In brief: Assault charges urged against driver in crash
The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office is requesting that the driver in a 2006 head-on crash be charged with vehicular assault.
Sheriff’s Detective Ken Salas forwarded the recommendation to the Spokane County prosecutor’s office on Wednesday, but it’s unclear when prosecutors will decide how to proceed.
The case involves 39-year-old Joseph H. Perry, who crashed head-on into another vehicle on June 20, 2006, on Bigelow Gulch Road.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, Perry swerved his pickup into oncoming traffic when a driver in front of him slowed to make a left turn. Perry then hit a car driven by 51-year-old Kay Yoke, who suffered serious injuries.
Perry and his passenger were slightly injured.
At the time of the crash, Perry had drugs and alcohol in his system, a used marijuana pipe in his truck and a suspended driver’s license, sheriff’s deputies said.
– Staff reports
Cooler weather seen in weekend forecast
The calendar now says summer, but the forecast for the weekend is decidedly more springlike, forecasters said.
High temperatures Thursday of 82 in Spokane and 81 in Coeur d’Alene accompanied the celestial start of summer, and another day of summerlike weather is on tap for today.
But forecasters said a weak Pacific low pressure system will begin cooling down the weather by Saturday morning and continue to influence the weather into Monday with highs in the mid-70s on Saturday and cooling to the upper 60s to around 70 on Sunday. A 30 percent chance of showers is also in the forecast for Sunday.
– Mike Prager
Coeur d’Alene
NIC candidate accepts Arizona college offer
The search for a new North Idaho College president is down to one, but not by the NIC board’s choosing.
Leah Bornstein accepted a job as president of Coconino Community College in northern Arizona this week, leaving NIC interim President Priscilla Bell as the only remaining finalist for the permanent NIC spot.
NIC officials did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment, but the board has said either Bornstein or Bell would get the job, or the search would start over.
Bornstein was chief executive officer of Colorado Mountain College’s Summit campus when she was named a finalist for the top NIC job. Another finalist dropped out of consideration, and Bell was moved up from a semifinalist spot. Bell has been the NIC interim president since Michael Burke left for San Jose City College in late February.
– Meghann M. Cuniff