In brief: Family of four alerted to fire by puppy
Spokane fire crews are investigating the cause of a fire early Thursday in northwest Spokane that displaced four people.
Crews responded about 1 a.m. to the fire at 5727 N. Fotheringham St. No one was injured and residents did not need assistance from the Red Cross, the Spokane Fire Department reported.
About 24 firefighters in eight crews responded to the fire at the single-story wood-frame home.
KHQ reported the family of four – a father, mother and two boys – were alerted to the fire by their puppy.
Doctors leaving bullet in 8-year-old girl
SEATTLE – Doctors have no plans to remove a bullet from an 8-year-old Bremerton girl who was wounded in a classroom shooting.
Harborview Medical Center spokeswoman Susan Gregg-Hanson said Thursday the bullet is not causing a problem, and sometimes it’s riskier to remove a bullet from a sensitive area.
After damaging internal organs, the .45-caliber bullet reportedly lodged in muscle next to the girl’s spinal cord.
Amina Kocer-Bowman has had five surgeries since the Feb. 22 shooting. She was taken off a respirator Wednesday and is breathing on her own. She remains in intensive care at the Seattle hospital.
Kucinich won’t run in Washington
SEATTLE – A spokesman for Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich said he’s not looking to Washington state after losing his primary.
Spokesman Andy Juniewicz said Kucinich would have to resign to establish residency in Washington and he has no plan to do that.
The Seattle Times reports the district most often mentioned as a destination for Kucinich, the 1st District, was redrawn into a swing district that would be harder for him to win.
There was speculation Kucinich was looking to Washington last year when he made a half-dozen visits to the state that gained a congressional district as Ohio lost two, throwing him into the primary with a fellow incumbent, Marcy Kaptur.
The former Cleveland mayor and presidential candidate was cheered at the Washington State Labor Council convention in August.
Six boys investigated in bus assault
MARYSVILLE, Wash. – Six middle school boys in Marysville, Wash., have been barred from school as police and school district officials investigate what is described as a sexually motivated assault on a 13-year-old girl on a school bus.
Marysville School District Superintendent Larry Nyland told the Daily Herald that the March 1 incident was captured on surveillance video from a bus camera. The district did not learn about it until the next day. The case involves Marysville Middle School students ages 11 to 15.
Nyland and police Cmdr. Robb Lamoureux declined to describe exactly what is alleged to have happened. Nyland said the bus driver may not have known what was going on.
Lamoureux said police are conducting a full criminal investigation and criminal charges are possible. The district is investigating also.
Parents were notified Thursday by letter.
Marysville is about 30 miles north of Seattle.
Rush to court nets driver $2,000 in tickets
PORTLAND – Traffic officers along Interstate 84 in Oregon’s Columbia River Gorge say a lead-footed driver was in such a hurry to make a court date on a meth possession charge that he racked up $2,000 worth of speeding tickets in an hour.
Police say 34-year-old Jose Romero-Valenzuela, of Las Vegas, was zooming west Wednesday morning and got pulled over three times – first at 105 mph, then at 98 mph and finally at 92 mph.
Police say the last ticket appeared to have an effect. Down the road a bit, a trooper set up watch and clocked him at the limit, 65 mph.
Besides fines and penalties, police say his license could be suspended for up to 90 days if he’s found guilty on the citation alleging driving in excess of 100 mph. Police confirm he was indeed scheduled for a court appearance later Wednesday in Oregon City, south of Portland.