In Brief: Idaho teacher kills, skins rabbit in biology class
BOISE – An Idaho biology teacher is facing possible disciplinary action after killing and skinning a rabbit in class to show students where their food comes from.
Nampa School District spokeswoman Allison Westfall said the teacher killed the rabbit in front of 16 students by snapping its neck on Nov. 6 at Columbia High School. The rabbit was then skinned and cut up in front of the 10th-graders.
Westfall said the demonstration isn’t part of the biology curriculum and students who didn’t want to view the lesson were allowed to leave ahead of time.
The teacher’s name hasn’t been released.
Battelle, DOE to settle beryllium investigation
RICHLAND – Battelle Memorial Institute has agreed to pay $200,000 and make improvements to settle a Department of Energy investigation into its monitoring of the metal beryllium.
Battelle operates the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland. The consent order released Thursday says Battelle failed to conduct routine sampling for beryllium for several years, according to the Tri-City Herald.
Beryllium was used at the laboratory and at Hanford until the mid-’80s. It is present in some older facilities. Workers who are sensitive to the metal can develop a chronic and incurable lung disease if they breathe in fine particles.
Battelle spokesman Greg Koller said Battelle took action as soon as the issues were discovered and has continued to make changes and improvements.
Police officers appealing judge’s decision on suit
SEATTLE – A group of Seattle police officers is appealing a federal judge’s decision to throw out their lawsuit over the department’s new policy on using force.
The policy was adopted following a 2012 settlement agreement with the U.S. Justice Department, which found that Seattle police routinely used excessive force.
The policy lists guidelines for every weapon used and requires the most serious uses of force to be investigated by a special team. It spells out when force is appropriate, stresses that alternatives to force should be used “when time, circumstances and safety permit,” and requires that officers carry at least one less-lethal tool such as a Taser.
More than 100 officers sued, claiming the policy is impractical and unsafe.
U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman dismissed the lawsuit last month. A lawyer for the officers said Friday that 89 officers signed on to the appeal to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Juice grape growers harvest 264,000 tons
GRANDVIEW, Wash. – Growers of Concord juice grapes have harvested a near-record crop in Washington.
Figures compiled for the growers estimate the crop at 264,000 tons, the third-highest on record and well above the 10-year average of 190,000 tons, the Yakima Herald-Republic reported.
Washington is the nation’s largest producer of juice grapes, contributing about half the annual tonnage.
Most of the juice grapes in the state are grown around Sunnyside, Grandview and Prosser. The juice is processed at Yakima Valley plants into concentrates used for jams, juice, syrups and fruit snacks.
Growers and industry officials held the annual meeting of the Washington Grape Society this week in Grandview.
Olympia activist Fawver hospitalized after attack
Olympia – Downtown Olympia activist David Fawver, who goes by the name Long Haired David, was hospitalized Thursday night following an altercation outside of Cafe Love, according to the Olympia Police Department.
Kiel S. Duggins, a 24-year-old Olympia man, was arrested for second-degree assault following the incident and is being held on $50,000 bail at the Thurston County Jail.
Department spokeswoman Laura Wohl said the altercation began with a dispute over a bicycle in front of the cafe. Fawver and another man began shoving each other and fell through the cafe’s front window.
Several people rushed forward and pulled the two men out of the glass, Wohl said. When Fawver stepped back onto the sidewalk, he stumbled into Duggins, who had been watching the altercation. Duggins responded by punching Fawver in the head, causing Fawver to lose consciousness.
According to the Olympia Police Department, Duggins is the same man who assaulted an Intercity Transit bus driver on Feb. 25.
Rob Richards, program manager for the Downtown Ambassador Program, said one of his employees stayed with Fawver overnight in the hospital. He said Fawver regained consciousness and was released from the hospital Friday afternoon.
Officials want bighorn sheep to stay in Montana
HELENA – Montana wildlife commissioners say they want to keep looking for suitable sites within the state to relocate bighorn sheep.
Commissioners this week rejected for the second time a proposal from Fish, Wildlife and Parks to move some wild sheep out of state.
Wildlife managers say herds in the Missouri River Breaks are too densely populated, raising the chance that disease will wipe them out.
Transplanting excess sheep out of state in the past was a somewhat routine practice. That changed in 2009 following hunter complaints when 60 sheep were transplanted to Utah.
Wildlife managers say they can no longer find suitable relocation sites in Montana. They want to send 50 of the animals to South Dakota.