Law enforcement fatalities rose in 2014, but only one Washington officer was killed in the line of duty this year, according to a report released Tuesday by the nonprofit National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.
Mayor David Condon has selected City Attorney Nancy Isserlis to serve on the search committee for a new police ombudsman.
Hate crimes in the U.S. fell in 2013, according to FBI data released Monday, even as the agency included several new bias categories. Spokane and Spokane Valley also saw a drop in reported incidents from 2012 to 2013. For the first time, this year's data…
The trial for a suspended ER physician at the Spokane Veteran's Affairs hospital has been pushed to April. Craig Morgenstern, 45, remains in custody of the Spokane County Jail, facing a nine-count federal criminal indictment that charges him with producing child pornography, aggravated sexual abuse…
Editor's note: A previous version of this blog post incorrectly reported the claims Gonzaga was making against Jamie Pendleton. The post has been updated to correct those reporter errors. The owner of the long-shuttered Downtown Daiquiri Factory is continuing his fight against Gonzaga University, arguing…
A federal judge has given prosecutors until Feb. 10 to determine whether they will seek the death penalty for five of six men implicated in an alleged murder-for-hire plot tied to North Dakota oil fields that left a South Hill businessman shot to death in…
Former Spokane Police officer and current federal prison inmate Karl Thompson earlier this month filed an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court of his excessive force conviction in the March 2006 death of Otto Zehm. The appeal, filed with the nation's highest court Oct. 22,…
Election Day is Tuesday, and if you still haven't decided which candidate for Spokane County prosecutor or sheriff you're supporting, these televised debates that aired last night on KSPS-TV may help you decide. Check out the videos after the jump.
Police think they know who shot up a Spokane Valley tavern earlier this month and the suspect has an appropriately memorable name: Ray Gunn. A convicted felon prohibited from legally possessing firearms, Gunn was taken into custody Oct. 23 by sheriff's detectives assigned to the…
If federal prosecutors seek the death penalty for the man accused of masterminding a plot to murder a South Hill businessman and one of his former oil patch employees, the trial likely wouldn't begin until the tail end of 2017. A report filed in support…
A federal judge on Tuesday granted a joint request to push the trial of Matthew Baumrucker, the Spokane County Jail inmate tied to former Spokane County Deputy Prosecutor Marriya Wright. Baumrucker, 31, remains in custody at the jail on a federal charge of being a…
Mailers for the two men vying to replace outgoing Spokane County Prosecutor Steve Tucker echo the strengths the candidates have touted on the campaign trail. For Democratic challenger Breean Beggs, that means a reference to his work representing the family of slain janitor Otto Zehm…
A candidate for Spokane County District Court judge, Tim Trageser, is questioning incumbent Judge Richard Leland’s placement of his campaign signs. Leland's campaign has attached many of his signs to Republican candidates, including Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich, using zip ties. Trageser argues that it gives voters…
The family of a 24-year-old woman shot by a man sentenced to 31 months in prison earlier this week following a January robbery attempt says they are angered they were not informed of the plea deal before it was approved. But the victim advocate on…
An embattled Ephrata pot shop has fired a lofty salvo in response to a trademark infringement lawsuit filed against it by the marijuana media juggernaut that publishes "High Times" magazine. In its response to a lawsuit filed last month in U.S. District Court for Eastern…
The Spokane Police Department ran several members of the media through its VirTra virtual training system Friday to demonstrate the fidelity of its chest-mounted cameras currently in use by 17 officers in a pilot program. The video below was captured by a camera worn by…
The girlfriend of convicted Ponzi scheme artist Greg Jeffreys said she's fulfilling court-ordered restitution and denied victimizing anyone in a response filed in federal court over the weekend. The U.S. Attorney's Office for Eastern Washington filed a motion last week after it came to light…
A 26-year-old Spokane man with multiple felony convictions tossed a .45 handgun believed to have been stolen during a chase through a residential neighborhood Friday, according to court documents filed this week. Joshua V. Fowler was booked into Spokane County Jail just after 4:30 p.m.…
A 71-year-old homeless man from Spokane was arrested in Kennewick this weekend for defecating on a public sidewalk. The man, who is not named in a report from The Tri-City Herald, reportedly told the arresting officer, "When you have to go, you have to go."…
Coeur d’Alene police are looking for a thief who stole a bottle of prescription pills sometime late Tuesday by cutting a hole in a screen window and swiping them from the sill. The owner of the home in the 1500 block of Sixth Street called…
On the heels of last week's complaint against Spokane Police Chief Frank Straub for misrepresentation, Brian Breen, a retired police officer and frequent commenter on Spokesman-Review stories, has filed a complaint against the chief for providing "false information to members of the City Council ...…
The first retail marijuana store in Stevens County has opened its doors for business, though employees say they're suffering from the same lack of product that has plagued other stores in the region. Savage THC in Clayton, Washington, opened last week and is keeping regular…
A Washington State University professor of criminal justice and the Spokane Police Department have been featured on CNN for their collaboration on research into the physical and emotional responses of law enforcement in crisis situations. As part of its "AC360" program hosted by Anderson Cooper,…
A man sentenced to death for his role in the brutal slaying of two women in a Spokane Valley trailer in 1996 has won another look at his case from a federal appeals court, though at least one judge said it's unlikely that review will…
Tim Connor, a longtime independent law enforcement watchdog and former spokesman for the Center for Justice, filed a complaint with the police ombudsman today against Spokane Police Chief Frank Straub for misrepresentation. According to Connor's complaint, the chief said at a public City Council meeting…
Public safety news from the Inland Northwest and beyond.
