Pat Sciuchetti

The U.S. Secret Service is investigating a flurry of counterfeit bills being passed in the Spokane area. Counterfeiters are passing $10, $20, $50 and $100 bills, just in time for the holiday shopping season, said Michael Coleman, agent in charge of the Secret Service's Spokane office. Between 30 and 40 incidents have been reported in just the last week, Coleman said. "We're getting hit here, right now, as we speak," he said. "This is a new operation and it started last week."

Tim Re lost a dog to a speeding driver along 16th Avenue and he doesn't want to lose another. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Vandals spray-painted the Bowdish Junior High School gymnasium with red paint and stole $8,000 worth of power tools during two recent break-ins. Sheriff's deputies arrested two teenagers for burglary on Tuesday. The boys, age 14 and 15, are suspects in both break-ins. A third suspect, also a teenage boy, will probably be arrested within the next few days, deputies said. Deputies did not know if the teens were Bowdish students.

Bill Mael has been teaching dancing for six years. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Walking through the Dishman Hills Natural Area, Guy Gifford sees the ghosts of Ice Storm. Here and there, ponderosa pines are turning yellow. About 60 have shown up so far.

A Spokane Valley man was arrested early Friday after his car slammed into a concrete barrier on Dishman-Mica Road. David M. Douglas, of 4410 E. 14th, was arrested just before 2 a.m. Friday and charged with attempting to elude police, sheriff's deputies reported. A Sheriff's Department spokesman said a deputy in a patrol car began pursuit of a vehicle on Eighth Avenue, activating his emergency lights and siren.

Visibility can hurt a business. Just ask Spalding Auto Parts Inc. Seven years ago, when state workers mistakenly chopped down a buffer of trees that hid the wrecking yard from Interstate 90, many citizens blamed the Valley business.

Burglars stole several thousands of dollars in merchandise from a Valley sporting goods store last week. Just A Kick, 18817 E. Sprague, lost cash, checks, gift certificates and numerous items of sports clothing during a break-in last Thursday, sheriff's deputies said. Burglars forced open a back door, ransacked displays and threw merchandise on the floor. Several business machines were moved around the store, but not taken.

Steve Schneiderman isn't an actual police officer. But the tenants of Catherine Johnson Court in Edgecliff say he definitely deserves a badge. In just four months, the ex-Marine and single dad has spearheaded a turnaround of this troubled low-income housing complex on Fourth and Eastern. He's kicked out drug dealers, tightened new tenant screenings, patrolled the complex nearly every night and convinced residents to take ownership in their home.

1. Cecil and Ruth Cunningham started a support group for former prisoners of war that is now the state's largest such group. Cecil was a Japanese POW for more than three years. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review 2. Ruth and Cecil Cunningham look at a scrapbook of Cecil's World War II experiences. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review 3. Cecil's hat is heavy with prisoner-of-war medals and pins. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Shirley Meyer has tried to get her neighbor's land cleared up for more than a year. Photo by Steve Thompson/The Spokesman-Review

Burglars broke into 20 trucks parked at Ryder Truck Rental and Leasing on North Farr Lane Saturday night, vandalizing cabs and stealing stereos and CB radios. The burglar apparently scaled an eight-foot chain link fence topped with barbed wire to get to the trucks, sheriff's deputies said. The burglar may have done this despite back problems. Deputies found two pairs of gloves and a back support at the crime scene.

From water quality to golf, Spokane County is seeking volunteers to serve on various county advisory boards. The following positions are now open to Valley residents. For specific information on the boards, call Demeris Skaggs at 456-2265. Application forms can be picked up in the county commissioners' office, 1116 W. Broadway. Community Services Substance Abuse Board: 2 openings, Nov. 4 deadline. Spokane County Construction Review Board: 1 opening for an industry representative, Nov. 4 deadline.

People living along North University Road are looking forward to a silent night. And it might even arrive by Christmas. The neighborhood's long battle to silence train whistles at the University Road crossing is about to be won, say officials with the Federal Railroad Administration.

Arsonists hit two abandoned Valley buildings late last week, causing minor damage to each. The incidents were not linked, police said. Someone set fire to the attic of the old Holiday Hills lodge early Saturday, causing about $500 in damage, Valley fire officials said. The long-abandoned ski lodge near Liberty Lake has been the victim of repeated vandalism, sheriff's deputies said. Broken windows and empty beer cans point to the lodge as likely site of parties. Firefighters from the Spokane Valley Fire District No. 1 were called to the lodge just after midnight. They found a fire burning in the attic, as well as one in the lodge's fireplace. Both were quickly extinguished. No arrests have been made. Jireh Investments of Post Falls has been negotiating with Liberty Lake Land Co. to purchase the lodge and 640 surrounding acres. The sale has not yet closed, but could be completed within the next few weeks, according to officials with Kiemle and Hagood Co., the firm marketing the land for Liberty Lake Land Co.

Boxes are stacked to the ceiling at the Valley Food Bank. Unfortunately, most are empty. Lagging donations have left the food bank struggling just as it heads into the busy holiday season, said Barbara Bennett, food bank manager. Last month's campaign by real estate agents brought 1,600 pounds of food into the food bank, down from the 6,000 to 8,000 pounds typically generated by the agents' annual effort. Individual donations also are down.

1. A backhoe digs out the Chester Creek channel along Dishman Mica Road near Painted Hills Golf Course to allow for better stormwater runoff. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review 2. A trailer mounted on stilts south of Painted Hills Golf Course, is testament to the flooding in the area that occurs when stormwater runoff has no place to go. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

For Tom Gregory and Joe Dawson, the Nov. 4 election won't represent much of a challenge. Both are incumbents seeking to remain on the Spokane Valley Fire District's board of commissioners. Neither faces an opponent. As a result, they've focused their sights on the bigger challenges ahead. The Valley's primary fire protection agency faces several pressing issues: growth, traffic, expansion, new equipment and technology needs.

Sally Gerimonte has lived in Chester all her life and has collected her memories in scrapbooks. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

With a three-year legal moratorium in effect, debate over Valley incorporation has for the moment died down. Except at the Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce. For the last eight months, a 12-member chamber task force has been studying different options for governing the Valley. The group's goal is to determine which form of government would provide the best quality of life in the most efficient manner. It will present the results to the full chamber, and the community, sometime next year.

1. Sheriff's Deputy Greg Snyder checks out a Valley apartment complex for architectural features that might make it more prone to crime. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review 2. Thick shrubbery around a home can make the residence an easy target for burglars. Photo by Dan McComb/The Spokesman-Review

A stranger followed a 19-year-old Valley woman into her apartment parking lot on East Mansfield Avenue Monday night, grabbing her then stealing her purse, Sheriff's deputies said. The woman told deputies she noticed a car race up behind her and follow her into the parking lot at about 10:30 p.m.

When Liberty is at stake, a sewer district race can get stinky. Take the contest between Frank Boyle and Larry West six years ago. At one point, supporters of the two Liberty Lake Sewer District commissioner candidates nearly came to blows. This year, the blows are verbal, but the passions are just as strong as the incumbent Boyle faces a new opponent, John Mellick.

A Spokane County employee lost a piece of equipment containing radioactive material Wednesday night, spurring a search and concerns that someone might break open the tool's inner capsule. A contractor found the $3,000 device later that night at Fourth and Maple near downtown Spokane. He returned it to the county Thursday. It sustained slight damage but no radioactive leaks, county Public Works Department spokesman Chad Hutson said.