Egg-farm fire is investigated
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SMOKEY POINT - A team of national investigators was expected to arrive today to determine whether arson is to blame for the blaze that destroyed a chicken-farm warehouse early yesterday.
Firefighters from eight Snohomish County departments responded to the 2:15 a.m. fire at the National Food Corp. egg farm, in an unincorporated area just south of the Arlington Airport.
The farm's 500,000 chickens and the egg-processing plant were not damaged.
The Snohomish County Fire Marshal's Office, which is leading the local investigation, asked for help from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms (ATF), routine for fire damage of $1 million or more, Deputy Fire Marshal Ed Hardesty said.
Inmate stabbed at Clallam Bay prison
CLALLAM BAY, Clallam County - An inmate was stabbed at the state prison in this Olympic Peninsula town, and another inmate is under investigation, prison officials and Clallam County sheriff's deputies said.
Robert P. Gomez, 25, was listed in stable condition at Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles early this morning with four stab wounds in his chest and one in his hand. A doctor in the emergency room said the wounds could have been fatal, a news release from the sheriff's office said.
Gomez told a sheriff's deputy he was stabbed from behind by an inmate he identified as "Casper" about 9 p.m. yesterday. Investigators have determined the inmate's real name and that he and Gomez are members of a gang called "The Thirteen's."
LeAnne Fletcher, a prison spokeswoman, said Gomez waved down a guard after he was stabbed in a dayroom of the close custody unit. The weapon was described by sheriff's deputies as an ice pick, but Fletcher said there are no ice picks in the prison.
Gomez has been in prison since December on a conviction for second-degree assault and intimidating a witness in Yakima County and is scheduled for release in October 2002.
Arizona school employees charged with arson
SEATTLE - An Arizona high school principal, two school employees and another man have been charged with arson after allegedly setting fire to a Tukwila home owned by the principal, say charging documents filed in King County Superior Court.
Judith Mahler, 59, Jose Carrasco, 45, and Belinda, 39, and Eric Reeves, 48, all of Arizona, are charged with first-degree arson.
Court documents say that Mahler hired the others, who were also employees of Desert Technology High, a charter school in Lake Havasu City, to burn the house at 15826 42nd Ave. S. so she allegedly could collect insurance money.
Carrasco allegedly lit a fire Aug. 19, changed his mind and put it out, but returned in October and again lit a fire, which did minimal damage.
Court documents say that Mahler then hired the Reeves, offering them $10,000 to set fire to the house, which they allegedly did Dec. 12.
The house sustained $118,000 damage.
In addition to being accused of arson, Mahler has also been charged in Arizona with theft of $28,000 in school funds and other charges.
Quake damage keeps Hwy. 202 section closed
SNOQUALMIE - A one-mile stretch of Highway 202 west of Snoqualmie Falls, where the Feb. 28 Nisqually earthquake split the pavement, will stay closed for at least another month because the ground continues to shift.
New cracks a half-inch thick have appeared, in addition to a 900-foot-long crack that occurred shortly after the quake.
Repairs will be delayed, pending results of more ground monitoring.
Ferry service to Sidney canceled for repairs
SEATTLE - Mechanical problems have canceled Washington state ferry service from Anacortes to Sidney, B.C., through Monday.
Regular service in the San Juan Islands is being maintained with another vessel, ferry system spokeswoman Susan Harris-Huether said.
Man, 23, who died in fire likely committed suicide
KENT - A 23-year-old man killed in an apartment fire Wednesday apparently committed suicide, authorities said.
The King County Medical Examiner's Office yesterday concluded that the man died from burns over 70 percent of his body.
Kent police and fire investigators said evidence indicated that the man had tried to electrocute himself in a bathtub filled with water before he poured a flammable liquid in the apartment and set it on fire.
Bothell panel upholds firing of former police captain
BOTHELL - The city Civil Services Commission yesterday upheld the firing of Michael Gleason, a former police captain involved in an alleged domestic-violence incident.
Gleason, a 20-year veteran, was fired in July after an internal investigation concluded he had assaulted his ex-girlfriend in April 1999. Gleason is also accused of making false statements to a police captain investigating the incident.
Gleason appealed because he was never charged by the King County Prosecutor's Office. But the three-member commission that heard the appeal said Gleason was dishonest and "cast a discredit upon the department."
Gleason can sue to get his job back.
Man arrested in second robbery at same bank
ISSAQUAH - Police arrested a robbery suspect about 1:30 p.m. yesterday, shortly after a man confronted employees at the First Mutual Bank on the 800 block of Rainier Boulevard North, waved a handgun and demanded money.
Police say the man robbed the same bank in January. He was caught then, too.
This time, a witness saw the robber leave the bank and change clothing before driving away. The witness called police and described the vehicle, including a partial license-plate number.
Police stopped the car nearby and took the suspected robber into custody. The gun and money were recovered.
Mardi Gras task forces appointed to study violence
SEATTLE - Mayor Paul Schell has announced more than 50 people from business, government, activist groups, education, law enforcement and the clergy to serve on three task forces looking into Mardi Gras night violence.
The panels will study what planning mistakes and societal problems may have played a role in the riot, which left one man dead and more than 70 people injured.
By the end of June, the task forces are expected to make recommendations on how Mardi Gras and other events should be handled in Pioneer Square; how new safety precautions might help at celebrations such as Bumbershoot, Seafair and Bite of Seattle; and what can be done to help troubled young people.
Police tactics in dealing with the mob will not be evaluated.
Hit-run driver sought in death of young man
AUBURN - The State Patrol is searching for a driver who failed to stop after killing a young pedestrian near Cooper's Corner on Highway 164 yesterday morning.
The victim, believed to be about 18, was found about 4 a.m. in the 37100 block of the highway. He died at the scene, according to Trooper Monica Hunter of the State Patrol.
Witnesses told troopers that the man was hit by a late-1980s, two-door silver sports car that was traveling west. The car would have front-end damage.
Mukilteo Speedway exit to be closed for weekend
SEATTLE - If the weather is dry this weekend, drivers going north on Highway 99 won't be able to get onto southbound Highway 525, the Mukilteo Speedway. The exit will be closed from 10 p.m. today until 5 a.m. Monday while crews continue work on the new interchange between the two state highways.
Information is from Seattle Times staff and news services.