Secret Witness wants a call back
Sheriff’s detectives are hoping a Secret Witness tipster will call them back, but this time leave them with a little more information that might solve a June hit-and-run that left a Spokane Valley man dead.
Robb Long was killed on June 9th when a car ran a red light on Sprague Avenue under the Interstate 90 overpass and struck him. The vehicle drove away on westbound I-90, said Spokane County Sherriff’s spokesman Sgt. Dave Reagan.
Somebody called Secret Witness on June 17th, offering information regarding the suspect car, a silver Dodge Intrepid-style auto. The caller also identified two people in the car by their first names, Reagan said.
Detectives are asking the caller to call Secret Witness again and leave a method for detectives to contact the tipster. The caller can remain anonymous and still collect the $2,000 cash reward, Reagan said.
Pocatello, Idaho
Budge tapped for Fish and Game post
Idaho Gov. Jim Risch on Saturday tapped a Pocatello lawyer and lifelong hunter and angler as the new state Fish and Game Commissioner for the Southeast region.
Randall C. Budge, a Republican, is a partner in the law firm Racine, Olson, Nye, Budge & Bailey, based in Pocatello. He will fill the slot formerly held by Marcus Gibbs, who is term-limited.
Risch named Budge to the post at a ceremony Saturday in Pocatello.
“He brings a great respect for our wildlife and a thorough understanding of hunting and fishing that will serve the commission and the sporting public well,” the GOP governor said in a statement.
Tacoma
Departments face millions in claims
Eight children sexually abused by their foster father filed multimillion-dollar claims against police departments in Seattle and Tacoma, saying both failed to immediately report the abuse to the state.
Each claim ranges between $2.5 million and $4 million.
Representatives from both Seattle and Tacoma police departments said they are prohibited from commenting on pending litigation. They have 60 days to respond to the claims.
Prosecutors said Ronald Young posted pornographic pictures of his foster children, ages 5 to 12, on the Internet.
Investigators in Seattle were legally obligated to notify state Child Protective Services within 24 hours, he said, but instead they determined that the man was from Pierce County and sent the information to police in Tacoma. Officers there said they didn’t receive the information until three months later, Connelly said.
Young was arrested in March 2004, pleaded guilty to several counts in April 2005, and was sentenced to 26 years in prison.
Last year, some of the children sued the state and Young, contending the state Department of Social and Health Services failed to adequately screen Young or monitor his home when he became a foster parent. That trial is set for October.
SEATTLE
Jetway incident causes SeaTac delay
An Alaska Airlines flight to California was delayed more than three hours Saturday at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport when a jetway rose 6 to 12 inches and scraped the body of the aircraft, an airline spokesman said.
The device damaged the paint and left a shallow crease in the skin of the MD-80, and maintenance personnel decided to take the plane out of operation, said airline spokesman Paul McElroy. There were no injuries.
The 60 passengers who had boarded left the aircraft to wait for another plane, he said. The damaged plane was taken to an on-site maintenance hangar.
The airline and the Port of Seattle are working to determine what caused the jetway to rise, McElroy said.