Chad Sokol

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News >  Education

$35,000 donation will aid Spokane community college students impacted by COVID-19

UPDATED: Tue., April 14, 2020

A business owner who prefers to remain anonymous donated the money to the Community Colleges of Spokane Foundation, the foundation announced Tuesday.

News >  Education

Gonzaga won’t require SAT, ACT scores this application season

UPDATED: Tue., April 14, 2020

The university said Tuesday it will continue reviewing applications “holistically,” accounting for applicants’ courses, grades, writing and extracurricular activities, including part-time jobs.

News >  Spokane

Spokane medical assistant accused of drugging, prostituting victim

UPDATED: Mon., April 13, 2020

Heather Kemper faces one count of promoting prostitution, a felony, in Spokane County Superior Court, the Department of Health said in an announcement Monday.

News >  Washington

WSU ‘vulnerability index’ highlights communities most at risk of dying from COVID-19

UPDATED: Tue., April 21, 2020

Washington State University researchers have mapped which parts of the state may be most vulnerable to COVID-19 – down to individual census tracts – using mortality data for chronic conditions such as heart disease, lung disease and diabetes.

News >  Education

Whitworth University postpones graduation ceremony until October

UPDATED: Wed., April 8, 2020

Graduation events previously scheduled for May now will take place during Whitworth’s Homecoming Weekend, which begins Oct. 9. Graduating students still will receive their degrees next month, the university said in a news release Wednesday.

News >  Washington

DOC evaluates ‘release options’ after employees test positive for COVID-19 at prisons, including Airway Heights

UPDATED: Wed., April 8, 2020

Washington’s Department of Corrections now has a dozen employees who have tested positive for COVID-19, including a staffer at the Airway Heights Corrections Center, fueling concerns about the potential for a severe outbreak in the state prison system.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Deputies arrested wrong man for fatal beating in Spokane Valley; charge permanently dismissed

UPDATED: Tue., April 7, 2020

Prosecutors last week permanently dropped a first-degree assault charge against Joseph Riley, who was accused of beating Daniel Jarman outside a bar in late December, leaving him with fatal head wounds.

News >  Spokane

UW model offers hope for Washington’s coronavirus response, but still forecasts 82,000 dead nationwide

Tue., April 7, 2020

Updated modeling from the University of Washington suggests “peak resource use” at Washington hospitals occurred on April 2 without a statewide shortage of ICU beds. It projected daily COVID-19 deaths in the state would peak on Monday before dropping to 18 deaths per day through Thursday and declining slowly afterward. And it suggests the state will reach its total death toll – 632 – on May 10.

News >  Spokane

Estranged wife of Spokane astronaut Anne McClain charged with lying about bank access from International Space Station

UPDATED: Mon., April 6, 2020

Summer Worden, a former Air Force intelligence officer and National Security Agency employee living in Wichita, Kansas, is accused of making false statements to the Federal Trade Commission and NASA’s Office of Inspector General.

News >  Spokane

Health care workers concerned, advocates call for patients’ release as Eastern State Hospital tallies 2nd case of COVID-19

UPDATED: Fri., April 3, 2020

A second Eastern State Hospital employee has tested positive for COVID-19 following an outbreak at Western State Hospital, fueling concerns among health care workers and prompting disability-rights advocates to call for the release or transfer of many psychiatric patients.

News >  Spokane

Kalispel Tribe sues foam makers, federal government over West Plains water contamination

UPDATED: Wed., April 1, 2020

The Kalispel Tribe of Indians is suing the federal government and makers of a toxic fire retardant foam that has contaminated West Plains water supplies, joining thousands of plaintiffs across the country who say evidence of the foam’s harmful effects has been ignored or covered up for decades.

News >  Spokane

Official: Caregiver had no symptoms for 3 days before returning to Spokane Veterans Home

UPDATED: Thu., April 2, 2020

A spokeswoman for the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs said the employee “had minimal direct contact with residents” while working on Friday and Monday, when the positive test result came back.

