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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

LC student uses slingshot to hit two boys

Compiled from staff and wire reports The Spokesman-Review

A Lewis and Clark student lost several teeth Thursday morning when he was hit in the mouth with a rock fired by another student armed with a slingshot.

The 14-year-old assailant had been disciplined last fall for having a slingshot on school grounds, according to a Spokane Police Department news release.

Thursday’s incident occurred about 10 a.m. in a school stairwell near the building’s southwest entrance.

The victim, 15, was taken to an area hospital for treatment.

Efforts will be made to implant the youth’s teeth, which were recovered, police said.

Another student was also struck by the rock and had a welt on the back of his head.

Police said the boy with the slingshot was booked into juvenile detention on two counts of second-degree assault, a felony. Neither police nor the school officials released his name.

Spokane Public Schools officials declined to provide details about last fall’s incident. A spokesman for the school district, David Beil, declined to say how the juvenile was disciplined after the earlier incident.

Typically, punishment would range from suspension to expulsion, depending upon the intent and the student’s past discipline.

In cases like this, the student in trouble is initially emergency-expelled until the matter can be investigated.

Following Thursday’s incident, school officials issued a statement reiterating district policy that students are not allowed to have any kind of weapon or look-alike weapon on school property.

Payroll service suspected of stealing from clients

A Kootenai, Idaho, payroll service is under investigation for allegedly stealing money from at least 39 business clients, according to the Bonner County Sheriff’s Office.

Detectives served a search warrant last week on Pierce Professional Services at 4350 McGhee Road, seizing financial records and computers.

Although no charges had been filed as of Thursday against business owner Rosemary Pierce, Sheriff Elaine Savage said her detectives have enough evidence to do so.

The payroll service is suspected of spending $200,000 from clients on its own business expenses when the money was supposed to be used to cover clients’ payroll taxes. The clients of the payroll service still owe the taxes, according to investigators.

The Sheriff’s Office was tipped off by a community member, Savage said. “They had noticed some irregularities, and we looked into it and it snowballed.”

Pierce Professional Services is now closed, according to its answering machine, and Pierce could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Missoula bank robbery suspect found in CdA

A man suspected of robbing a bank in Missoula was caught Wednesday night after a Kootenai County sheriff’s deputy spotted his car in a Coeur d’Alene motel parking lot.

Jeremiah V. Gregory, 48, was wanted on suspicion of robbing Mountain West Bank in downtown Missoula on Tuesday.

The Missoulian newspaper reported that a man entered the bank about 11:20 a.m. Tuesday, handed a clerk a note demanding all her money and placed a package on the counter that he said was a bomb.

He also showed the clerk a pistol tucked into the waist of his pants, according to the Missoulian.

The man escaped on foot, prompting the search of a six-block area of downtown Missoula and the deployment of a bomb robot to safely dispose of the package, which turned out to not contain a bomb, according to the news report.

Authorities issued an Attempt To Locate notice in Montana and Idaho for a four-door, black Ford Contour with New Jersey plates.

A Kootenai County sheriff’s deputy wrote the license plate number on his hand when he showed up for his graveyard shift and later saw the car in the La Quinta Inn on Appleway later that night, according to sheriff’s Capt. Ben Wolfinger.

The FBI responded and took custody of Gregory, confirmed FBI spokesman Bob Wright. Gregory appeared before a magistrate judge in Missoula on Thursday.

Although Gregory’s car was licensed in New Jersey, Wright could not confirm his residence.

Washington AG announces anti-meth program

Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna was in Spokane on Thursday morning to discuss his new statewide anti-methamphetamine program designed to fight the growing scourge in communities throughout the state.

Called “Operation: Allied Against Meth,” the program “will bring additional state resources to local prosecutors and help mobilize existing community meth actions,” McKenna said.

To fight the crimes associated with meth use, including property crimes and identity theft, McKenna said his office will hire two additional assistant attorneys general to assist with enforcement and prosecution.

Community organizations are an important factor preventing use of the drug, he said. They educate school-aged children on its dangers in hopes of stopping the cycle of drug use.

The attorney general also said there’s a strong emphasis on law enforcement at all levels working together to identify drug traffickers.

County creates new Labor Relations unit

A new Spokane County department will head up negotiations and communication with the county’s labor groups.

Commissioners approved the new Department of Labor Relations and hired attorney Tim O’Brien to manage it.

O’Brien has worked in the county’s Prosecuting Attorney’s Office since 1995 as the civil division’s community affairs manager and deputy prosecutor.

He earned his bachelor’s degree from Western State College of Colorado and his law degree from Gonzaga University.

O’Brien will report to Spokane County CEO Marshall Farnell.

Former Assessor’s Office residential appraiser Rick Mendoza will assist O’Brien as a labor relations specialist.

The county has more than 20 collective bargaining groups.