UW fraternity, family settle wrongful-death suit
Brett Jensen, a 4.0 graduate of Cascade High School, died in May 2002 after falling 30 feet from a balcony at Pi Kappa Phi fraternity.
That night, he had participated in a "Century Club" party, which involved drinking a shot of beer every minute for 100 minutes, according to the family's lawyer, Mark A. Johnson. Initially, officials at the fraternity's national headquarters in North Carolina denied there had been a party that night.
Jensen's parents, Don and Jan Jensen, settled with the fraternity for a confidential amount, and there is no admission of wrongdoing, Johnson said. The family will use a portion of the settlement for a scholarship in Brett Jensen's name.
Everett
Pedestrian struck by two cars in Everett
An unidentified man was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle last night after being hit by two cars in South Everett, a sheriff's official said.
The man, a pedestrian walking near the junction of 128th Street Southwest and Airport Road, was hit by a car and sent 100 feet through the air, said Snohomish County sheriff's spokeswoman Jan Jorgensen.
When he landed, he was run over by a second vehicle, driven by an elderly woman. Jorgensen had no information on his condition.
Everett
Rival gang killing results in charges
A Federal Way man accused of fatally shooting a rival gang member in Everett on Sept. 26 was charged yesterday with first-degree murder.
Leonel Cortez, 25, will be arraigned today in Snohomish County District Court. Cortez allegedly shot Florencio Perez Silva, 25, of Pasco, who was found dead in a driveway in the 12100 block of 11th Place West.
Witnesses said they'd seen Cortez get into Silva's vehicle before the shooting, according to a search warrant filed yesterday in Snohomish County Superior Court.
Authorities believe Cortez is also a material witness in the attempted shooting of two federal agents in Federal Way on Oct. 18.
Fort Lewis
Teen dies when car hits dump truck
A Tacoma teen died yesterday morning near Fort Lewis when his car slammed into an oncoming dump truck.
Dwayne Darling, 19, was trying to pass a moving van traveling south on two-lane Highway 507 about 9 a.m. when he hit the northbound dump truck.
Seattle
Police arrest man they say fired at them
Police arrested a man last night who they say shot at them in a downtown Seattle alley.
Police reported firing one shot in return, but no one was hit or injured.
Officers were called to an apartment in the 800 block of Spring Street about 6:30 a.m. to find a 20-year-old woman who had been beaten up during a fight over money, police spokesman Sean Whitcomb said. A second woman, 24, who police said came to the aid of the 20-year-old, also was injured.
A search for the women's assailant led officers into an alley between Eighth and Ninth avenues north of Spring Street, Whitcomb said.
A single gunshot was fired at the officers, and one officer fired one shot in return. Three men in the alley then surrendered, and officers recovered the gun they believe was used to shoot at them, Whitcomb said.
Police released the three men, saying they were only witnesses. Investigators arrested the suspect in the shooting after a pursuit late last night.
The suspect broadsided an Audi before his arrest. The Audi driver was taken to Harborview Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, police said. The suspect, who appeared to be in his 30s, wasn't injured.
Seattle
Three high schools figure well in math contest
Three area high schools placed among the top 20 in a national mathematics contest last month.
Students from the Federal Way School District's Thomas Jefferson High School in Auburn finished sixth nationally in the 2004 Team Scramble Oct. 21. Seattle's Garfield High placed 14th and Bellevue High School was 15th in the contest, which is administered by National Assessment & Testing.
The scramble involved teams answering 100 problems in a variety of mathematical topics in 30 minutes. The schools will next participate in the 2004 Ciphering Time Trials Dec. 9.
Olympia
Drivers can renew their licenses online
As of yesterday, Washington drivers can renew licenses or identification cards over the Internet, at https://fortress.wa.gov/dol/olr/.
To be eligible, drivers must be between 25 and 65 to renew a driver's license, or over age 25 to renew an ID card.
They must not have any medical or vision conditions that require a physician's certification, must have a Social Security number and digital photo on file with the Department of Licensing (DOL) and the ability to pay with a credit card.
Those eligible will receive a special renewal notice that will include a personal-authorization number and instructions to complete the process. The cost is the same as renewing at a licensing office, $25 for driver's licenses and $15 for ID cards.
Licenses will be mailed, using the photos already on file with DOL.
Puyallup
Head-on crash kills two in Puyallup
Two people died in a head-on crash, one of them the brother of two men who were shot to death more than six years ago in the worst mass killing in Tacoma.
Hieu Le, 17, of Tacoma died Friday evening when a car slammed into an oncoming sport-utility vehicle, police said. One of the three other passengers in the same car was dead on arrival at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma.
The driver was being treated at Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup.
A woman who was driving the SUV was treated for minor injuries, and her son escaped injury, police said.
Le was the last son of three in his family. His two brothers, Duy Quang Le, 25, and Hai Quang Le, 27, were among five people shot to death July 5, 1998, in a gang-related attack at Trang Dai Cafe in Tacoma.
Times staff and news services