In brief: Spokane man among 3 dead in plane crash

CENTRAL CITY, Colo. – Authorities say a Spokane man was one of three people who died when their single-engine plane crashed and burned in the northern Colorado mountains.

The Gilpin County sheriff’s office has identified the victims of Wednesday’s crash as 25-year-old James Chatham, of Spokane; 70-year-old John Howard, the pilot; and 56-year-old Catherine Heveran, both of Sunnyvale, Calif. Chatham was a friend of Heveran’s daughter.

Authorities said the plane was flying from Boulder, Colo., to California when it crashed near Rollins Pass. U.S. Forest Service employees responded to reports of smoke and found the severely burned single-engine Beech Bonanza.

Investigators from the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were expected to return to the crash site today.

Associated Press

Hoopfest shooting suspect in county jail

The last of four men charged with attempted murder for a shooting at Hoopfest has been transported to the Spokane County Jail.

Marquis D. Johnson, 21, appeared Friday in Spokane County Superior Court on two counts of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, 10 counts of attempted first-degree murder and one count of riot.

He arrived in Spokane Thursday from the Benton County Jail, where he was held on a probation violation after his arrest at Hoopfest on June 26. He’d only been out of prison since June 6, after serving about three years for a shooting-related assault conviction.

Prosecutors allege Johnson was with Miguel C. Garcia, 19; Adam Doe, 19; and Rashjel C. “Reggie” Cage, 23, when Garcia fired a gun at least three times, injuring three bystanders, during a confrontation with a rival gang.

Meghann M. Cuniff

OLYMPIA – Gov. Chris Gregoire says she may take herself out of the running to replace Elena Kagan as solicitor general.

Gregoire told the Seattle Times on Friday that she may make a decision over the weekend. White House officials said in May that Gregoire was on a list of potential candidates if Kagan was confirmed to the U.S. Supreme Court. She was confirmed Thursday.

Gregoire said she “really can’t think of a worse time for a governor to leave the state.”

Associated Press