Serving Franklin County, WA
Serving Franklin County, WA
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 904
SPOKANE — A local man convicted in connection with trafficking drugs from the Tri-Cities to Spokane Valley has been sentenced to prison. Jordy Scott DeBoer, 32, was sentenced to 272 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised probation by U.S. District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice. DeBoer previously pleaded guilty to one count each of possession with intent to distribute more than 50 grams of pure methamphetamine and intent to distribute 400 grams or more of fentanyl. DeBoer’s sentence stems from a March 30, 202...
They come rumbling down the highway, crossing bridges and international borders. They bring life-saving drugs, food for the kitchen table, and that random clothing fad that will be out of fashion mere months later. Trucks are ubiquitous on American roadways. However, they've become increasingly important in trade with its neighbors, Mexico and Canada, as relations with China cool and the United States government encourages "nearshoring," the practice of moving part of a compan...
OTHELLO — Two area airports will be receiving funds from the federal Airport Improvement Program to enhance aviation centers. Othello Municipal Airport will receive $448,000 and Odessa Municipal Airport will receive $100,000. The fund were among $47.1 million in FAA Re-authorization Act dollars allocated to airports in Washington state last month. Nationally, $600 million was allocated. Othello’s airport was allocated the funds to seal the pavement and joins on its apron, runway, taxilane and taxiway. The funds allocated to...
SPOKANE — A Spokane man will be sentenced in connection with cryptocurrency fraud Sept. 25 in U.S. District Court. Michael Joseph McElhiney, 37, pleaded guilty to wire fraud June 26 before U.S. District Court Judge Thomas O. Rice. In the plea agreement accepted by the court, and in information disclosed during court proceedings, between March 4, 2021, and Sept. 10, 2022, McElhiney defrauded investors by pretending to operate a cryptocurrency investment fund known as MAC Blockchain Solutions. McElhiney promised prospective inv...
HATTON – Westbound travelers on state Highway 26 may want to find an alternative route over the next week as the highway undergoes pavement repairs that will cause delays. Nearly 60 miles are being repaired, according to the state Department of Transportation. A 27-mile stretch from U.S. Highway 395 near Hatton to Othello will be undergoing pavement repairs July 8-9. And a 30-mile stretch of the highway from Royal City to Vantage (mileposts 31 to 1) will undergo repairs July 10 and 11. The work entails chip-sealing and c...
SPOKANE — Ratepayers who purchase electricity from Avista may have their power turned off on windy, hot summer days when utility officials deem fire danger high. According to company officials, Avista’s so-called “Public Safety Power Shutoff” plan is in response to summer conditions in Eastern Washington. When high winds are forecast, company employees may increase sensitivity on power lines, officials said. The increased sensitivity could lead to more and prolonged power outages. Officials said ratepayers will be notifie...
MESA — A Lind woman is facing charges related to an embezzlement case in Franklin County. Charmain Mary Halverson, 50, of Lind, was arrested June 26 on charges of theft, injury to public record, misappropriation by treasurer and official misconduct. She was arrested, booked into the Franklin County Jail and then released on bail. According to the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Halverson was the clerk-treasurer for the city of Mesa, where she allegedly used the city’s debit...
KENNEWICK — A Pasco man may be facing charges following a June 20 crash that injured two girls on the Kennewick side of the blue bridge. Jesse Moctezuma Chino, 25, of Pasco, was northbound on U.S. Highway 395 on the bridge at about 9:12 p.m. when his 2000 Honda Accord struck a northbound tractor trailer, the Washington State Patrol reported. The tractor-trailer, a 2025 Freightliner towing a 2015 utility trailer, was driven by Nolan G. Williams of Albany, Ore. Neither Williams nor Chino was injured in the crash, the patrol r...
VERNITA - If you like spending a week or more fishing for salmon and camping on the Columbia River adjacent to Vernita Bridge, your days are numbered. On Monday, June 17, the state Department of Fish and Wildlife announced plans to limit the number of days fishermen can camp at the water-access area just upstream the bridge during fall salmon seasons in 2024 and 2025. During the fall salmon season, fishermen will be allowed to camp a maximum of 14 days each of the next two...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Biden Administration on Tuesday, June 18, announced the creation of a new Columbia River Task Force to guide efforts to breach dams on the Columbia and Snake Rivers. Simultaneously, the administration released a Department of the Interior report finding that the dams are detrimental to American Indian tribes in the region. The Biden Administration named Democrat operative Nik Blosser to lead the task force. Blosser is the former chief of staff for Oregon Governor Kate Brown and a former Biden A...
PASCO — A one-vehicle crash at the U.S. Highway 395-Court Street interchange left two people hospitalized Tuesday night, June 18. Diego A. Galvez-Gutierrez, 20, and Luciano M. Galvez, 64, both of Pasco, were injured and transported to a Richland hospital. According to the Washington State Patrol, both men were wearing seatbelts when the northbound 2006 Dodge Ram pickup driven by Galvez-Gutierrez struck a guardrail. Galvez-Gutierrez swerved and overcorrected, causing the crash, the patrol said. Neither drugs nor alcohol was a...
CHENEY – A longtime local resident and former mayor has joined the newsroom staff at the Cheney Free Press. Allan Gainer, 62, brings eight years as a newspaper editor and television reporter for Navy Broadcasting to the local newspaper. He gained his experience while serving in the U.S. Navy. "I like being part of this community," Gainer said. "It's a great town. "I want to tell the stories of the people of Cheney and Medical Lake." "Allen's knowledge of the area and the i...
