Alison Boggs

A Spokane Valley woman was raped after interrupting a burglary in her home last week. The 21-year-old woman had returned to the house on the 6700 block of East Eighth about 7:30 p.m. last Thursday, said sheriff's Lt. Clyde Ries. The woman went to the back of the house to let the dog out and smoke a cigarette, Ries said, then went to take a shower.

1. (Color) Tidyman's at Sprague and McDonald is planning to employ a security guard for safety. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review 2. Graffiti on the wall of the Sports Page Lanes is an indication of gang influence in the area. In the background is the Tidyman's grocery store where a man was shot last weekend. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Valley firefighters promise to throw support behind their new chief when he arrives on March 2, but that doesn't stop them from questioning the hiring process. They were surprised when the board of commissioners asked Chief Karl Bold to resign. The ensuing search for a new chief was quick and appeared to target one candidate right from the start, they said. "We're going to be 100 percent behind the new chief, but the process could've been done a little better," said firefighters union president Cooper Kennett. "The way it was done, we don't think it was fair." Pat Humphries, executive deputy chief of Vancouver Fire Department, last week was named Valley Fire's new chief.

Washington State Patrol troopers take John L. Mitchell into custody Tuesday morning. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

A fire that investigators say was sparked by an untended candle caused extensive damage to a Spokane Valley home last Saturday. The home of Duane and Jo Peterson, S2707 Raymond, sustained about $50,000 worth of damage from the blaze, which began about 1:40 a.m. The couple is staying at a motel, but probably will move temporarily into an apartment while their home is repaired, said Valley Fire inspector Paul Chase.

The executive deputy chief of the Vancouver (Wash.) Fire Department will take over as the new chief of Valley Fire District on March 2. Pat Humphries, 48, will be paid $74,000 per year and will serve at the will of the board of commissioners, on a month-to-month contract. "I am extremely happy," said Humphries, who is originally from Wenatchee. His wife is from Spokane and he said they have wanted to return to Eastern Washington for a while.

Ivan and Heather Gwynn play with their new rabbits. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

The sudden cold snap that hit last weekend led to a leap in chimney fires in the Spokane Valley. During the unseasonably warm weather of the past couple of weeks, people burned their woodstoves and fireplaces at a lower intensity, said Valley Fire inspector Kevin Miller. That causes creosote build-up in the chimney, he said.

Misty Driggs, left, reacts after misspelling a word, while Benji Klein makes his attempt. At right is winner Janelle Lile, a ninth-grader at Valley Adventist School. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Thirty-two students at East Valley High, 13 pictured, are involved in a SCOPE volunteer project helping Valley senior citizens with a variety of tasks. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

The four men being considered to head up Spokane Valley Fire range from the district's former fire prevention division chief to the president of the state fire chiefs association. Chief Karl Bold will step down when a new chief is hired. Bold was former chief Rod Tedrow's handpicked successor when Tedrow retired in August.

A Valley man was arrested after his wife told deputies he threatened to kill her early Sunday. Patrick M. Fitzsimmons, 28, E26512 Rowan, faces charges of domestic violence harassment and death threats.

Valley paramedics respond to a construction site accident. File photo/The Spokesman-Review

Ron Hill and one of his dead chickens. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

A West Valley High School student was arrested on drug and assault charges Tuesday morning after fighting with another student. Sheriff's deputies were called to the school about 7 a.m. after the 17-year-old pushed a 15-year-old to his knees and punched him in the face, said Lt. Clyde Ries.

1. Ross Schneidmiller stands on the spot that soon will be Pavilion Park at Liberty Lake, a community build part for all ages. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review 2. A circa 1915 photo shows the Liberty Lake pavilion's stylish upturned eaves. Below, a 1926 aerial photograph of the building and boat dock. Photos courtesy Ross Schneidmiller

Competition of note . Cathleen Dunn of Kennewick sings at the Metropolitan Opera District Auditions at SFCC on Saturday. Photo by Molly O'Hara/The Spokesman-Review

Spokane Valley firefighters had a standing lunch date at Egghead Software by Monday. It was the fourth day in a row that the alarm system malfunctioned - at precisely 1:26 p.m. - at the new Greenacres customer service center. "They're starting to schedule their meals around it," joked Valley Fire inspector Kevin Miller, referring to the firefighters who responded to the calls.

A water district serving about 5,000 people in the Spokane Valley recently discovered contamination at one of its test sites. A bacteria was found in samples taken from a gas station restroom on Jan. 10, said Spokane County Water District No. 3 General Manager Ty Wick. A sample taken from a test site next to Zip's Drive-In, E6411 Sprague, also contained the contaminant the following week, Wick said.

Four teenagers were arrested after asking a sheriff's deputy for directions while driving a stolen car in the Spokane Valley on Wednesday morning. Deputy Paul Jackson was sitting in a patrol car near N2000 Argonne about 4:40 a.m. Four youths in a GMC pickup pulled up next to him and one boy asked for directions, said sheriff's Lt. Clyde Ries. Another deputy, Lyle Johnston, ran the vehicle up on a police computer and it registered as stolen from Clarkston.

One crime prevention program is giving a big boost to another in the Spokane Valley. Several SCOPE (Sheriff's Community Oriented Policing Effort) volunteers have completed a 24-hour training in setting up neighborhood Block Watch programs.

Family members console each other in the driveway of their burned-out home at E13420 Boone on Saturday afternoon. Photo by Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review

James Earl Ray did not kill Martin Luther King, Jr., but was definitely involved in the plot, an expert on American political assassinations said Saturday night. "I believe it is a conspiracy," Philip H. Melanson, a professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and author of a book on the assassination, told about 30 people gathered at The Met in Spokane.

A Valley man who authorities say is mentally ill is accused of trying to set his apartment on fire Tuesday night. Daniel L. Wentz, 28, of E4403 Eighth, No. 106, was arrested and charged with first degree arson. He is being held at Spokane County Jail. Deputies and Valley Fire District crews responded to the apartment complex about 8:15 p.m. Wentz told his story several times, and it changed each time, said sheriff's Lt. Clyde Ries.