In brief: Ferris assistant principal resigns amid charges

Ferris High School Assistant Principal Todd Bender has resigned amid criminal charges of child molestation.

Spokane Public Schools’ board of directors accepted Bender’s resignation in lieu of firing him during a special board meeting held on Saturday.

Bender had worked at Ferris High School since 1995.

His resignation came as district officials had finalized a meeting with Bender to notify him he would be fired, Superintendent Shelley Redinger said.

“If he had not resigned, we could have moved for dismissal and it could have taken much longer,” she said.

The former English teacher and track coach acknowledged having sexual contact with a teenage boy but told investigators the teen initiated the interactions, according to court documents.

Bender pleaded not guilty to two charges of child molestation during a brief court appearance Thursday.

Redinger added, “His resignation means we can all move forward.”

Jody Lawrence-Turner

Accused of rape, lawyer, 76, out of jail

A 76-year-old Spokane lawyer accused of rape and unlawful imprisonment has been released from Spokane County Jail on his own recognizance and ordered to stay away from the victim in the case.

Robert Caruso’s arraignment is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Dec. 3.

Caruso is accused of raping a 22-year-old woman who’d been in a car crash on Sept. 6. She told Spokane police that Caruso drove by and offered to help her, but instead of taking her to the hospital as he promised, he drove her to his condominium on the South Hill where he drugged and raped her, according to court records. Caruso doesn’t deny that the woman was in his condo but maintains that the sex was consensual.

Caruso turned himself in Friday after the Washington attorney general’s office issued a warrant.

David Partovi, Caruso’s lawyer, used his client’s clean criminal record and ties in the community to argue for his client’s release during a Monday court appearance.

Jody Lawrence-Turner

Suitcase near heater blamed for fatal fire

The house fire that killed a 97-year-old woman in north Spokane was caused by a suitcase being placed too close to a baseboard heater, Assistant Fire Marshal Michael Miller said Monday.

The home where Olga Ford lived with her son at 1227 E. Longfellow Ave. caught fire shortly after 7 a.m. on Oct. 28.

Ford was asleep in the home’s back bedroom and died of smoke inhalation. Miller said he believed the fire started in that bedroom.

Ford’s son Trevor was able to escape the fire with minor injuries.

The house did not have working smoke detectors at the time of the fire.

Miller said the fire was a “tragic situation” and urged people to avoid placing combustible materials close to heaters. Cleaning chimneys every year before use and being alert for signs of chimney fire can also help prevent winter fires.

The Spokane Fire Department will install smoke alarms for free in homes lacking them. Contact the fire department or the Red Cross, Miller said.

Rachel Alexander