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

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17, 2015


Idaho Sens. Crapo and Risch Say 'Nay' to U.S. Torture Ban 19 

The United States Senate voted June 16 to pass an amendment to the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act outlawing the use of torture against U.S. detainees. Introduced by Republican Sen. John McCain and Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the vote comes six months after the release of a damning report detailing the Bush-era practice of so-called "enhanced interrogation" techniques at secret prisons around the world.

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Idaho officials seek to intervene in Forest Service lawsuit

BOISE, Idaho — Idaho officials have filed court documents to intervene in a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Forest Service brought by a northern Idaho couple and an environmental group. The State Board of Land Commissioners and Idaho Department of Lands filed the document Tuesday in U.S. District Court. Idaho officials contend the state has a substantial interest to intervene because the lawsuit seeks to block a road that's the only access to a salvage timber project on state land. Idaho officials say the wildfire-damaged trees will lose value and are prone to insect infestation.

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Wednesday Wild Card 6.17.15 

I love my cats. You know I do. But I have to say Milo is the loudest, whiniest cat I have ever met. Like most firstborns he likes a schedule and he hates change. This first week of the boys out of school has messed with his schedule and his mind. He starts yelling at 5 AM, fearful that starvation is imminent. When that fails, he starts knocking things of my bedside table, scaling the headboard or trying to wrestle my feet.

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Donald Trump announces he will run for president in New York on Tuesday. (Associated Press)

Trump's in 12 

In case you missed it :-) NEW YORK – The Donald is running for president – for real this time. Real-estate mogul and reality-television star Donald Trump, who has brazenly flirted with running for office before but never followed through, announced Tuesday that he will seek the Republican nomination for president. Trump entered the race in a bombastic spectacle befitting a man whose businesses successes are matched by his penchant for self-promotion.

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Woman sentenced for sex with adopted son 

COEUR d'ALENE - Kimberly Durlin was sentenced Tuesday to 20 years in prison for having sex with her 14-year-old adopted son. But Kootenai County District Court Judge John Mitchell gave her a second chance by recommending Durlin, 32, enter a sex-offender treatment rider program. "I'm not a punishment-oriented judge," Mitchell told Durlin after handing down his sentence. "But I can't abide by placing you on probation and serving a little amount of jail time."

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Dolezal and other police oversight committee members accused of misconduct 13 

Just when you think it can't get any worse-- it does. The actions of former NAACP chairman Rachel Dolezal and two other members of the Office of Police Ombudsman Commission threatened that group’s impartiality and effectiveness, a city investigation has found. In response Spokane Mayor David Condon and Council President Ben Stuckart have called on all three members to resign. In a news conference today, Condon and Stuckart said the three leaked sensitive information about police misconduct investigations.

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A cyclist takes advantage of the warm weather while pedaling along the dike road in Coeur d'Alene on Tuesday.  (Kathy Plonka)

Dike Road work nearly done 

The city of Coeur d'Alene announced Tuesday that transformation of the levee along what is commonly known as Dike Road on the North Idaho College campus is nearing completion. On Tuesday, crews began hydroseeding the bank leading to Lake Coeur d'Alene and an irrigation system was recently installed, according to a press release. What do you think of the new and improved Dike Road?

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Labrador raises doubts about support for Simpson's bill 

1st District Congressman Raul Labrador raised doubts Tuesday about the support for a wilderness bill 2nd District Congressman Mike Simpson has pushed for 15 years, reports Rocky Barker of the Idaho Statesman. The bill would designate 275,665 acres in the Boulder and White Cloud mountains and the Jerry Peak area of central Idaho as wilderness. Labrador, questioning a Forest Service official Tuesday who was addressing the House Resources Committee’s public lands subcommittee, said motorized recreation users support the bill because they fear the alternative — a national monument designation by President Barack Obama. “The truth is, the public will is against this bill,” Labrador said.

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Post Falls boys find wallet with $782 inside, return it to owner 

POST FALLS - Zachary Endreson and Michael Williams couldn't believe what they found in the middle of busy Third Avenue on Monday night. The 11-year-old boys were walking on a sidewalk toward Zachary's house near Bay Street when they spotted a wallet in the middle of the road. But this wasn't just any wallet. It had $782 inside, the owner's driver's license, Social Security number and credit cards.

