Trinity Hartman

Detectives dismantled a Spokane Valley man's expensive lifestyle Wednesday, claiming it was created using drug money. Detectives loaded Daniel A. Flaherty's stereo system, his plasma television, a large leather couch and other household goods into a trailer. The seized items – which also include a 1998 Dodge truck – are valued at between $25,000 and $30,000, said Russ Dowdy, an asset forfeiture investigator assigned to the federal Drug Enforcement Agency.

Voters gave overwhelming approval to an annexation measure that allows Spokane Valley to become part of two fire districts. The measure was passing easily both inside and outside the Spokane Valley limits Tuesday night. Among the largest group of voters – Spokane Valley residents currently served by the Spokane Valley Fire Department – the measure was passing with 86 percent approval.

Spokane Valley residents don't want a tax increase. A $6 million bond to pave the full width of roads torn up by sewer work was failing Tuesday, with 49 percent approval. The measure needs a supermajority of at least 60 percent to pass. Thousands of absentee ballots remain to be counted.

Mamie Xiong plans to study immigration law after finishing her undergraduate degree at Gonzaga University. Yet Xiong's singing — which sounds smooth and melodic — could intervene. Xiong, 20, has already recorded two albums, her voice blending with pop and hip-hop beats. She recently opened for the rap group 2 Live Crew and has recorded backup vocals for a commercial. Xiong would love the opportunity to sign on a major record label and launch a music career. "Music is a dream of mine, but so is law," Xiong said. "I'm just trying for both. Whatever happens, happens." Xiong, who is Hmong, grew up with two cultures. Even as she did the typical American kid thing — played basketball, did gymnastics, learned flute and violin, joined the dance team — she didn't feel completely at ease.

The Spokane Valley Fire Department has received a federal grant to install computers in its fire trucks. The $218,754 grant will pay for 15 mobile data terminals inside the fire trucks. The in-truck computers will allow fire crews to access and print information from their fire trucks, assistant chief Larry Rider said at a Valley Fire Commissioners meeting this week.

Millwood Mayor Jeanne Batson has said she won't run for re-election when her term expires in 2005. But that's not soon enough for Tammy Parsley.

Seven firefighters will staff the Spokane County Interstate Fair this year, helping fairgoers with bee stings, twisted ankles, heart attacks and other ailments. Valley Fire's decision to more than double its typical fair crew of three firefighters has upset a volunteer group which also staffs the fair with medical personnel. An Inland Empire Emergency Services Association spokesman has accused union firefighters of using the fair to get overtime pay.

Racist literature littered the lawns of numerous Spokane Valley residents this Labor Day weekend. The fliers, apparently thrown from a car, disparaged minorities. Readers were urged to join the White Revolution, a neo-Nazi group based in Arkansas.

A Spokane Valley man's planned house remodel landed him in jail Friday. Daniel A. Flaherty, 30, is accused by law enforcement of trading drugs for stolen construction materials. He was allegedly stockpiling items – such as vinyl siding, windows and light fixtures – to remodel his home at 2209 S. Calvin Road.

Annexation doesn't always mean a city is attempting to grab land and tax revenue from one of its neighbors. Yet Spokane Valley city and fire officials worry voters could nix an important fire annexation measure on the September ballot due to confusion over the term. In this case, annexation wouldn't add extra acres to the new city of Spokane Valley's borders. Instead, it would keep fire protection the same for Spokane Valley and noncity Valley residents. Boundaries, service levels and taxes would remain unchanged.

Annexation doesn't always mean a city is attempting to grab land and tax revenue from one of its neighbors. Yet Spokane Valley city and fire officials worry voters could nix an important fire annexation measure on the September ballot due to confusion over the term. In this case, annexation wouldn't add extra acres to the new city of Spokane Valley's borders. Instead, it would keep fire protection the same for Spokane Valley and noncity Valley residents. Boundaries, service levels and taxes would remain unchanged.

A Spokane Valley boy was injured when his motorized scooter collided with a car Tuesday evening. The 12-year-old reportedly rode through a stop sign at the corner of Woodruff Road and Driftwood Drive and was hit by a Nissan Sentra about 5:30 p.m. The impact threw the boy off the scooter, cracked his helmet and crushed part of the Sentra's windshield. The boy was taken to a hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries, according to the Spokane Valley Police Department.

A black bear loped toward John James last week as the Ponderosa resident stood in his driveway talking to a friend. James barely made it inside before the bear had walked up on his front porch.