Sara Leaming

A woman taken into custody today in the fatal shooting of her estranged husband is believed to have planned the slaying, authorities said. Shelly L. Stark, 45, is facing charges that include pre-meditated first-degree murder in connection with the 1:40 a.m. shooting at 1620 S. Maple Blvd., according to the Spokane Police Department. The identity of the husband, who reportedly suffered multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at Deaconess Medical Center, was being withheld by police, but records show the house where the shooting occurred is owned by Dale Stark.

An Eastern Washington University student died Saturday after being dragged as many as four miles behind a pickup truck down a rural Pend Oreille County road by a teen who told officials he thought he was being chased by an ax-wielding assailant, police said. Facing murder charges in connection with the bizarre Saturday night tragedy is a 45-year-old Newman Lake man who authorities say tied Jerid S. Sturman-Camyn to the truck without the teen driver's knowledge. The victim, described as a martial arts expert, had threatened several people with an ax during a night of heavy drinking in a hunting camp off North LeClerc Creek Road near Usk, Wash., according to the Pend Oreille County Sheriff's Office.

A 14-year-old Lewis and Clark High School student was arrested Wednesday and faces felony charges for allegedly carrying a loaded gun near campus. The school was locked down about noon, after school resource officer Dan Johnson received a report that the student had been seen carrying the weapon, school officials said.

With the election of at least one new board member nearly out of the way, the Spokane Public Schools board of directors is moving forward with plans to find a permanent superintendent. The school board will hold a special meeting Saturday to interview three search firms being considered for the task of finding a new leader for Eastern Washington's largest school system.

Spelling bees are a thing of the past in Spokane schools. As are traditional spelling tests. Under new curriculum adopted by Spokane Public Schools this year for grades two through six, students are no longer asked to memorize lists of words.

The race for Position 3 on the Spokane school board pits an incumbent with 12 years of service against a substitute teacher with a not-so-perfect performance record. After announcing she would not seek re-election, incumbent Christie Querna, 62, changed her mind and is seeking a third, but shorter, term on the five-member board. The seat is only for two years, to fill the remainder of the term left vacant by Don Barlow, who was elected to the state Legislature.

In the race for Position 2 on the Spokane Public Schools board of directors, the two candidates have little experience, but both are proponents of public education. Bob Douthitt, a Spokane attorney who recently sold a hair salon franchise, says he will have ample time to devote to service on the school board.

Spokane Public Schools is still missing more than 600 students compared with last year, even though some students returned by the official October enrollment count. District officials had reported that 851 fewer students walked through the doors at the start of the school year – more than double the expected drop in enrollment.

Opponents of the simple majority resolution on the ballot this November say it is nothing more than a property tax increase for voters, while those in favor of it say HJR 4204 will help public schools get the money they need to educate students. One of four proposed constitutional amendments that lawmakers put on the ballot this fall, the resolution is designed to make it easier for school districts to win approval for tax levies by eliminating the super majority rule.

A $1 million - dollar life insurance policy. A $700 monthly car allowance.