Suspects in California robbery arrested

Two fugitives wanted in connection with the armed robbery of an elderly woman in California were arrested in Coeur d’Alene Monday evening.

Scott Conrad Herrera, 35, and Ruth Joel Votaw, 26, were arrested at a home on north Fifth Street. The pair are suspected of burglarizing the home of Herrera’s stepaunt earlier Monday afternoon.

Herrera and Votaw allegedly fled to Coeur d’Alene after tying up a woman in her 70s and robbing her at gunpoint in California.

Coeur d’Alene police were called at 1 p.m. Monday by the stepaunt, who reported her Howard Street home had been burglarized while she was away for a short time.

Victim Donna Dougherty told police Herrera had called her on Nov. 29 and asked to stay at her home. Dougherty said she let the two stay at her home until Dec. 1 and then told them they had to leave.

A neighbor of Dougherty’s told police he saw Herrera and Votaw leaving Dougherty’s home around the time of the burglary Monday.

The vehicle Herrera and Votaw were using was reportedly stolen from Marysville and later discovered at the Fifth Street home where both were arrested Monday evening.

– Taryn Brodwater

Boise

Education needed for future job market

The hottest occupations in Idaho through 2014 will be nursing, teaching, engineering, skilled trades, and management. Two-thirds of those jobs will require a post-secondary academic degree.

That’s the finding of the latest long-term employment projections report from the Idaho Department of Commerce and Labor.

“These projections clearly show that affordable, accessible post-high school education and skill training will be critical for meeting the employment demands of Idaho businesses in the coming decade,” said Bob Uhlenkott, head of research for the department.

The report projects job growth in Idaho at 2 percent a year through 2014, about twice the national rate. That reflects a leveling off from the 3 percent to 4 percent increases of the past few years. It also predicts that of the 20 fastest-growing jobs, seven will be in health care and five computer-related. At the same time, low-paying clerk jobs in all fields will drop 17 percent by 2014, the report predicted, as those jobs increasingly are replaced by computers or other technology.

– Betsy Z. Russell

Kootenai County

Building Department training scheduled

The Kootenai County Building Department won’t issue permits or conduct inspections Friday because of staff training.

However, the planning staff will be available during regular business hours.

For more information, call (208) 446-1040.

– Erica Curless