News >  Spokane

Providence hospitals in Spokane rationing face masks amid global shortage

Tue., March 31, 2020

Personal protective equipment is being kept under lock and key. Nurses and doctors are required to wear face masks for as long as federal guidelines allow. And masks designed to filter out tiny particles – like the novel coronavirus – are reserved for only a handful of respiratory procedures.

News >  Spokane

Spokane Veterans Home employee tests positive for COVID-19

UPDATED: Tue., March 31, 2020

The employee was tested on March 23 and returned to work on Friday and Monday – when the test result came back positive.

News >  Spokane

Spokane County jail population plunges during pandemic

UPDATED: Fri., March 27, 2020

Only 620 people were held in the Spokane County Jail and the Geiger Corrections Center on Friday evening, according to the county’s online jail roster. That’s roughly two-thirds of the usual inmate population.

News >  Spokane

Spokane police say genetic sleuthing solved 1985 murder of 12-year-old girl

UPDATED: Wed., March 25, 2020

Marsi Leah Belecz ran away from her home in the East Central Neighborhood on the night of Aug. 3, 1985, and her mutilated body was discovered two days later in a nearby towing yard. Despite hundreds of interviews and other exhaustive police work, Marsi’s killer went unnamed for decades.

News >  Spokane

Avoiding infection can lead to isolation, especially for seniors, but experts offer strategies for healthy connections

Sun., March 22, 2020

Millions of people are hunkering down in their homes to avoid getting or transmitting the novel coronavirus – including seniors who are most at risk of dying from COVID-19 and children who have been abruptly set free from school. One Washington State University professor sees an opportunity: “This would be a really good time for intergenerational bonding.”

News >  Spokane

During ban on face-to-face visits, Washington prisoners get 2 free phone calls a week

UPDATED: Fri., March 20, 2020

Inmates in Washington prisons now can make two five-minute phone calls each week at no charge, as the state Department of Corrections has banned visits from friends and relatives to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

News >  Spokane

Woman wielded BB gun at pot shop, led officers on pursuit, police say

UPDATED: Thu., March 19, 2020

Spokane police say a woman wielded a real-looking BB gun at a marijuana shop before leading officers on a raucous car chase through several neighborhoods and the downtown core Thursday afternoon.

News >  Spokane

Spokane County courts working to alleviate jail crowding amid COVID-19 concerns

UPDATED: Wed., March 18, 2020

Following an urgent request from jail officials, Spokane County’s district and superior courts have prepared lists of inmates who might be released to alleviate crowding and prevent the novel coronavirus from spreading in the county’s detention facilities.

News >  Spokane

Dozens released from Spokane County custody following Municipal Court emergency order

UPDATED: Tue., March 17, 2020

“The way you’ve got to look at it is: Is committing a misdemeanor worth getting a sentence of the COVID virus?” the court administrator said.

News >  Spokane

Spokane’s Catholic bishop suspends public Mass through April 6

UPDATED: Tue., March 17, 2020

Catholics in the Spokane diocese will not gather for public Masses and funeral ceremonies may not involve more than 10 people under a new order from Bishop Thomas Daly. Masses will be held primarily via live video feed.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Spokane Valley woman accused of attempting to kill 5-year-old son, herself

UPDATED: Tue., March 17, 2020

Daphne M. Williams, 38, fed the boy a cocktail of medications by crushing pills and mixing them with hot water and corn syrup, according to records filed in Spokane County Superior Court. She also is accused of attempting to suffocate him.

News >  Spokane

Spokane Tribe Casino closing due to COVID-19

UPDATED: Tue., March 17, 2020

The Spokane Tribe Casino in Airway Heights closed at 5 p.m. Tuesday, following casinos across the state that have shut down to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus. The tribe also closed its Chewelah Casino.

News >  Spokane

Utilities pause shutoffs as state prepares for financial impacts of COVID-19

Tue., March 17, 2020

Spokane residents will get a temporary reprieve from unpaid utility bills, and some local leaders want to extend lenience to those facing evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.