Kim Barker

Judy DeRyan has been trying to get her son, Michael, out of Eastern State Hospital where he has been for 15 months. Photo by Christopher Anderson/The Spokesman-Review

Hepatitis A cases spiked dramatically in Spokane County from the first six months of 1996 to the first six months of 1997. Four people reported the liver disease to the Spokane Regional Health District from January to July 2, 1996. During the same period in 1997, 44 people reported the virus.

Kimberly Kreb, seen here tying a fly, died at 22 last October. Photograph courtesy of family

The day their daughter died, Bob and Deborah Kreb stopped at Safeway and spotted the free issue of "Allergy & Asthma" near the pharmacy. In this pamphlet, they learned things they wish they had known earlier about managing asthma. Doctors, national asthma organizations and government agencies are trying to make sure everyone has the information - before it's too late.

Accused bomber Charles Barbee was no stranger to well-known militia sympathizer Dennis Stucker, prosecution witnesses testified Friday. Documenting telephone conversations and a Hamilton, Mont., jail visit between the pair, federal prosecutors were preparing jurors for Stucker's testimony Monday. Stucker, a retired AT&T; systems analyst who worked with Barbee in Florida, is expected to say that Barbee confessed to being involved in a series of three bombings and two bank robberies in the Spokane Valley.

Using witnesses, timecards and a road-testing FBI agent, federal prosecutors Thursday tried to account for the minutes leading up to the bombing of the Spokane Valley's Planned Parenthood clinic. The prosecutors are trying to pre-empt a key defense witness, Jay Dennis, who in the first trial said he saw accused terrorist Verne Jay Merrell in Sandpoint less than an hour before the clinic was bombed at 1:40 p.m. last July 12. Merrell, 51, Charles Barbee, 45, and Robert Berry, 43, are accused of three bombings and two bank robberies in the Valley last year. The first trial ended in a hung jury when one juror said he couldn't convict the defendants of the most serious charges.

Federal prosecutors are preparing to challenge testimony from a key defense witness who gave accused terrorist Verne Jay Merrell an alibi for one of the Spokane Valley bombings in the first trial. Telephone lineman Jay Dennis, who once hired Merrell to help build his house, said he spotted Merrell in Sandpoint less than an hour before the bombing 75 miles away. On Wednesday, Dennis was called as a witness by prosecutors. He again said he's certain he talked briefly to Merrell on July 12, between 12:45 and 1:30 p.m.

The first time he pointed a gun in her face, the robber said he wanted no $1 bills, no exploding dye packs and no lies. The second time, about 14 weeks later, he seemed to know where he was going, looking for the U.S. Bank teller with "those keys" to unlock money drawers. Again, head teller Tracy Lafayette stared down the revolver's barrel. Again, she was terrified, her heart beating so hard she had to remind herself to breathe.

For the first time, accused terrorist Charles Barbee talked to a jury Monday. Barbee didn't take the witness stand, but he professed his innocence in a 15-minute opening statement Monday in U.S. District Court in Spokane. It's the second time this year that Barbee; Robert Berry, 43; and Verne Jay Merrell, 51, all from North Idaho, have stood trial for bombing and robbing Spokane Valley businesses last year.

Ready? Aim! Sharon Kile, an X-ray technician, helps Dr. Steve Beyersdorf line up the ABBI machine to remove a noncancerous lesion from Julie Hatch. Photo by Sandra Bancroft-Billings/The Spokesman-Review

She's retiring, but don't expect her to disappear. Priscilla Gilkey has spent 17 years wearing a closetful of hats. Now, she's hanging up one - her job as the vice president of community relations for Empire Health Services, the company that manages Deaconess Medical Center, Valley Hospital and Medical Center and the St. Luke's Rehabilitation Institute. Colleagues have sent cards and flowers and thrown parties. Today is Gilkey's last day. But Monday, she'll still go to the board meeting for the Health Improvement Partnership. And Tuesday, she'll still go to the board meeting for the Spokane Club.

A California woman claims she was infected with hepatitis C from a blood transfusion after hip surgery at Sacred Heart Medical Center. Laurie C. Sessman sued the Spokane Blood Bank and Sacred Heart Medical Center on Thursday in U.S. District Court for alleged negligence. Representatives from the blood center and Sacred Heart declined to comment and said they have not seen the lawsuit.

It was a Diet Rite kind of night, and don't even ask how many cans he put away. Jack Lane, former high school basketball referee and current crop insurance adjuster, drinks pop like water. He claims his seat before 4 p.m. Friday. Larry Beach, Lane's regular seatmate in the third booth from the back TV, grabs the remote control. They never miss a Jazz game, but they skipped Jack and Dan's Tavern for the past three NBA Finals games.

