Man hit by car; injuries ‘life threatening’

A man was critically injured Saturday night while attempting to cross Browne Street near Second Avenue against the light, police said.

Three lanes of traffic on Browne were approaching a green light on Second about 6:30 p.m. when the man stepped into the crosswalk, Spokane police Officer Mike McCasland said.

“Two lanes stopped for him. The third didn’t,” McCasland said.

The man, whose name was not released, was struck by a Ford Focus, McCasland said. The female driver was cooperating with police.

“The light was green. She did have the right-of-way,” McCasland said.

A doctor who saw the accident stopped his vehicle and performed first aid on the man, whose injuries were described by McCasland as “life-threatening.”

The accident reduced traffic on Browne to one lane while the crash was investigated. An orange hat lay in the middle of the intersection, along with a large plastic bag, clothes and other debris.

Woman arrested after robbery

A woman was arrested Saturday morning on suspicion of robbing a South Hill gas station, and she may be a suspect in two other robberies, Spokane police said.

Officers responded to a robbery call at the Tesoro station at 3158 E. 17th Ave., about 1 p.m.

After securing the scene and getting a detailed description, two police officers caught the suspect only one block away.

Tasha M. Peterson, 35, is accused of first-degree robbery, police said.

She is also being investigated for two other robberies earlier in the day – one that took place about 2 a.m. at the 7-Eleven at 2828 E. 30th, and another at 5 a.m. at the Conoco station at 305 S. Thor.

Descriptions of the suspects in those robberies were similar to the one provided at the Tesoro station, according to police.

JACKSON, Wyo.

Wolf decision pleases conservationists

Conservationists applauded the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision against allowing Wyoming to kill wolves to preserve the state’s wildlife herds over the next few years.

Franz Camenzind, executive director of the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, said the federal stance was “absolutely appropriate.”

“The question is, can the people of Wyoming share their abundant wildlife with a few wolves,” he said, “or do they want them just for themselves to shoot and kill? I would hope Wyoming and its people are generous enough to allow native wildlife to live here.”

Wyoming had suggested the federal agency allow the state to kill some wolves to control their killing of other wildlife during likely litigation over status of the wolves under the federal Endangered Species Act.

Wyoming Gov. Dave Freudenthal and state legislative leaders said they were disappointed by the rejection of the state proposal, saying it leaves them no choice but to continue its own lawsuit against the federal government.

Freudenthal said the federal agency’s position would allow the killing of wolves that prey on livestock in the state but not those that prey on other wildlife such as elk. The state fears elk herds might be reduced to the point that it will affect the lucrative elk hunting trade.

BUTTE

Public land sales proposed in budget

The Bush administration again this year proposes to sell public lands to pay for a federal program that helps rural schools in timber counties deal with the loss of revenue from logging.

The president’s proposed 2008 budget asks Congress to allow more than 273,000 acres of Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management property to be sold over the next five years to raise $800 million. The proposal includes more than 11,100 acres in Montana.

Proceeds from the land sales would go to fund the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self Determination Act, a 2000 law that pays rural schools to help offset the loss of money from decreased logging on public land.

Last year the administration proposed to sell more than 300,000 acres; but the plan died after fierce opposition from environmentalists, hunters and anglers.

U.S. Undersecretary of Agriculture Mark Rey told the Montana Standard in Butte that the administration listened to criticism and has revised its proposal to address many of the concerns.

People from both sides of the political aisle agree that rural schools need help to deal with declining timber receipts on public land, Rey said in a telephone interview for a story published Saturday.

“We didn’t hear a lot of people saying, ‘Oh, we don’t need to do this; these counties should be able to make it on their own,’ ” he said. In a time with large federal budget deficits, the money has to be found to pay for the program, Rey said.

Compiled from staff and wire reports