Serving Franklin County, WA
Serving Franklin County, WA
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 957
LIND — An attempt to set fees for public records access remains in limbo after the Tuesday, Oct. 22, town council meeting. During debate on Resolution 24-07, “Policies and Procedures for Public Records Requests,” Mayor Paula Bell pushed to set copying fees at 50 cents per color page and 15 cents per page for black-and-white. She also pushed an effort to charge requestors for staff time in providing records owned by the public but maintained by the town. That did not sit well with Councilwoman Anna Dobbins, who noted charg...
RITZVILLE — A local teenager will appear in Adams County Superior Court on Monday, Nov. 4, in connection with threatening to blowup Lind-Ritzville schools and shoot classmates. Donald G. DesJardins, 14, of Ritzville, will appear before Judge Andrea Russell to answer to one count of threats to bomb, a Class B felony. He was arrested Oct. 22 and booked into Martin Hall juvenile detention center on $10,000 bail. Authorities have yet to say if he will be tried as an adult. P...
HATTON - A woman wanted in Franklin County was apprehended Oct. 27 in Adams County on Oct. 27 and turned over to Pasco police. Natalie Ingrid Malex Parsadanian, 25, of Finley, was arrested following a high-speed pursuit that ended in a crash in Adams County. Parsadanian was driving a dark-colored BMW and reportedly armed with a shotgun and threatening suicide by cop, records show. As she fled northbound from Franklin into Adams County, she crash and was taken into custody....
OTHELLO - A high-speed pursuit in excess of 100 mph ended abruptly Oct. 25, when the driver lost control of his Toyota pickup and crashed on state Highway 17. Driver Jacob Arceo, 25, of Pasco, and passenger Tatianna Seideman, 20, of Oldtown, Idaho, were both injured and transported to the local hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. Arceo is facing possible charges of first-degree driving with a suspended license and reckless driving. The incident has been...
Age: 66 Hometown: Colfax Family: Married to Kim Schmick for 42 years. Education: Relevent or Volunteer Experience: 17 years in this current position Candidates have been given a 100 words to answer each question and answers have not been edited. Question 1: In recent years, state agencies have used purported habitat and wildlife concerns as a reason to implement new regulations on farmers and ranchers. Those regulations have impacted the livelihoods or rural residents. What wo...
Age: 55 Hometown: Manson, Iowa Family: Married to Dr. Stephen Thew, raised our four children in Spokane County (one died in 2022). Education: Relevent or Volunteer Experience: No political experience. Relevant professional experiences include practicing as a board certified emergency physician for about 15 years, then teaching predominantly Health Policy and Law and Professionalism as a Lecturer-MPH for Eastern Washington University, and most recently serving as a staff attorn...
OTHELLO — A local man was airlifted to a Richland hospital after his car struck a truck Oct. 21 about sevens west of the city. Walter Gregorio Lopez, 21, of Othello, was flown to Kadlec Medical Center following a 2:58 p.m. crash on near Milepost 33 of Highway 26. According to the Washington State Patrol, Lopez was westbound in a 2012 Subaru Legacy. When a 1992 Kenworth truck and construction trailer slowed in front of him, rear ended the vehicle, the patrol said. The truck was driven by Jacob C. Valdez, 21, of Othello, who w...
OTHELLO — A local man was transported to a Richland hospital after his car struck a truck Oct. 21 about sevens west of the city. Walter Gregorio Lopez, 21, of Othello, was transported to Kadlec Medical Center following a 2:58 p.m. crash on near Milepost 33 of Highway 26. According to the Washington State Patrol, Lopez was westbound in a 2012 Subaru Legacy. When a 1992 Kenworth truck and construction trailer slowed in front of him, rear ended the vehicle, the patrol said. The truck was driven by Jacob C. Valdez, 21, of O...
RITZVILLE — A 14-year-old is facing at least one charge of threats to bomb or injure property following social media posts to shoot classmates and blow up schools. The boy was arrested today, Oct. 22, following an investigation into the threats reportedly found on social media last night. The threats prompted school officials to close campuses today. Police also called in a bomb-sniffing dog. This evening, law enforcement officials remain at some of the school campuses. Police have not identified the boy, citing Revised C...
RITZVILLE - Lind-Ritzville schools were shuttered today Tuesday, Oct. 22, after several anonymous bomb and shooting threats posted to social media sites. School officials made the call to close campuses after being alerted to threats made on social media late Monday. "These threats included names, methods and times, and we are taking them very seriously," the district said in a press release alerting the community to the closure of schools early this morning. District...
OTHELLO — Two people have been arrested for allegedly dealing drugs in Adams and Grant Counties. Dennis Wayne Riojas, 57, of Othello, and Slade Hardesty Fortner, 31, of Moses Lake, were both arrested Oct. 16, court records show. Riojas was arrested on charges of possession of a stolen firearm, first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver, possession of fentanyl with intent to deliver and possession of marijuana with intent to deliver. Riojas was booked into the F...
OLYMPIA — The Nov. 5 general election is underway. Voting began last Friday; the state estimated there are 4.9 million registered voters statewide. This election includes federal, state and local races, as well as statewide initiatives and possibly local levy and bond measures, officials said. Ballots must be returned to a valid county drop box or voting center by 8 p.m. Nov. 5 to be counted. Voters who choose to return their ballots by mail can use the provided postage-paid envelope, which must be postmarked by Election D...
