Emma Epperly

All Stories

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Bicyclist dies after being hit by a car near Whitworth University

UPDATED: Mon., Aug. 30, 2021

Investigators suspect an intoxicated driver crashed her car into a bicyclist Sunday night, killing the 25-year-old rider crossing U.S. Highway 395 near Whitworth University.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

The Beast from the East: Malden family recalls harrowing day trapped in Babb Road Fire

UPDATED: Sat., Sept. 11, 2021

Tami Van Dyke froze outside her front door as a wall of flames 30 feet high leaped off the top of the small bridge across Pine Creek just 600 yards away.

News

Homeless shelters will have to isolate COVID-19-positive people as isolation facility contract expires

UPDATED: Fri., Aug. 27, 2021

Homeless shelters in the Spokane region will have to isolate COVID-positive people in their own facilities, upending earlier isolation plans providers relied on.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Police looking for man who set house on fire after fight with girlfriend

UPDATED: Fri., Aug. 27, 2021

A man suspected of setting the Bemiss neighborhood house he shared with his girlfriend on fire Friday morning is wanted by police for arson, the Spokane Police Department said.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Police search for suspect in Spokane Valley shooting that left man with life-threatening injuries

UPDATED: Fri., Aug. 27, 2021

A Thursday night shooting in Spokane Valley has left a man with life-threatening injuries.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Spokane initiative to prevent ban on natural gas removed from November ballot by judge

UPDATED: Thu., Aug. 26, 2021

A Spokane County Superior Court judge has rejected a citizen initiative attempting to ensure protections for natural gas hookups within the city of Spokane.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

‘Prolific child predator’ sentenced to 8 years in prison for child molestation, sexting daughters’ underage friends

UPDATED: Wed., Aug. 25, 2021

A 59-year-old Spokane man called a “prolific child predator” by a detective will spend more than 8 years in prison for child molestation and sexting his daughters’ teenage friends, among other crimes.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Man sentenced to more than 5 years in federal prison for Toppenish assault

UPDATED: Wed., Aug. 25, 2021

A 38-year-old man was sentenced to 70 months in prison Tuesday for a violent assault in Toppenish, Washington, on the Yakama Indian Reservation.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Woman sentenced to 70 months in federal prison for stabbing man in Yakima area

UPDATED: Wed., Aug. 25, 2021

A 45-year-old woman was sentenced to more than 5 years in prison Tuesday for stabbing a man in Parker, Washington, last year.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Prosecutor says police were justified in shooting of suspected car prowler later found to have died by suicide

UPDATED: Tue., Aug. 24, 2021

A Spokane police officer was justified in using deadly force while attempting to arrest an alleged car prowler in April, the Spokane County Prosecutor ruled Tuesday.

News >  K-12 education

Former Evergreen Middle School assistant principal sues district, after demotion for explicit political Facebook post

UPDATED: Tue., Aug. 24, 2021

A former Evergreen Middle School Assistant Principal filed a lawsuit against Central Valley School District Tuesday alleging his first amendment rights were violated when he was demoted over an explicit Facebook post, in which he called former First Lady Michelle Obama racist.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Riverside School district offers up office space to sheriff’s deputies in ‘unique partnership’

UPDATED: Tue., Aug. 24, 2021

There will likely be a lot more police cars at Riverside School District, but not because there’s any danger. Spokane County Sheriff Deputies now have 24/7 use of a small office at the district.

News >  Pacific NW

In the shadow of viral ‘Bama Rush Tiktoks, WSU students ‘run home’ on bid day Sunday

Mon., Aug. 23, 2021

This year more than 700 women showed up more than a week before classes begin to the Washington State University campus to participate in the nine-day-long process. It was held as a popular social media phenomenon among pledges on the platform TikTok has brought increasing attention to the recruitment process. 

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Spokane police release body camera footage in three officer shootings

UPDATED: Thu., Aug. 19, 2021

The Spokane Police Department released body camera footage Wednesday of three incidents where officers shot people in 2020.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

‘Great progress’ made on Ford-Corkscrew Tuesday night, evacuations remain

UPDATED: Wed., Aug. 18, 2021

Fire crews made "great progress" Tuesday night on the Ford-Corkscrew fire that already destroyed 18 homes and burned more than 14,000 acres, Stevens County Fire District 1 said.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

‘Everyone deserves a little piece of hope’: Elizabeth Smart shares lessons in resilience at CdA chamber luncheon

UPDATED: Wed., Aug. 18, 2021

Nearly two decades after Elizabeth Smart’s kidnapping worried the world, she stood on stage in Coeur d’Alene in front of hundreds of women Tuesday sharing how she has overcome her traumatic past and chose happiness.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Ford fire continued slow advance overnight, evacuations remain for towns north of Spokane

UPDATED: Tue., Aug. 17, 2021

The raging Ford-Corkscrew fire took eight homes and ballooned on Monday night, more than doubling in size from 6,000 acres to more than 15,000 acres by Tuesday afternoon.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Police investigating after two die in massive apartment fire in Browne’s Addition

UPDATED: Mon., Aug. 16, 2021

Police have opened a criminal investigation following a suspicious fire that killed two people as it engulfed two apartment buildings in Browne’s Addition early Monday.

News

Uninsured and facing fire: Destructive wildfires on Colville Reservation highlight lack of home, renters insurance

UPDATED: Wed., Aug. 11, 2021

NESPELEM, Wash. – Surveying the charred remnants of her home last week, Karen Bunbury sobbed while her longtime partner, Monty Piatope, dug through the rubble searching for belt buckles.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Physical and mental fatigue ‘compounding’ for overworked and underpaid wildland firefighters in Washington

Sun., Aug. 8, 2021

After months of 14-plus-hour days, sleeping in a tent, with limited time off, wildland fire crews are laid off and return home to their families. It's difficult to decompress and return to normal life, especially with limited support, firefighters said.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Former Spokane police officer awaiting trial for rape charges arrested again for allegedly raping another woman

UPDATED: Thu., Aug. 5, 2021

A fired Spokane Police officer awaiting trial for allegedly sexually assaulting a victim of domestic violence was arrested Wednesday on new charges after another woman reported he raped her while on duty.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Spokane County to pause federal emergency alerts as location glitches persist

UPDATED: Mon., Aug. 2, 2021

First responders in Spokane County have made increased requests to use the Spokane County Emergency Management alert systems, but glitches in the federal system that allows alerts to be geographically targeted to people’s cellphones has caused confusion. 

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Pioneer Fire grows on Friday; hot weather and dry conditions to continue to pose challenges

UPDATED: Fri., July 30, 2021

The fire near Priest River grew on Friday and continues to have no containment as firefighters battle the blaze in extreme temperatures.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

Family of mentally ill man alleges ‘warrior mindset’ training at Spokane sheriff’s office contributed to son’s death

UPDATED: Fri., July 30, 2021

The family of an unarmed mentally ill man shot and killed by a Spokane County Sheriff’s Deputy in 2019 filed a federal civil rights law suit Thursday, alleging the department doesn’t train deputies properly on mental health calls.

News >  Crime/Public Safety

One firefighter injured, no homes lost in north Spokane County fires

UPDATED: Mon., July 26, 2021

Flames shot from the top of a group of trees about a quarter mile from Mandy Thompson’s house as the Hazard Hill fire raged in North Spokane County Sunday night.