Regional news briefly

Mon., Sept. 6, 2004

From staff and wire reports The Spokesman-Review

Motorcyclist injured in crash

A motorcyclist was injured in Stevens County Saturday when he collided with a car.

The accident occurred around 6:30 p.m. at the intersection of Marble Valley Basin and Addy-Gifford roads near Addy, Wash.

Michael Laduke, 22, was taken to Sacred Heart Medical Center. He was listed in serious condition Sunday night.

The driver of the car, 19-year-old Nicholas Ward of Addy, wasn’t injured.

Holiday to affect services this week

The following offices and services will be affected by today’s Labor Day holiday:

Public schools are closed. Most bank branches are closed, but some satellite branches in grocery stores and other locations are open. Federal, state, county and city offices are closed.

All Spokane Public Library branches are closed today. The South Hill and Shadle branches also will be closed Tuesday. Spokane County Library District branches will be closed today only.

There won’t be regular postal delivery today. No window service will be provided, but box service will be available at the Riverside and Liberty Park post offices. Special Delivery and Express Mail services will be provided. Finance stations and branches will be closed.

Meter parking is free.

State liquor stores are closed. Spokane Transit Authority service will follow a Sunday schedule.

Garbage service is pushed back one day.

Assistant football coach found dead

Benton City, Wash. An assistant high school football coach was found dead at a middle school in this south-central Washington town on Sunday morning.

Benton County Sheriff Larry Taylor said King Robert Mars, assistant football coach at Kiona-Benton High School and a sixth grade teacher at Benton City Middle School, was last seen at about 11:30 p.m. Saturday when he left the high school principal’s home.

Mars drove back to the middle school to drop off a game tape before heading home, according to Taylor.

The principal drove over to the middle school on Sunday morning after receiving a phone call from Mars’ wife saying he had not returned home Saturday night. He found Mars’ car parked behind the school and went inside, where he found the victim’s body on the floor.

Mars had what Taylor said appeared to be a large knife wound on his chest.

Taylor said the principal immediately called 911 and the Benton County Sheriff’s Office called out a 17-man SWAT team to secure the building and confirm that the perpetrator was not still inside the building.

Mars’ vehicle, a Toyota pickup, had a broken window on the driver’s side and appeared to have been ransacked.

Benton City is a small town about 17 miles west of Pasco. Mars was married with three children including one son who is currently serving with the military in Iraq.

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