Mass, burial planned for shooting victim

Memorial events spanning three days for a 21-year-old Coeur d’Alene tribal member shot to death last weekend began Tuesday with a community gathering at the Rose Creek Longhouse in Worley.

A rosary for Timothy I. Wolfe, 21, who was shot in the head after an early-morning confrontation Saturday near two popular Coeur d’Alene nightspots, will begin at 7 tonight at the Longhouse in Worley. A Mass is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday at the Lakeside Middle School gym in Plummer. Burial will follow at the DeSmet Cemetery, with a dinner at the Longhouse in Worley.

Juan C. “Yoshio” Aldana Villanueva, 22, is being held without bail at the Kootenai County Jail, suspected by police of killing Wolfe.

Sara Leaming

Spokane Valley

Blaze extinguished at vacant building

Authorities are trying to determine how an abandoned building in Spokane Valley caught fire Tuesday evening.

The building, which used to house a bicycle shop, is located along Sprague Avenue in what’s known as the historic Perry block. Smoke was seen drifting out of the building about 8 p.m., and Spokane Valley firefighters discovered flames in the basement of the two-story brick building, Fire Department spokesman Bill Clifford said.

Eastbound lanes of Sprague Avenue were temporarily closed as firefighters doused the blaze and made sure flames hadn’t spread into nearby buildings, which have adjoining walls. Dave’s Bar and Grill, a popular hangout, was briefly evacuated but quickly reopened.

The abandoned building is scheduled for demolition soon. It is being cleared to make way for a new Rite Aid drugstore at the Pines Road and Sprague Avenue.

Sara Leaming

Olympia

Gregoire approves newspaper tax break

Gov. Chris Gregoire has approved a tax break for the state’s troubled newspaper industry.

The new law gives newspaper printers and publishers a 40 percent cut in the state’s main business tax. The discounted rate mirrors breaks given in years past to the Boeing Co. and the timber industry.

Newspapers across the country have resorted to layoffs and other cost-cutting moves to deal with a wounded business model and a recession-fueled drop in advertising.

Associated Press