Latest from The Spokesman-Review

• 40 indicted in drug ring run from Indiana prisons

  August 23, 2012 in Nation/World INDIANAPOLIS — Two inmates housed at different Indiana prisons used cellphones smuggled in by guards to run a drug ring that distributed methamphetamine and heroin, according to a federal indictment … 7

• Wash. effort seeks to identify veterans in prison

  July 16, 2012 in Region ABERDEEN, Wash. — More than 80 inmates shuffle into a large visitation room at Stafford Creek Correctional Center. All are military veterans, but not all of them realize it. 5

• Escaped North Idaho inmate turns self in

  July 13, 2012 in Idaho A state prison inmate who walked away from a job site in Nampa is back in custody after turning himself in to authorities in Coeur d’Alene.

• N Idaho firefighter pleads guilty to lewd conduct

  July 10, 2012 in Idaho COEUR d’ALENE — A North Idaho firefighter has pleaded guilty to a charge of lewd conduct after he was accused of having sex with a girl who was 13 and … 9

• Bunking with cats, inmates learn value of teamwork

  May 3, 2012 in Region When Princess Natalie was still a kitten, before she was prison royalty, she was left in a cage with another cat for months. They were fed, given water and not … 1

• Bail-jumping charge sends thief to prison

  April 26, 2012 in City on Page A7 A Spokane man convicted of stealing money from a homeless woman who gave him her savings to rent a home is headed to prison. But it wasn’t the theft that …

• Rathdrum man gets life sentence for lewd conduct

  December 29, 2011 in Idaho, News A 41-year-old Rathdrum man was sentenced Wednesday to serve up to life in prison for three counts of lewd conduct with a minor under the age of 16. 5

• Prank phone call sparked mistaken-identity nightmare

  April 1, 2011 in City on Page A1 Be careful. On this day when friends often pull practical jokes, remember that sometimes things can backfire – terribly. 14

• Corrections center staff fear budget cuts will reduce safety

  March 3, 2011 in City on Page A1 A cold, damp picket line of state prison guards asked for safety and respect Wednesday in Airway Heights. The pickets got an occasional car-honk salute as they called attention to … 4

• Strangling suspect got mixed reports

  February 5, 2011 in City on Page B2 Eleven years before Byron Scherf became the chief suspect in the strangling of a Monroe, Wash., corrections officer, a psychologist had concluded Scherf was “unlikely to act out within the … 2

• In brief: Allred filing to fix in-kind reporting error

  November 18, 2010 in City on Page A7 BOISE – Democratic gubernatorial candidate Keith Allred is amending his campaign’s financial disclosures to include an in-kind contribution worth $3,000 to $4,000 for work done by the Boise-based business consulting …

• U.S. jail population drops

  June 4, 2010 in Nation/World on Page A1 WASHINGTON – The nation’s local jail population is declining for the first time since the federal government began keeping count, reflecting what some experts say is a growing belief that … 1

• Court: Wash. inmate denied Torah can sue

  May 5, 2010 in City A federal appeals court has reinstated a lawsuit brought by a Washington inmate who was denied Jewish reading materials. 4

• John Higgins

  February 8, 2010 in City on Page A5 The Medical Lake City Council unanimously approved a resolution last week opposing any new jail in the city. City officials also have threatened legal action if Spokane County or the … 8

• State ignoring own report on Pine Lodge issue

    February 7, 2010 in City on Page B1 OLYMPIA – Last year, the Legislature spent $500,000 for a consultant to tell Washington state which prisons should close and which should stay open. The consultant released his study in … 9

• Medical Lake leaders object

  January 30, 2010 in City on Page A1 Medical Lake city officials said Friday they want the Pine Lodge Corrections Center for Women and no other prison. If state officials close Pine Lodge as suggested by Gov. Chris … 5

• Prison to shrink by half

  June 3, 2009 in City on Page A1 OLYMPIA – Citing a smaller population of female prisoners, state corrections officials plan to shutter one of two units at Pine Lodge Corrections Center for Women, the only women’s prison … 6

• Prison officials face escalating violence

    February 7, 2009 in City on Page A1 As multi-agency gang task forces succeed in arresting and prosecuting gang members, the transfer of gangs from the streets to the state’s prisons is leading to more violence behind bars. …

• Idaho prisons rife with gang violence

  January 29, 2008 in Idaho on Page B3 BOISE – Idaho’s prison population is getting more violent as gangs extend their reach throughout the prison system. “We are having many, many incidents with our gang members,” said Pam …

• AT&T charged too much for prison calls

  January 18, 2008 in City on Page A1 OLYMPIA – Friends and relatives of inmates at two Eastern Washington prisons have been overcharged tens of thousands of dollars for collect phone calls, state regulators said Thursday. In a …

• Prison warehouse may house inmates

  November 6, 2007 in Idaho on Page B1 BOISE – Desperate for places to put its ever-increasing numbers of prisoners, Idaho is looking into converting a giant metal warehouse into prison beds for 304 inmates. The 42,000-square-foot warehouse …

• Mcneil Island Gains Support As Site For Violent Sex Offenders

  September 24, 1997 in City on Page B2 Washington’s civil-commitment program for violent sex offenders could be moved to the McNeil Island Corrections Center from Monroe, state officials say. “It has the capacity,” Mark Seling, director of the …

• Inmate Attempts Escape Over Fence

  March 28, 1997 in City on Page B3 An inmate at the Airway Heights Corrections Center tried to escape Thursday night by climbing a 12-foot-high fence topped with razor wire, officials said. John L. Gemmill, 29, was captured …

• Prisoner At Penitentiary Thwarted In Escape Attempt

  July 18, 1996 in City on Page B3 A man serving a lengthy sentence for murder stole a Washington State Penitentiary employee’s truck and rammed it into a fence in an unsuccessful escape attempt, authorities said Wednesday. John …

• Alabama To End Chain Gangs

  June 21, 1996 in Nation/World on Page A4 A year after becoming the first state to bring back chain gangs, Alabama has yielded to pressure to end the practice. “They realized that chaining them together was inefficient, that …

• Escape Tunnel Discovered Under State Reformatory

  January 6, 1996 in City on Page B3 The discovery of some loose screws led officials at the state reformatory here to a tunnel that inmates apparently planned to use in an escape attempt. The inmates chipped through …

• Escapees Captured

  November 7, 1995 in City on Page B6 Two of three escapees from a minimum-security work crew have been apprehended in Florida after a routine traffic stop, Idaho Correction officials say. Shane Jeffrey McCloskey of Post Falls and …

• Well-Managed?

  May 28, 1995 in City on Page B1 Whether Washington prisons are well-managed by Corrections Secretary Chase Riveland depends on the yardstick used to measure success. If it’s the price tag, other states look better. Washington spends more …

• Legislature Oks Limiting Inmate Perks

  May 23, 1995 in City on Page B2 Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, speaks during a Senate debate on prison life. Photo by Associated Press

• Work-Release Center On N. Monroe Ok’d

  May 18, 1995 in Washington Voices on Page N3 The city hearing examiner has approved the use of the old Ricardo Building at the southeast corner of Broadway and Monroe for a federal work-release center on the condition that …

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