In brief: State to review complaints over Super Bowl tickets

OLYMPIA – Seattle Seahawks fans who traveled to Phoenix on the promise of Super Bowl tickets that didn’t materialize are being urged to contact the state’s Consumer Protection office.

Attorney General Bob Ferguson said the office will investigate complaints of ticket agencies that didn’t have the tickets they were claiming to sell, and review them to see whether any broker violated the state’s consumer protection laws.

Fans who didn’t get the tickets they had purchased can call the office at (800) 551-4636 between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. weekdays, or file a complaint online by going to www.atg.wa.gov.

Suspect in store shooting arrested in Montana

A 23-year-old man tied to a shooting at a Hillyard grocery store in January was arrested Monday in Montana.

Ricky Tanner was identified Friday by Spokane police as a suspect in the shots-fired incident, which took place Jan. 26 at the Safeway on North Market Street, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. No one was injured in the shooting, but two teenagers already face charges of assault. Investigators believe the shooting was gang-related.

Authorities near Billings arrested Tanner without incident Monday, according to a news release from the police department. He is being brought back to Spokane, where he faces a likely charge of first-degree assault, according to police.

Report finds millions spent on outside legal work

BOISE – Idaho state agencies are spending more than $10 million a year on outside legal counsel when they could be saving money by using the Idaho attorney general’s office, according to a report released Monday by a legislative committee.

The report, by the Idaho Legislature’s Office of Performance Evaluations, found that three agencies account for 76 percent of the state’s spending on outside lawyers, and much of their work could be handled more cheaply by state staffers. The three are the Department of Health and Welfare, which spends more than $3 million a year on outside lawyers; the Idaho Transportation Department, which spends more than $2.7 million a year; and the state Department of Administration, which spends nearly $2 million a year. 

Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden praised the report and said he’s been “trying to bring some sanity to this issue.”