Chad Sokol

Rachel Murphy worked for Douglass Properties from 1997 until she was fired in June 2017, according to a complaint filed last week in Spokane County Superior Court. It states that she was authorized to use three company credit cards, cut checks to suppliers and contractors, and approve expenditures of subordinate employees. Now her former boss is suing her for embezzlement.

Treshon Broughton, who graduated from WSU last year after two seasons as a cornerback on the school’s football team, was arrested inside Bob’s Corner Market on Feb. 18, 2017, in view of more than a dozen other patrons of the convenience store. During the incident, he pulled away from officers as they tried to subdue him with a neck hold and other maneuvers. One officer ultimately deployed a Taser into Broughton’s back while another officer held him on the floor.

An order from the Vatican on Monday widened a rift in the Roman Catholic Church over how to handle the ongoing sexual abuse crisis in the United States. That rift was exemplified in comments by two church leaders that have overseen the Spokane diocese.

Light streamed into Bishop Thomas Daly’s office one recent afternoon as he spoke, in sometimes blunt terms, about the widening scandal of sexual abuse by Catholic clergy in the United States. “It’s a moral crisis,” Daly said. “We have degenerate behavior, hypocrisy and now cover-up. My thought is, ‘How much more can the people of God put up with?’ ”

The lawsuit, filed last week in U.S. District Court in Spokane, alleges Fairchild Air Force Base officials used the fire retardant recklessly and failed to warn neighbors of its “inherently dangerous properties.” The complaint was made on behalf of two landowners and seeks damages from the federal government.

Eastern Washington University has spent nearly $1 million this year to mitigate air contamination in its John F. Kennedy Library.

A divisive race to replace retiring Stevens County Sheriff Kendle Allen seemed too close to call on Tuesday evening, though early results showed one candidate leading the other by more than three percentage points.

Republican state Reps. Joe Schmick and Mary Dye have defended their seats representing southeast Washington’s 9th Legislative District.

Republican state Sen. Shelly Short and state Rep. Jacqueline Maycumber have defended their seats representing northeast Washington’s 7th Legislative District.

Shelley Szambelan will remain a judge on the Spokane County Superior Court, having won nearly 60 percent of votes in her race against attorney Dennis Cronin, early ballot returns show. Patrick Johnson has beat Randy Brandt by a similar margin in a race to become a Spokane County District Court judge.

Democratic state Reps. Timm Ormsby and Marcus Riccelli have won new terms representing Washington’s 3rd Legislative District, which covers the city of Spokane.

Republican state Reps. Matt Shea and Bob McCaslin have fended off Democratic challengers in Eastern Washington’s 4th Legislative District.

“All New York was up in arms about these two homeless red-tailed hawks, and I couldn’t generate the same outrage about hundreds of thousands of people being slaughtered,” Kristof said. “And I thought, what is wrong?’”

Treshon Broughton, who graduated from Washington State University last year after two seasons as a cornerback, claims the officers repeatedly struck his head and inappropriately deployed a Taser into his back. He also claims the officers violated his due-process rights and “intentionally misrepresented events” to support charges against him, which were later dismissed.

An unseasonably warm weekend in Spokane is expected to give way to cooler temperatures throughout this week, with a slight chance of rain on Tuesday and Wednesday and some snow on mountain passes across the region.

Avista Corp. and the BNSF Railway Co. on Friday joined the list of organizations requesting refunds from state Rep. Matt Shea’s re-election campaign. Both companies this year donated $2,000 to Shea’s campaign, the maximum allowed under state law. They want that money back now that the Spokane Valley Republican is under fire for distributing a document titled “Biblical Basis for War,” which spells out how a “Holy Army” should punish those who flout “biblical law.”

Two more organizations demanded money back from state Rep. Matt Shea’s re-election campaign on Thursday, while others denounced his rhetoric and said they would not support him in future elections. The latest controversy surrounding the Spokane Valley Republican also garnered national media attention, and his Democratic opponent reported a last-minute burst of small campaign donations from across the country.

The political arm of the Northwest Credit Union Association, which represents 180 credit unions in Washington, Oregon and Idaho, gave $1,000 to Shea’s campaign this year but recently asked the campaign to return the money. On Tuesday, a spokeswoman told Spokane Public Radio the association had reviewed Shea’s social media activity and determined “his beliefs do not reflect the views and values of our organization, member credit unions or customers.”

A Pullman police sergeant was arrested Tuesday morning, seven months after an alleged sexual encounter with an 18-year-old Washington State University student.

One local Jewish congregation will host a speech by a Holocaust survivor on Tuesday evening, and another will host a community vigil in the wake of Saturday’s hate-filled massacre at a synagogue in Pittsburgh.

Spokane police have arrested a second suspect in connection with last week’s stabbing death outside a downtown 7-Eleven store.

A former KREM reporter-turned-Democratic strategist says she warned Twitter two weeks ago about Cesar Sayoc, the Florida man now accused of mailing pipe bombs to more than a dozen prominent Democrats other public figures. Rochelle Ritchie worked for the Spokane news station from 2007 to 2009 and now makes regular appearances on Fox News as a Democratic strategist.

Washington state Rep. Matt Shea acknowledged Wednesday he had distributed a four-page manifesto titled “Biblical Basis for War,” which describes the Christian god as a “warrior,” details the composition and strategies of a “Holy Army” and condemns abortion and same-sex marriage. After the document was leaked online Tuesday, the Spokane Valley Republican insisted he was not promoting violence and that the message had been taken out of context.