Man flips table after conviction
Dennis Patrick Bucknell, 46, apparently wasn’t pleased Monday when a jury found him guilty of second-degree rape, first-degree incest and intimidation of a witness. After the verdict, Bucknell pushed over a table and had to be subdued by Spokane County sheriff’s deputies.
According to court records, on Feb. 19, 2005, Bucknell raped a woman who suffers from Lou Gehrig’s disease and is confined to a bed.
On Aug. 23, one of the witnesses in the rape case received a letter from Bucknell’s address. One page read, “Storm before the calm.” Another page had a six-pointed star with a circle around it. At the top was written: “The Curse of the Blood of God’s People.”
After the jury found Bucknell guilty, he “became agitated and flipped over the counsel table,” Superior Court Judge Sam Cozza said. “He broke a water pitcher in the process.” Deputies removed Bucknell from the courtroom.
Bucknell has previous convictions for third-degree rape of a 16-year-old girl and two other third-degree assaults, including one against a jailer, according to court records. His sentencing is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Nov. 17.
Spokane county
Balance due Oct. 31 for property taxes
Second-half property bills are due at the end of the month, the Spokane County treasurer’s office says.
The office is working to collect about $376 million in property taxes that will go to cities, schools, cemetery districts and other government operations.
State law requires that property bills be paid by April 30, but it allows taxpayers to shell out half by April 30 and the other half by Oct. 31.
Payments sent by mail must be postmarked by Oct. 31. Taxes also can be paid online at www.spokanecounty.org/ treasurer.
pullman
WSU pathologist named to institute
Guy Palmer, a veterinary pathologist at Washington State University, has been elected to the National Academy of Science’s Institute of Medicine, a top honor for scientists in biomedical research and health care.
Palmer has researched what allows disease-causing agents to live long past the initial infection, as well as disease transmission and infection and possible vaccines to combat disease. Most recently, he has focused on Anaplasma marginale, the most prevalent tick-borne pathogen in cattle worldwide, WSU said. It causes millions of dollars in losses to ranchers each year.
The institute announced Palmer’s selection Monday in Washington, D.C.
Most of the institute’s 1,600 members are physicians, but about a quarter come from related fields. Palmer is the fifth veterinarian with direct ties to WSU, the most of any veterinary college in the country, WSU said.
– From staff reports