In brief: Rockford bank robbed; suspect arrested in CdA
A man suspected of robbing a bank in Spokane County led authorities on a chase into Coeur d’Alene on Friday.
Coeur d’Alene police detectives arrested Brian D. Sheldon, 39, in Hayden on Friday afternoon.
A man fled in a car after robbing the Bank of Fairfield in Rockford about 1:35 p.m., according to a news release from Deputy Mark Gregory. Spokane County sheriff’s deputies alerted Kootenai County law enforcement that the suspect was headed east and was armed.
The suspect was being pursued by Kootenai County sheriff’s deputies when he entered Coeur d’Alene, according to Coeur d’Alene police Sgt. Christie Wood.
Officers stopped pursuing Sheldon at least twice because of his high rate of speed within the city, Wood said. Detectives found his car at a Hayden apartment complex and arrested him as he got out of the vehicle.
Because of the chase’s proximity to Canfield Middle School, Hayden Meadows Elementary and Dalton Elementary, those schools were briefly locked down as a precaution, Wood said.
Sheldon faces felony charges of eluding police and being a felon in possession of a firearm in Kootenai County, Wood said.
Spokane County Major Crimes detectives are still investigating the Rockford bank robbery and working with the FBI to explore Sheldon’s possible connection to other robberies, Gregory said.
Senate OKs bill to raise per diem for electors
OLYMPIA – Electors who cast their vote for the state’s choice for president would get more money in 2016, under a bill that passed the Senate Friday morning.
Pay for presidential electors in Washington was set in 1891 at $5 a day and 10 cents a mile for the journey to Olympia. It hasn’t been changed since.
The Senate approved House Bill 1639 to give electors a per diem for lodging and food as well as mileage that equals the regularly adjusted rates for state officials. Right now, that’s $77 a day for lodging, $46 a day for food and 56.5 cents per mile.
Sen. Mike Padden, R-Spokane Valley, offered an amendment that would change the rates to $25 per day and 50 cents per mile, saying the rates need to be adjusted but not quite so generously for a job sought by plenty of people. Padden’s amendment failed on a voice vote, and the bill passed 38-10. It already passed the House and goes next to Gov. Jay Inslee.
DOT fires one, demotes one for pontoon errors
SEATTLE – The state Department of Transportation has fired one employee and demoted one because of design flaws that caused cracks in pontoons for the new Highway 520 floating bridge on Lake Washington at Seattle.
Spokesman Lars Erickson issued the disciplinary letters April 5, saying only two people would be disciplined, the Seattle Times reported.
The DOT is delaying release of more details.