It's no secret that things just keep getting more expensive. From home prices to personal goods, the cost of living in the U.S. has increased 22% since 2019, leaving consumers searching for ways to combat rising costs. As Americans scramble to find better ways to budget, one historically wallet-friendly option, fast food, is becoming less and less of a cost-saver. In fact, fast food price hikes have outpaced the national inflation rate in some instances, prompting backlash onl...
PASCO – The state Department of Fish and Wildlife is seeking public input on a review of whether to continue to list the Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit on the endangered species list. "The Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit was considered extinct in Washington by 2004 but has since been reintroduced through captive breeding and translocation programs," state biologist Gerald Hayes said. According to Hayes, the agency is recommending the rabbit remain listed as endangered. The pygmy r...
PORTLAND, Ore. — An Eastern Oregon man convicted of raping two children in an Othello hotel has been sentenced to more than 12 years in federal prison. Albert Wayne Johnson, 42, was sentenced to 151 months in federal prison and 10 years of probation. U.S. District Court documents show that on Aug. 8, 2022, deputies from the Clackamas County, Ore., Sheriff’s Office responded to a call of two minors abandoned at Barton Park in Boring, Ore. The children told the deputies they met Johnson on Snapchat and that he had driven them f...
A G5 (extreme) geomagnetic storm resulted in one of the most brilliant displays of northern lights, scientifically known as aurora borealis, on Friday night, May 10. The colorful aerial display was visible across Eastern Washington. Pictured, the colorful sky silhouettes farm buildings....
RITZVILLE — Adams County Sheriff Dale Wagner attended an agriculture threats symposium April 22. Presenters at the event included Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Spokane, as well as the FBI’s Stephanie Normand, U.S. Agriculture Ambassador Greeg Doud and agriculture negotiator Kip Tom, among others. The symposium focused on the security of agricultural and rural communities. “This symposium is an invaluable opportunity to enhance our understanding of the challenges facing our agricultural sector and to collaborate on effec...
RITZVILLE — Sen. Mark Schoesler is following a gun case in Western Washington closely. On Monday, April 8, Cowlitz County Superior Court Judge Gary Bashor ruled that the 2022 state law banning high-capacity magazines is unconstitutional. “As you might guess, Attorney General Bob Ferguson did not take this news well,” Schoesler, R-Ritzville, said in an email. The case involves Gator Custom Guns in Kelso, which was sued by the state in an effort to stop the business from selling magazines capable of holding more than 10 round...
WENATCHEE — A Chelan County gubernatorial hopeful and former King County Sheriff has the most support in a poll on who should replace Gov. Jay Inslee. In an Echelon Insights poll on behalf of Concerned Taxpayers of Washington, former Rep. Dave Reichert, a Republican, leads Robert “Bob” Ferguson, the Democrat state attorney general by 9 points. The candidates are the Top 2 in the race to replace Gov. Jay Inslee, D-Bainbridge Island. They will be on the Aug. 6 primary election ballot; both are expected to advance to the Nov....
With a little patience and a high-density filter, Eastern Washington residents were able to catch a glimpse of the Monday, April 8, solar eclipse. In our region, at about 11:35 a.m., the moon covered from 26.1-28.5% of the sun. The partial eclipse began here at 10:39 a.m. and ended at 12:31 p.m....
CONNELL — The city has received a state Transportation Improvement Board grant to upgrade signage for school zones. The grant will allow the city to replace temporary signs with flashing signs, officials said. The flashing signs are programable and include radar to tell drivers how fast they are going in the school zone. As the signs are upgraded, the city will also repaint the crosswalks in front of the school zone. City officials hope to have the updates in place late this summer, just prior to the start of the 2024-25 s...
Humans have been looking to the sky to make sense of the world around us for thousands of years. Ancient cave paintings seem to show humans began using the position of the stars to keep track of time as early as 40,000 years ago. Archaeological evidence also indicates astronomy was one of the first natural sciences developed by many ancient civilizations. Based on the earliest recorded history, humans have long tried to assign scientific, philosophical, and spiritual meaning...
PASCO- A second man has been arrested in connection with an odometer fraud case out of Othello. Terry Ryan Cissne, 49, of Pasco, was arrested Thursday, April 4, and booked into the Franklin County Jail on charges of second-degree theft and driving under the influence. Additional charges are expected to be filed in connection with the odometer fraud case out of Adams County. Cissne is the second to be arrested in the case being investigated by the Adams County Sheriff's Office...
If it feels like GPS has been around forever, that's because it has. Well, at least the human brain-powered version. People have been making their way around the world—with and without maps—for ages. It is a true survival instinct. It has been just a few decades since humans outsourced their wayfinding to global navigation satellite systems. The United States only completed its global positioning system in 1993. Perhaps because superpowers don't want to rely on something out...
PASCO — A teenage boy was booked into the Benton Franklin Juvenile Justice Center after being caught driving a stolen vehicle here March 28. The boy, whose name has yet to be released, was speeding on Pasco-Kahlotus Road when Franklin County Sheriff’s Office deputies spotted him, records show. A deputy ran the vehicle license and learned it had been reported stolen from Kennewick, records show. As the teenager raced toward Pasco pursued by a deputy, city police were called in to assist. Pasco police stopped the vehicle and...