Local stargazers looking to the west, left of Venus and about 20 degrees above the horizon, can catch a glimpse of the comet C/2023 Ag Tsuchinshan-ATLAS this week. The photo above was taken between Tyler and Cheney on Monday. The comet is faintly visible for about an hour starting at sunset through Oct. 26.....
A geomagnetic storm created colorful lights in the sky over Eastern Washington last Thursday night, Oct. 10. Geomagnetic waves were visible pulsating in the color. At the bottom of the image, the red tail lights from a passing car leave color of their own....
For close to a decade, periods—yes, menstrual periods—had been one of those rare issues that could win legislative support in blue states and red ones. The 19th shares details about how the issue has affected accessibility of menstrual products in schools across the U.S. Starting in about 2016, legislators from California to Alabama had been passing bills mandating that tampons and pads be readily available in public spaces—especially schools—after researchers found that st...
They were babies and toddlers when the pandemic hit. At school, some still struggle. One minute, the four-year-old boy was giggling. The school's new behavioral specialist made a game of helping him put on his shoes, playfully sniffing them then scrunching up her face in pretend horror. A minute later, he was inconsolable, an emotional U-turn perhaps sparked by the transition to clean-up time. A teacher cradled the boy in her lap, calmly dodging his small flailing arms. He qui...
RITZVILLE - A man who attempted to stab a local police officer is being held in the Franklin County Jail without bail. Brian Jedediah Sumner, 45, is was booked into the jail Oct. 8 on three counts of first-degree assault, third-degree assault, obstructing a public servant, resisting arrest and felony eluding. Court records show Sumner, who frequents the Sprague area, was apprehended in Spokane. His arrest stems from an Oct. 5 domestic call. Records show police were dispatched...
Far from the Southern border states of previous elections, a rush to court Latino votes ahead of Nov. 5 is concentrating in Pennsylvania's hotly contested "Latino Belt"—and both camps have firmly planted their flags. In June, the Trump campaign opened an outreach office in Reading, Pennsylvania, home to one of the largest Latino populations in the Keystone State. Nearly 7 in 10 residents of the former factory town are Latino, with many of Puerto Rican and Dominican descent. "...
PASCO — With less than 30 days to go in the Nov. 5 general election, a county auditor and state representative want to intervene in an effort to sweep away the constitutional residency requirement to vote. Franklin County Auditor Matt Beaton of Pasco and 19th Legislative District Rep. Jim Walsh of Aberdeen, both Republicans, are seeking to require to state elections officials to follow the state Constitution or go about a legal change to residency requirements. At issue is the unilateral decision by Secretary of State S...
BASIN CITY - A man wanted in the shooting of his mother and step-father is in the Franklin County Jail following his Sept. 16 arrest. Daniel Arceo-Martinez, 28, of Basin City, is being held on $1 million bail, charged with first-degree assault. He was arrested in Moses Lake following a tip on his whereabouts. Arceo-Martinez was wanted in the Sept. 15 shooting of his mother and step-father in rural Franklin County, court records show. The couple was treated for gunshot wounds...
RITZVILLE - Law enforcement agencies, ranchers and rural counties are forming a coalition to push back against the state Fish and Wildlife Commission's failure to manage large predators effectively. The coalition was announced Sept. 17 following a meeting here on large-predator issues. The meeting attracted about 16-20 law enforcement officers, as well as two ranchers speaking about the effects of wolf, cougar and bear depredation on farms, ranches and rural communities. "The...
Rural counties experience more traffic deaths per capita compared to their urban counterparts, due in part to slower emergency response times, higher speed limits, and risky driving behavior like not wearing seatbelts. Six lane interstates and city streets in densely developed urban areas aren't more dangerous than open stretches of highway, no matter how nasty rush hour traffic may get. An analysis by The Daily Yonder shows that traffic deaths are higher in rural counties,...
OTHELLO — An Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who planned to meet a young local girl here for sex has been sentenced to federal prison. Koby Don Williams, 49, of Ellensburg, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice to 135 months in federal prison, to be followed by 15 years probation. He was convicted of attempted online enticement. According to court records, Williams replied to a decoy online post as part of an undercover sting to catch pedophiles willing to meet minors for sex. The post s...
RITZVILLE — The state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction recently released its 2023-34 report card for public school students for grades K12. The report card analyzed different data trends from the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years. And the report card doesn’t look good for area schools when it comes to attendance and consistent grade-level knowledge. The report card also shows the amount of money school districts are spending per pupil. Interestingly, the amount does not necessarily correlate with student ach...
WALLULA JUNCTION — A Pasco man was killed early Sept. 21 in a head-on crash on U.S. Highway 12. Salvador Beltran, 28, of Pasco, was pronounced dead at the scene near Milepost 303 in Walla Walla County, about 11 miles east of Pasco, at about 3:10 a.m., the Washington State Patrol reported. Beltran's next of kin was notified of his death by Pasco police. According to the state patrol, Caitlyn S. Bailey, 40, of Athena, Ore., was eastbound in a 2004 Hyundai Santa Fe on the highway when she crossed the centerline and hit B...