Butler associate says man hit him
A Hayden man told Kootenai County sheriff’s deputies he was punched in the mouth by a hostile golfer Thursday evening.
Richard Masker, 64, told sheriff’s deputies he did nothing to provoke the attack, but witnesses said Masker had “been yelling racial slurs out to the golfers.”
Masker, whose home borders the Avondale Golf Course, said the man who punched him said “the whole neighborhood was tired of him.”
When deputies contacted the man, he admitted to hitting Masker, according to a sheriff’s report. He said Masker had blocked the path of his golf cart and was saying “racial things.”
Masker said he wanted to press charges against the man who hit him. The report was forwarded to prosecutors for consideration.
Masker, a former Sandpoint city worker, was friends with the late Richard Butler, leader of the white supremacist Aryan Nations in North Idaho, and attended Butler’s funeral.
– Taryn Brodwater
Post Falls
Food bank patrons can get produce
A refrigerated truck loaded with thousands of pounds of free produce will be at the Post Falls Food Bank on Wednesday at 10 a.m. to distribute the goods to area food bank patrons.
There’s no screening process to determine who’s eligible for the free food, but Mike Feiler of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, a sponsor, said they most likely will be regular food bank patrons.
Feiler said the truck will likely make a stop in Coeur d’Alene next month.
– Meghann M. Cuniff
Sandpoint
Governor plans North Idaho visit
Gov. Jim Risch will be in North Idaho again next week, handing out checks and attending a groundbreaking ceremony in Sandpoint for a financial and technical center being built by Panhandle State Bank.
Risch, who is running for his former office of lieutenant governor, is scheduled for nine activities in two days, traveling as far north as Bonners Ferry and as far south as Reubens.
The governor will be in Sandpoint on Wednesday for the groundbreaking at noon. Afterward, he will present a check for workforce training at Quest Aircraft, also in Sandpoint. He’ll be in Bonners Ferry at 4:15 p.m. to present checks for infrastructure improvements in Bonners Ferry and Moyie Springs.
– Meghann M. Cuniff