UI events review Al-Hussayen case
MOSCOW, Idaho – The prosecution of former University of Idaho student Sami Omar Al-Hussayen, a Saudi Arabian acquitted of charges that he supported terrorist activities, will be the subject of two public events at the UI Monday.
Attorneys David Nevin and Scott McKay will discuss the litigation challenges they faced while defending Al-Hussayen, who was acquitted following last year’s lengthy trial in Boise, during a lunch program from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the SUB’s Silver and Gold Room.
A community discussion about the case will follow at 7 p.m. in the Idaho College of Law Courtroom.
The events are sponsored by the UI College of Law, the Washington State University Center for Human Rights, and the UI chapter of Amnesty International. The lunch program includes free pizza.
Woman unharmed after blaze at home
A woman safely escaped her home after it caught fire in the Fairway Hills neighborhood of Coeur d’Alene Thursday evening, according to the Coeur d’Alene Fire Department.
The fire at 3656 W. Pineridge Drive appears to have started in a frying pan filled with cooking oil, according to the fire department. The resident, who was cooking when the fire started, called 911 at 6:30 p.m. and smoke was billowing from the front door and roof eaves when firefighters arrived.
The fire was quickly extinguished, and damage was estimated at $15,000. No one was injured, the fire department reported.
The fire department said this fire was a reminder for all residents to check their smoke detectors and keep a fire extinguisher in the kitchen. Other fire extinguishers should be kept near exit doors.
For questions regarding fire extinguishers, call the fire department at 769-2345.
Four school seats left uncontested
Kootenai County’s school boards have six open seats this spring, but voters will be asked to decide only two of those races.
In Coeur d’Alene, nobody filed to run against incumbent Diane Zipperer. Incumbent Donagene Turnbow is unopposed in Post Falls and incumbent Barbara Puckett is the lone candidate to represent Zone 3 in Lakeland.
Trustee Sid Fredrickson will face challenger Diane Tetzner in Zone 5 in the Coeur d’Alene School District. Lakeland Board Chair Don Soltman is being challenged by Paul L. Morton.
Trudi Kuhn is the only candidate to apply to represent Post Falls Zone 5.
Friday was the deadline to declare candidacy for the May 17 trustee election. The deadline for write-in candidates is May 3.
State law requires school districts to run elections only for contested races.
Boundary schools look at more cuts
Boundary County’s School Board will meet Tuesday evening to continue cutting $1 million from the district’s budget.
On Wednesday, the school board voted to implement a four-day school week starting this fall. Superintendent Don Bartling said Friday that the move would save the district about $108,000.
Since voters rejected a nearly $800,000 levy in March, the school board has been considering several avenues to save money. Even if the levy had passed, the district would have been faced with cuts because the proposed levy was lower than the one that expired this spring.
After difficulty passing a levy last year, the school district formed a restructuring committee. After nearly a year of work, the committee recommended several cost-saving measures and the lower levy amount. The district said it would not re-run the levy if it failed, but Bartling said the board may reconsider at Tuesday’s meeting.
The school board has yet to decide the fate of its rural elementary schools, sports and extracurricular activities and other programs that may be eliminated to save money.
The meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. in the Bonners Ferry High School gymnasium.