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

Sirens & Gavels

TUESDAY, OCT. 13, 2009

Spokane attorney Mark Kamitomo, photographed in January 2008, believes he was a victim of racial slurs by jurors who deliberated one of his malpractice cases in Spokane Superior Court.  (Brian Plonka / The Spokesman-Review)

Judges look at verdict tossed over racial comments

Three state appellate judges were asked Tuesday to reinstate a verdict in favor of a local doctor after five jurors in the original malpractice trial reportedly made derogatory comments about the Japanese heritage of one of the plaintiff’s attorneys. The case has attracted statewide attention…

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   A pair of thieves struck West Valley and East Valley High Schools last week, and their respective School Resource Deputies hope someone will recognize and identify the crooks.
    On October 2nd, the two females entered the girls’ locker room at East Valley High School and entered two lockers belonging to volleyball players who were at after-school practice.
    The thieves took a truck key and bottle of perfume from one locker and from the second a brown wallet containing cash, a debit card, school ID card and Washington Learner’s Permit.  A pink Voyager cellular phone also was taken.
    The suspects apparently went to the parking lot and used the stolen key to open the first victim’s truck.  They stole a pink iPod and Cannon digital camera from the vehicle.
    Less than an hour later, the two suspects went to West Valley High School and entered the girls’ locker room while those volleyball players were at practice.  This time they were captured on school security video.
    The suspects stole a black and pink T-Mobile “Behold” phone, a gray and green T-Mobile “Gravity” phone, a pink LG “Venus” phone and a blue AT&T “Slider” phone from four different victims.  Total loss was about $900.
    Neither suspect appears to be a student at either school.  When they left West Valley High, outside security video captured them getting into a white van.
    Anyone with information about the two thieves is encouraged to call Crime Check at 456-2233.  (Spokane County Sheriff's Office)

Locker room thieves caught on camera

Here's a news release by Sgt. Dave Reagan: "A pair of thieves struck West Valley and East Valley High schools last week, and school resource deputies hope someone can identify the crooks. On Oct. 2, the two females entered the girls’ locker room at East…

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Oxy addict robbed elderly women, court docs say

OxyContin addiction drove a young man to rob elderly women in grocery store parking lots to support his habit, court documents allege. Ryan X. Burgess, 21, was scheduled to plead innocent today to first-degree robbery, first-degree theft and two counts of second-degree robbery in connection…

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TV network wants Blade Runner docs unsealed

A Canadian television network is working to unseal court documents in Eastern Washington federal court about the drug bust that led to a legendary young mountain biker's death in the Spokane County Jail. Lawyers for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation filed a motion last week asking…

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3 pit bulls maul mini horse in Pend Oreille Co. 

Three pit bulls mauled a miniature horse before being shot to death in Elk, Wash., last week, the Pend Oreille County Sheriff's Office announced today. The melee led sheriff's deputies to a marijuana growing operation on the dog owner's property, according to a news release.…

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MONDAY, OCT. 12, 2009

Court on Saturday? You betcha! 

Here's Tom Clouse's report: "Spokane officials announced today that Spokane Municipal Court will begin hearing cases on two Saturdays a month starting in December. The sessions, which will be held at 1:30 p.m. on the first and third Saturdays of the month, will allow residents…

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Trial this week in parking lot shooting

Jury selection began today in the trial of a teenager accused of shooting at two men in a motel parking lot late last year. Anthony R. Covert, 19, was arrested in November, accused of shooting Shane L. Hagedorn in a dispute police say centered on…

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FRIDAY, OCT. 9, 2009

Career burglar at it again, allegedly 

A career criminal released from jail in August because charges weren’t filed in a burglary case is accused of a Wednesday night burglary that cleaned out a Spokane car stereo store. Christopher J. Cannata, who police say has 21 felony convictions, returned to Spokane County…

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Dad acquitted in girl's hypothermia death