Equipment losses at the Planned Parenthood clinic totaled more than $25,000. File/The Spokesman-Review

Frazier

The fat lady sings. Jeff Condill, a John Stockton teammate at Gonzaga, and other Jazz fans at Jack and Dan's Tavern watch the final seconds tick away in Utah's loss Wednesday. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

Almost one year after a bomb gutted the Valley Planned Parenthood clinic, it's reopening. But it will be a newer, stronger clinic, with shatterproof windows, secured doors and security cameras and alarms. "We're excited about going back," said the clinic's nurse practitioner. "We've been looking forward to this for a long time. I don't think any of us are afraid to go out there."

They're at Jack and Dan's Tavern for every NBA finals game, but this is the first night they've watched. Usually they're behind the bar. Shaving meat. Pulling beer. Arranging crackers. Perfuming the air with microwave popcorn, which, as every bartender knows, only leads to more orders for microwave popcorn. Kevin MacDonald and Dave Self, a couple of 23-year-old bartending college students, are actually drinking Bud Light this Sunday evening. And they're sitting in seats one and two, watching the Jazz win - or maybe lose - no, definitely win, against the Bulls.

Janice Trotter, an RN with the Visiting Nurse Association, listens to John Nelson's heart during a home visit. Photo by Colin Mulvany/The Spokesman-Review

Women with high-risk pregnancies now have one-stop shopping at Deaconess Medical Center. The new Deaconess Center for Perinatal Medicine offers women three-dimensional ultrasounds, breast-feeding consultations, non-stress testing and genetic counseling - all under one roof. "It's kind of like Fred Meyer," said Cindy Preston, assistant vice president for women and children's services at Deaconess. "They can have all their services in one area. There's good parking."

Chopper is eating his knees. At least, that's what it looks like, as he grabs his head and leans over his bony legs, praying his team to a victory over the evil Chicago Bulls. His voice is a scratched record, raw and repetitive. "Go Johnny!" he yells. "Go Jazz!" Or maybe, "Defense, defense, defense, defense!"

He was a regular guy surrounded by irregulars. Al Jorgenson, a Norm at Jack and Dan's Tavern and MAJOR Jazz fan, grabbed the third seat in at the bar an hour and 15 minutes before Wednesday night's NBA Finals game. As others left, one by one, he snaked in gradually to the first seat, closest to the TV set, always saving room for the Easter bunny. The bunny unmasked is Greg Baldwin, who in another life is a regional Jell-O salesman, but in this life is the Easter bunny permanently parked on a bar stool watching his team, the Utah Jazz. He drives a truck with the vanity plate TOP HARE and a Corvette proclaiming EST BNE.

She was a piece of popcorn in their beer, and they did their best to ignore her. Joan Hynes clapped for Scottie alone. She whooped for Michael alone. She drew befuddled glances and eyebrows like question marks.

Two Spokane nursing homes owned by a for-profit Milwaukee company could be closed later this year if they don't fix problems found by the state Department of Social and Health Services. But a spokesman for Unicare Homes Inc., plagued with regulatory problems for years in Spokane, said he is confident the problems would be fixed within weeks. "The procedures that we have work," said Mike Mervis, Unicare spokesman. "We have to get the staff to follow them." DSHS on Friday announced fines of $4,500 against Southcrest Subacute and Specialty Care Center and $6,000 against Franklin Hills Health and Rehabilitation Center for violating federal and state standards of care. The fines stem from inspections in March and April finding that both nursing homes were offering substandard care. The state ordered both nursing homes to stop admitting new patients until problems were fixed. Managers and employees at Southcrest, 110 W. Cliff, were accused of verbally abusing a resident and leaving unattended others who required strict monitoring. Staff at Franklin Hills, 6021 N. Lidgerwood, allegedly failed to assess and properly monitor residents' bowel movements and eating. Staff at Southcrest have until Sept. 19 and at Franklin Hills until Oct. 2 to fix problems from these inspections. If they're not fixed, the federal Health Care Financing Administration will terminate the contracts and stop paying federal money for care. That's what happened to Valleycrest nursing home last fall. The Unicare home was repeatedly flagged for poor care and not protecting residents and was closed. The building has since been sold. The April 21 inspection at Southcrest marked the third consecutive annual survey that the facility achieved substandard results. That just doesn't happen, said Edith Coleman, district manager of the state Department of Aging and Adult Services. The home missed the first deadline to ask for another inspection, and federal authorities on Tuesday decided to stop paying Southcrest money for new patients. The nursing home needed more time to make sure policies were being followed and problems were fixed, Mervis said. "I think they're doing the right thing," Coleman said. "If they're not ready, they shouldn't ask for an inspection." When they are ready, the home will be inspected again. Problems must stay fixed for 45 days before the home is out of trouble. At Franklin Hills, management has until June 11 to tell the state its problems have been corrected. If that deadline is missed, the state will ask federal authorities to stop paying Franklin Hills for new patients. Mervis said he expected to ask the state to return to both homes in the next couple of weeks for inspections. Unicare also operates The Gardens on University nursing home in the Spokane Valley, and Ironwood Rehabilitation Center and Sunset Terrace in Coeur d'Alene.