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Rachel Dolezal poses with her .44-caliber revolver on March 2. (File)

Vestal: As Dolezal played her game, many of us played along  

At the end of February, I saw a social media post about a package of racist, seemingly threatening letters that the head of Spokane’s NAACP chapter said she had received. I reached out to Rachel Dolezal, and she agreed to an interview at her home. I asked her about the 20-page package – which included gun-range target imagery and a photo of a lynching – and looked at cellphone photographs of the materials, which had been turned over to police.

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Editorial: Idaho’s kids need more help from lawmakers 

The Idaho Legislature ended the year in overtime, a strange special session on child support and international treaties. The next regular session should begin with child support of another kind: more education funding. Though lawmakers increased funding for schools and teachers, the state still finds itself in last place nationwide in per-pupil funding, according to an analysis by the Idaho Statesman. This is bad for children and the economy.

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Coeur d’Alene School District Curriculum Director Mike Nelson talks about the monumental task of organizing the reading material at the book warehouse in Coeur d’Alene on Tuesday. (Kathy Plonka)

CdA schools have a tall stack of books to review 

Seriously, if I lived in Cda I would love to volunteer for this committee! Any Hucksters willing to step up? Last month’s dustup over John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men” in Coeur d’Alene high schools has not stirred a wave of volunteers to help the school district review a tall stack of other books.

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New home planned for Fort Ground 

COEUR d'ALENE - Demolition began Monday at a 105-year-old home across from City Park in the historic and eclectic Fort Grounds neighborhood. John and Jessica Pulsipher, who own the property at 205 N. Park Drive, have plans for a new home there with 7,500 square feet of living space. A four-car garage adds another 1,400 square feet to the total building area.

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Lawsuit charges Idaho's public defense system violates constitutions 

Despite five years of warnings, Idaho has continued to violate the U.S. and Idaho constitutions by failing to provide poor people charged with crimes with lawyers who can adequately defend them, a class-action lawsuit filed today charges. Instead, the state has responded by creating a series of “virtually powerless committees,” and enacting minimal law changes in 2014 that, the lawsuit says, not only didn’t go far enough to fix the problems, but aren’t even being followed.

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Dolezal: 'No proof that they're my parents' 37 

NEW YORK – Rachel Dolezal’s daylong media blitz in which she denied that she is a white woman posing as a black woman culminated Tuesday night with a claim that she’s not sure her white parents are her real parents. “I haven’t had a DNA test. There’s been no biological proof that Larry and Ruthanne are my biological parents,” Dolezal said in an appearance on “NBC Nightly News.” “There’s a birth certificate that has your name on it and their names on it,” responded interviewer Savannah Guthrie.

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Jimmy Gunn at Open with help from CDA Casino 

As passionate as I am about football and futball, I'm as dispassionate about golf. But this is a cool story. UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. – It’s a long way from Circling Raven in 2004 to the U.S. Open in 2015. Jimmy Gunn is the only one in the 156-player field at the 115th national championship that unfolds this week at Chambers Bay familiar with the journey.

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Spokane NAACP asks police to continue hate mail investigation 

The Spokane chapter of the NAACP released a statement today asking the Spokane Police Department to continue its investigation into allegations of hate mail sent to the chapter. Police announced last week that they were suspending an investigation into a claim made by former president Rachel Dolezal that she received a package of threatening material in the chapter’s post office box. Documents released by police last week showed that the envelope was not stamped and had not been mailed.

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United States' Abby Wambach, center, celebrates her goal with her teammates during the first half on Tuesday. (AP)

U.S. women in 1-0 win over Nigeria  

If you've ever read my column then you know, we here at Casa Hval are passionate football fans-- and I mean both European and American Football. Yesterday's win by the U.S. women in the FIFA Women's World Cup had us cheering. My husband played semi-professional soccer in his late teens/early twenties and two of or sons played, one at the select level. Are you a soccer fan?

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Huckleberries Online

D.F. Oliveria started Huckleberries Online on Feb. 16, 2004. Oliveria's Sunday print Huckleberries is a past winner of the national Herb Caen Memorial Column contest.