SHOSHONE, Idaho — An Idaho man who let his 11-year-old daughter walk several miles in freezing conditions along an isolated rural highway on Christmas Day was acquitted Friday of involuntary manslaughter in the girl’s death from hypothermia. Robert Aragon (left) was also found not guilty…

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THURSDAY, OCT. 8, 2009

Courthouse watch: 10.8.09

A tip that originated from drunken bragging gave Spokane Valley police officers the information they needed to bag one burglary suspect and develop probable cause to book another one. Jesse Leroy Brown, 18, was arrested late Wednesday night after he allegedly got drunk on stolen…

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Funeral today for cancer-stricken SPD officer

The Spokane County Sheriff's Office and Spokane Valley Police Department traffic units handled calls inside the city of Spokane this morning while police department employees attended the funeral of an officer who died of leukemia. Aaron S. Douglas, 38, was hired as a police officer…

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County OKs settlement in Taser case

A Spokane County reserve fund will pay some $112,000 to a man who was shocked three times with a Taser by a deputy during a traffic stop in 2004. County commissioners approved a settlement this week with Spirit Creager, (right) a painter who had sued…

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WEDNESDAY, OCT. 7, 2009

Chief responds to Center for Justice story 

Spokane police Chief Anne Kirkpatrick just fired off a fierce e-mail responding to this story by BIll Morlin for the Center for Justice. The article states that Kirkpatrick confirmed "widely circulated rumors that she has been looking for a job elsewhere, including a recent opening…

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Mitchell A. Hardin’s  public defender, Todd Porter, refused to go near him last week, expressing fear over catching an illness because Hardin was among jail inmates required to wear a mask. (Colin Mulvany / The Spokesman-Review)

And it keeps spreading...

The swine flu has arrived at the Shoshone County Jail. An inmate has tested positive for the H1N1 virus, the Shoshone County Sheriffs Office announced today. The inmate complained of flu-like symptoms a week ago and was tested for the virus at a hospital. "Since…

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Adin Stevens displays shirts he printed on a whim weeks ago celebrating teenage fugitive  Colton  Harris- Moore Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009, in his printing shop in Seattle. Whenever police get near  Harris- Moore, the teen seems to disappear and the crime spree is beginning to feel like something out of the movie "Catch Me If You Can." Since escaping from a halfway house last year, the 18-year-old suspected in more than 50 burglaries and now, say authorities, stealing airplanes. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson) (Elaine Thompson / The Associated Press)

Teen bandit becoming national sensation 

His following seems to grow as quickly as the list of crimes people speculate he may have committed. Colton Harris-Moore has been something of a legend in the town of Camano Island, where he grew up and is suspected of nearly 50 burglaries and thefts,…

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TUESDAY, OCT. 6, 2009

Courthouse watch: 10.6.09

A man scheduled to accept a plea deal in an OxyContin robbery will instead go to trial on all charges after asking for a delay today. Nicholas A. Blessing, 29, posted $15,000 bond yesterday, then told his public defender, Jeff Compton, he needed more time…

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Moses Lake man convicted in drug death

A Moses Lake man faces at least four years in prison after being convicted of controlled substance homicide. A jury deliberated for about an hour Oct. 2 before finding Corey Christman, 30, guilty in the death of Ryan Leonard Mulder, 19, the Grant County Sheriff's…

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Spokane Officer Paul Gorman poses with his new police dog, Maximus. (The Spokesman-Review)

Where was this photo taken? 

Any guesses on where this photo of Spokane police Officer Paul Gorman and his K9, Maximus, was taken? Spokane police sent it to media yesterday. I've never seen an alley like that in Spokane. The fallen Roman pillars are a nice touch. I've put a…

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MONDAY, OCT. 5, 2009



Couple in $800,000 fraud get prison

A woman and her boyfriend who bought a trip to the Super Bowl and other luxury items with more than $800,000 in embezzled funds from a Spokane business will spend time in prison. Michelle A. Wing, 34, will spend more than six years in a…

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FRIDAY, OCT. 2, 2009

Public safety news from the Inland Northwest and beyond.