In brief: Three arrested in vehicle arsons
Investigators said Thursday they have arrested three people in a series of Portland-area vehicle arsons.
The three were identified as Denis Panichello, 27, Lena Thi Son, 19, and a juvenile whose name was not released.
The vehicle fires were among eight reported in the Portland area since Tuesday.
The Portland Fire Bureau said Thursday that the fires are not tied to the ecosaboteurs or the sentencing of 10 of them under way in Eugene.
LOS ANGELES
Pigeon fans linked to raptor attacks
Pigeon fanciers in three states were accused of shooting, clubbing and gassing federally protected hawks and falcons, authorities said Thursday.
A 14-month undercover investigation by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service led to charges being filed against a Texas man on Wednesday, three Oregon men on Monday and seven Southern California men earlier this month.
The men were accused of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act by taking or attempting to take a protected bird.
The men were associated with clubs for enthusiasts of Birmingham roller pigeons, which because of a genetic defect do backward flips while in flight and make attractive prey for hawks and falcons.
SEATTLE
Judge dismisses organ donor suit
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit over the use of organ donor body parts for research and purposes other than transplantation, and officials say they plan to revise the state’s consent procedure.
King County Superior Court Judge Joan E. DuBuque rejected a case brought by Nancy Adams and her husband, Matthew, against the county medical examiner’s office after they learned that organs from her son, Jesse Smith, 21, were sent to a research company without the family’s knowledge.
Smith died of a heart attack on May 21, 2003, less than two months after marking a organ donor consent form.
His mother was told that her son’s organs were unsuitable for live transplant. But later she found out from a KIRO Television investigation that his brain, liver and spleen had been sent to the Stanley Medical Research Institute in Baltimore.
From wire reports