 miles west of Bend, which is in Deschutes County.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday that the bones are believed to be human, no identification has been made, and the remains will be sent to the medical examiner’s office.