In brief: Man shot by police listed as satisfactory
The reportedly suicidal man shot by Spokane police last week following a tense standoff appears to be on the road to recovery.
Craig S. Burton, 25, was listed in satisfactory condition at a local hospital as of Tuesday, according to Spokane County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Deputy Mark Gregory.
He was taken to the hospital following the shooting on May 6 in critical condition, and remained in that condition through at least Friday.
Burton was on the first appearance docket Wednesday, but a Superior Court judge was told that Burton is likely to remain in the hospital until Monday. Three Spokane officers responded to Burton’s West Central home on the night of May 6 after receiving a call about an armed man who was possibly suicidal. Police say Burton fired 11 shots as officers approached his yard through an alley. He faces three first-degree assault charges in connection with the shooting.
An officer shot Burton once after he emerged from the yard with the gun and did not drop it after repeated commands, according to the court documents charging Burton with assault.
Life jackets on loan at Higgens Point
The Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation is making it easier for people to boat safely on Lake Coeur d’Alene.
A new life jacket loaner station will be installed Friday at the Higgens Point boat ramp at the east end of Coeur d’Alene Lake Drive. It’s the fifth such station in Kootenai County and the 70th in Idaho.
Any boater who forgets a life jacket can borrow one for the day on the honor system. There are no fees or paperwork; the state just asks people to return the life jackets when they are done. Sizes range from infant to extra-large.
The Higgens Point station will open Saturday at 3 p.m. and coincides with a national campaign to raise awareness of boating safety and how life jackets save lives. Members of the state parks department, the county Sheriff’s Recreation Safety Section and the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary will be on hand to inspect life jackets and review boating safety with the public.
Wildfire meeting scheduled today
With conditions ripe for another active season of wildfires, the Washington Department of Natural Resources has organized a wildfire preparedness meeting from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. today in Colville.
The meeting takes place at the Stevens County Sheriff Ambulance building, 425 N. Highway.
DNR officials will share weather predictions for the upcoming wildfire season and explain how to protect homes, property and communities. Residents will be able to ask questions and get information about grants to help clear vegetation and trees to reduce fire hazards, how to sign up as a DNR wildfire contractor, and how to be trained in wildfire safety basics. There will be representatives from local fire districts, local law enforcement, federal agencies, conservation districts and others.
Comments accepted on wildfire project
The Bureau of Land Management is taking comments on a proposed hazardous fuels reduction project in Shoshone County.
The Lynch Gulch project covers about 820 acres, with a proposed thinning of overstocked tree stands and a controlled burn to reduce fuels. The project is a high priority in Shoshone County’s Community Wildfire Protection Plan. The BLM is accepting input to develop alternatives for an environmental analysis. Treatments would begin in July 2016.
Comments on the proposal are most useful if received by June 12. They may be sent electronically to blm_id_lynchgulch vegetationtr@blm.gov or by mail to: BLM Coeur d’Alene Field Office, Attn: Lynch Gulch Project, 3815 Schreiber Way, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83815.
For more information, visit http://www.blm.gov/id/st/en/Districts-Idaho/CDA.html.
Jury sentences man for Carnation killings
SEATTLE – A jury has sentenced a man convicted of killing six people in the Christmas Eve 2007 killings in Carnation to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The jury reported the penalty verdict Wednesday after nearly a week of deliberations.
Prosecutors say McEnroe and his then-girlfriend killed six members of her family. The same jury that convicted McEnroe of aggravated murder decided his penalty.
Assault charge after toddler drinks meth
TACOMA – Prosecutors say a Pierce County woman has been charged with third-degree assault of a child after her 13-month-old son drank out of a sippy cup that had been converted into a bong for smoking meth.
KOMO-TV reported court documents say 26-year-old Amber Alline Ingersoll dropped her son at the home of his grandmother Oct. 17, along with a diaper bag that contained a meth-contaminated sippy cup.
After the boy drank from the cup, his grandmother noticed he could not stand up and appeared to be sick. She took him to a hospital where the boy tested positive for meth.