In brief: Veteran gets light sentence for weapons violations

An Idaho man who was arrested as part of a federal probe into illegal explosives manufacturing in Spirit Lake will be on house arrest for eight months and probation for five years.

Steven E. Winegar, 52, of Harpster, Idaho, was sentenced Monday in U.S. District Court in Coeur d’Alene, where Judge Edward Lodge cited his lack of criminal history, military service and the cost of caring for his medical and mental conditions when imposing the light sentence, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Winegar pleaded guilty in December to illegal possession of a firearm for a .45 pistol he possessed on July 3, 2010, when FBI agents raided a trailer in the Spirit Lake area owned by Kenneth B. Kimbley, Jr.

Agents seized hand grenades, firearms and more than 10,000 rounds of rifle ammunition from the property at 28128 N. Highway 41.

Kimbley, 59, is prohibited from possessing firearms because of a previous felony conviction.

Kimbley is to be sentenced next month for attempting to make explosive devices and illegal possession of a firearm.

Child support forum July 23

A public forum to discuss possible changes to the state child support schedule will be held July 23 at the Gonzaga University School of Law.

The Child Support Schedule Workgroup was established by the Legislature to review child support issues and recommend changes to the law.

The forum will be from 1 to 3 p.m. in the Barbieri Moot Court Room at the law school, 721 N. Cincinnati St.

Baby abandoned; 1 arrested

OLYMPIA – Police say they’ve arrested a 23-year-old woman accused of abandoning a newborn baby boy in a restroom trash can at Providence St. Peter Hospital.

Hospital staff found the baby about 5 a.m. Tuesday. The Olympian reports he was later transferred to an undisclosed pediatric hospital.

Sgt. Aaron Jelcick said Jasmin M. Ritchey of South Bend has been arrested. She was booked into the Thurston County Jail for investigation of second-degree attempted murder and second-degree abandonment of a dependent person.

It was not known Tuesday night if she had a lawyer.

Jelcick says it appears the baby will survive.

Police are still investigating why the woman was at the hospital, but Jelcick said they believe she gave birth early Tuesday in the restroom.

Vandals take rail spikes

BELLINGHAM – Forty-four spikes were removed from train tracks in Bellingham, but railroad officials say they discovered the vandalism before any trains could derail.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman Gus Melonas said the railroad is offering rewards of up to $5,000 for information concerning several recent acts of vandalism that damaged railroad property near Bellingham and could have led to train accidents.

Melonas says the removal of spikes discovered Monday could have caused significant damage if an inspector hadn’t noticed the track tampering.