DUI prosecution deferred
A Thurston County deputy prosecuting attorney was given a deferred prosecution for driving under the influence.
David Soukup faced sentencing Friday in Snohomish County District Court in Everett.
The 46-year-old Soukup told Judge Tam Bui that he has an alcohol problem and has undergone treatment.
Soukup was charged after a traffic stop June 16. Under Washington’s deferred-prosecution program available to first-time misdemeanor DUI offenders, Soukup must complete a two-year alcohol-treatment program and serve five years of probation. If he completes his probation and the treatment program, the DUI offense will be dismissed.
SALEM, Ore.
Stopped driver shoots self, dies
A motorist who shot himself in the head after getting pulled over by police died Sunday at Salem Hospital, the authorities said.
Derrick Girard Guajardo, 30, of Woodburn, was pulled over for speeding Saturday night on Highway 22 in Polk County, said Lt. Gregg Hastings, an Oregon State Police spokesman.
After stopping, Guajardo stayed inside the Honda Civic and put a gun to his head. OSP Sgt. David Peterson took cover and then heard a shot, Hastings said.
Guajardo remained in critical condition at Salem Hospital until he died Sunday. He had been driving with a suspended license, but there were no outstanding warrants for his arrest, Hastings said.
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore.
Apartment shootings kill two
Three people were shot, two fatally, at a Klamath County apartment Sunday, said David Groff, chief deputy district attorney.
Groff said Marissa Lynn Orlow, 20, died at the scene. David Joshua Kitts, 22, and his wife, Melissa Ann Kitts, 18, were taken to a hospital in Klamath Falls, where David Kitts later died. Melissa Kitts was later transported to an out-of-town hospital.
No arrests have been made. Groff said police were searching for Matthew Avina-Norris, 22.
Groff said preliminary information suggests the shootings were not the result of domestic violence, and investigators are “actively pursuing a variety of leads.”
Police responded to the apartment outside the Klamath Falls city limits about 7 a.m. Groff said he thinks one of the victims and a neighbor both called 911.
YAKIMA
Eagles chapter adopts smoke ban
More than a year and a half after Washington’s ban on indoor smoking took effect, officials of the Yakima chapter of the Fraternal Order of Eagles have agreed to ban smoking at their club.
They had been threatened with tens of thousands of dollars in fines and the suspension of their charter. But last week, trustees signed a consent decree, promising to prohibit smoking in their building.
The ban took effect in December 2005. But the Yakima Eagles persisted with their ashtrays and smoke-filled club.
Yakima Health District officials said they tried working with Eagles management to comply with the law but got nowhere. The case was then turned over to the city attorney’s office.
In July, the city filed a court complaint, stating that every day the Eagles ignored the ban, they would face fines of up to $100.
The chapter now can remain open but will be overseen by a state Eagles agent for an unspecified amount of time.