In brief: Memorial planned Thursday for Marek

Wed., April 27, 2011

A memorial service for Larry “Pete” Marek will be held at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Kellogg High School Gymnasium, 2 Jacobs Gulch Road.

Marek died April 15 during a roof collapse at the Lucky Friday Mine in Mullan, Idaho. His family has asked that people wear casual clothes to the memorial service, including hunting and mining attire.

The family suggests that memorials may be made to the charity of one’s choice.

Shoshone Funeral Services of Kellogg is in charge of the arrangements.

Staff report

District bond slides, school levy is winning

A proposed $34 million bond in the East Valley School District was failing in early ballot counts Tuesday night.

The money would be used to extensively renovate five elementary schools, shift district and maintenance offices to East Valley Middle School and make technology upgrades.

Taxes would increase 86 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value, making East Valley’s total bond and levy tax rates $4.39 per $1,000 in property value.

Only 39 percent of votes counted Tuesday supported the bond, which needs a supermajority to pass.

The Orchard Prairie School District’s maintenance and operations levy appeared to be passing Tuesday. The K-7 school district is asking for $105,000 for two years to make up for state funding cuts. If the levy passes, taxpayers in that district would pay about $1.25 per $1,000 of assessed property value. Early counts showed 61 percent of voters supporting the levy.

Chelsea Bannach

Boise jury selected in murder-for-hire case

BOISE – Thirteen women and one man will hear the case of a North Idaho attorney accused of hiring a man to kill his wife and mother-in-law.

Two of the 14 jurors selected Tuesday for the trial of Edgar Steele will be alternates. All will hear opening statements beginning at 8:30 a.m. today in U.S. District Court in Boise.

Of the 65-person jury pool, at least 20 said they’d heard of the case through the media. All potential jurors were asked if they were affiliated with groups that advocated “racial or ethnic superiority” or opposed it. Only one said yes – a woman who said her daughter served as the youth representative for the Ada County Human Rights Commission. She was not excluded because of that.

Steele faces 30 years in prison if convicted of possessing a destructive device in relation to a crime of violence. He’s also charged with use of interstate commerce to commission murder for hire, use of explosive material to commit a federal felony and tampering with a victim.

Meghann M. Cuniff

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